A report analyzing records of millions of wages paid in a single year shows more than 1 million people across the country were paid $500,000 or more.
The study, titled “High-Paying Jobs? Are They a Dime a Dozen,” conducted by ADP, a leading management firm that provides payroll and other services, concluded that “every major metro area has a large number of professionals,” Annual revenue exceeds $500,000. Government data, including the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, often conceal the prevalence of high wages by limiting reported wage levels.
The ADP report found that one California city stands out. The San Francisco Bay Area has the highest concentration of jobs paying more than $500,000, “far more” than any other major city. One in every 48 jobs in the Bay Area pays an annual salary of $500,000 or more, nearly twice the rate in Austin, Texas, which has the second-highest concentration.
The Los Angeles and Long Beach areas rank 12th in wage intensity. Just under 1% of employees in Los Angeles and Long Beach earned more than $500,000, while 0.22% earned more than $1 million and 0.06% earned more than $2 million.
The most affluent neighborhoods in the Los Angeles area include Beverly Hills, Pacific Palisades and Malibu, according to the real estate firm.
In the Bay Area, more than 2% of employees earn at least $500,000, 0.54% earn at least $1 million, and 0.15% earn at least $2 million. New York, Boston and Fort Myers, Florida are the other cities with the highest employee salaries, according to ADP.
The report attributes the “unusual concentration” of high earners in San Francisco to Silicon Valley and the tech industry, where top executives and other individuals receive “extraordinary compensation.”
Other high-paid professionals, including doctors and lawyers, also face income limits based on the number of patients or clients they can serve, the report said. In the tech industry, however, there are no such limits to productivity, especially at large companies.
“The Bay Area’s outsized lead likely reflects not only the dominance of technology in its economy and workforce, but also its core position as the industry’s top talent and the corporate giants most reliant on its expertise,” the report said.
While Austin, Texas, which ranks second on ADP’s list, is another tech hub, the Bay Area’s strong focus on tech isn’t the only factor in its unique status. Skyrocketing housing prices in the Bay Area have pushed out low- and middle-income residents, leaving the area’s population dominated by high-income earners.
Nationwide, 0.79% of jobs pay more than $500,000, accounting for more than 1 million jobs. Remote work is attracting high-income earners to desirable locations like Honolulu and parts of Florida.
“High-income earners are not limited to one industry or region,” the report noted. “While technology is at the forefront, high salaries are more common than people think.”
ADP collected salary data from July 1, 2023, to June 30, 2024, for metropolitan areas with more than 1 million residents.
