Median pay for marketing managers runs from $80,200 in Morgantown to $231,370 in San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara — a 2.88× range across 440 metropolitan areas. The national median of $166,790 sits inside that range but describes no particular market.
The top tenth of marketing managers earn $293,610 or more; the bottom tenth earn under $90,260. That is a 3.25× gap within the same occupation, in the same year. A spread this wide means the job title is not what determines pay — specialisation, employer type, seniority or book of business is. Expect the early years to sit near the bottom of the band rather than the middle, and treat the $166,790 median as a waypoint, not a destination.
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara (CA) leads and Morgantown (WV) trails, but the gap is modest. For a role like this the more useful comparison is not between cities but between the 10th and 90th percentile within one — see the band above.
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara CA | $231,370 | $111.24 | 2.53 | 7,300 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont CA | $220,480 | $106.00 | 1.85 | 11,170 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton MA-NH | $213,910 | $102.84 | 1.74 | 11,940 |
| Billings MT | $212,760 | $102.29 | 0.68 | 160 |
| Trenton-Princeton NJ | $208,440 | $100.21 | 2.04 | 1,250 |
| Topeka KS | $205,310 | $98.71 | 0.63 | 190 |
| Boulder CO | $199,570 | $95.95 | 1.29 | 630 |
| Worcester MA | $199,280 | $95.81 | 0.67 | 590 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City NY-NJ | $192,840 | $92.71 | 2.27 | 54,730 |
| Greeley CO | $190,410 | $91.54 | 0.34 | 100 |
| Fort Collins-Loveland CO | $189,690 | $91.20 | 0.59 | 250 |
| Cheyenne WY | $183,540 | $88.24 | 0.27 | 30 |
| Dover DE | $182,640 | $87.81 | 0.31 | 50 |
| Denver-Aurora-Centennial CO | $182,470 | $87.73 | 1.03 | 4,220 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria DC-VA-MD-WV | $181,260 | $87.14 | 1.12 | 8,900 |
| Springfield MA | $181,070 | $87.05 | 0.56 | 290 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue WA | $175,850 | $84.55 | 1.27 | 6,720 |
| Rochester MN | $175,280 | $84.27 | 0.4 | 120 |
| Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers AR | $175,260 | $84.26 | 1.16 | 810 |
| Durham-Chapel Hill NC | $175,160 | $84.21 | 1.41 | 1,230 |
| San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad CA | $174,840 | $84.06 | 0.97 | 3,790 |
| Richmond VA | $174,130 | $83.71 | 0.65 | 1,090 |
| Southwest Colorado nonmetropolitan area | $173,920 | $83.62 | 0.24 | 70 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington MN-WI | $173,040 | $83.19 | 1.31 | 6,480 |
| Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro OR-WA | $172,610 | $82.99 | 1.32 | 4,050 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Morgantown WV | $80,200 | $38.56 | 0.37 | 60 |
| Santa Fe NM | $88,390 | $42.50 | 0.47 | 70 |
| Lower West Mississippi nonmetropolitan area | $88,850 | $42.71 | 0.17 | 30 |
| Hot Springs AR | $92,100 | $44.28 | 0.44 | 40 |
| Lower East Mississippi nonmetropolitan area | $92,790 | $44.61 | 0.21 | 60 |
| Fort Smith AR-OK | $93,990 | $45.19 | 0.35 | 90 |
| Cape Girardeau MO-IL | $94,750 | $45.55 | 0.45 | 50 |
| Tuscaloosa AL | $96,520 | $46.41 | 0.2 | 60 |
| Lebanon PA | $97,940 | $47.09 | 0.31 | 40 |
| Montgomery AL | $99,040 | $47.61 | 0.24 | 100 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara CA | $231,370 | $111.24 | 2.53 | 7,300 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City NY-NJ | $192,840 | $92.71 | 2.27 | 54,730 |
| Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos TX | $164,920 | $79.29 | 2.18 | 7,170 |
| Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury CT | $169,240 | $81.36 | 2.1 | 2,150 |
| Trenton-Princeton NJ | $208,440 | $100.21 | 2.04 | 1,250 |
| Provo-Orem-Lehi UT | $158,630 | $76.27 | 2.02 | 1,560 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont CA | $220,480 | $106.00 | 1.85 | 11,170 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton MA-NH | $213,910 | $102.84 | 1.74 | 11,940 |
| Salt Lake City-Murray UT | $139,830 | $67.23 | 1.63 | 3,420 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington TX | $155,460 | $74.74 | 1.59 | 16,320 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin IL-IN | $165,340 | $79.49 | 1.52 | 17,400 |
| Durham-Chapel Hill NC | $175,160 | $84.21 | 1.41 | 1,230 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York-Newark-Jersey City NY-NJ | $192,840 | $92.71 | 2.27 | 54,730 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim CA | $171,900 | $82.64 | 1.16 | 18,550 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin IL-IN | $165,340 | $79.49 | 1.52 | 17,400 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington TX | $155,460 | $74.74 | 1.59 | 16,320 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton MA-NH | $213,910 | $102.84 | 1.74 | 11,940 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont CA | $220,480 | $106.00 | 1.85 | 11,170 |
| Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands TX | $153,030 | $73.57 | 1.07 | 8,930 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria DC-VA-MD-WV | $181,260 | $87.14 | 1.12 | 8,900 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington PA-NJ-DE-MD | $166,310 | $79.96 | 1.12 | 8,270 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach FL | $135,870 | $65.32 | 1.05 | 7,530 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara CA | $231,370 | $111.24 | 2.53 | 7,300 |
| Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos TX | $164,920 | $79.29 | 2.18 | 7,170 |
Figures come from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics programme, May 2025 release, SOC code 11-2021. OEWS surveys employers, so it reports what is actually paid rather than what job advertisements claim, and it excludes the self-employed. Estimates are published for 440 of 528 metropolitan areas; the remaining 88 had too few survey responses for BLS to publish without risking disclosure, so they are absent here rather than estimated. For a specialised role that is normal. Read the methodology.