2026 Edition · An annual reference on what work pays

New York vs. San Francisco

Executive Secretaries and Executive Administrative Assistants. Median, spread and buying power, side by side.

Data released May 2025 BLS OEWS · SOC 43-6011
Fig. 1 — Side by side

Both distributions, one scale

10th to 90th percentile, median struck in red
75k100k125k150k NEW YORK $83,840 SAN FRANCISCO $105,190
Table 1 — Adjusted

San Francisco's median is 25.5% higher — but after local prices, San Francisco still leads by 22.2%.

New York's median $83,840 buys $74,500 at national prices (price parity 112.6); San Francisco's $105,190 buys $91,000 (115.6).

Table 2 — The figures

Point by point

Published percentiles for both metros; the last column is San Francisco against New York.

New YorkSan FranciscoΔ
Employment76,95011,250−85.4%
10th percentile$63,320$69,990+10.5%
25th percentile$74,080$86,130+16.3%
Median$83,840$105,190+25.5%
75th percentile$102,020$127,280+24.8%
90th percentile$124,970$151,750+21.4%
Sources

How this page was made

Wage data
Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 release. Public domain.
Price parity
Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.
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Executive Secretaries and Executive Administrative Assistants in New York · Executive Secretaries and Executive Administrative Assistants in San Francisco

Percentiles are reported exactly as released. Derived (price-adjusted) figures round to the nearest hundred. We take no payment for how any figure is presented.