Side-by-side distribution
California
$155,000
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 73.7%
- Live roles
- 13,891
Colorado
$117,500
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 69.3%
- Live roles
- 2,372
Highest-paying jobs
Wholesale Account Executive, National
Senior Product Sourcing Engineer, Autonomous Airpower
Co-Founder & CEO - AI Retail Planning Autopilot
Account Director - Growth Marketing (Paid Social)
Co-Founder & CEO - AI Retail Planning Autopilot
Strategic Account Executive - San Francisco (Remote)
Field Applications Engineer
Analog Mixed-Signal Design Engineer
Senior Software Engineer, Machine Learning (Audio)
Business Development Manager
Highest-paying jobs
Executive Operations & Advancement Associate at Hillel of Colorado
Transaction Advisory Services (TAS) – Private Equity Principal
Psychiatrist (MD / DO)
Principal/Partner - Forensic Accounting & Litigation Support
Anesthesiologist
Psychiatrist Medical Director
Physical Design Engineer
Physical Design Engineer - STA
Staff Technical Program Manager, Physical Design
Full-Chip Physical Design Verification Engineer
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
|
Anduril Industries
|
$170,000 | 1,258 |
Databricks
|
$216,104 | 270 |
Relativity Space
|
$165,000 | 236 |
NoGigiddy
|
$43,680 | 200 |
Cheer Home Care
|
$44,720 | 178 |
Revolution Medicines
|
$233,000 | 166 |
Archer
|
$171,100 | 154 |
ALO
|
$79,175 | 145 |
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
|
Serenity Mental Health Centers
|
$73,840 | 99 |
|
NoGigiddy
|
$42,640 | 88 |
|
Anduril Industries
|
$167,000 | 65 |
Amazing Care Home Health Services
|
$50,960 | 55 |
Datadog
|
$144,500 | 37 |
Fivetran
|
$189,758 | 31 |
Woven Care
|
$75,452 | 30 |
SciTec
|
$135,250 | 28 |
Highest-paying roles in California
| Role | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| DevOps | $186,463 | 248 |
| Software Engineer | $185,500 | 2,499 |
| Recruiter | $180,000 | 1,013 |
| Data Scientist | $177,151 | 170 |
| Product Manager | $170,000 | 1,568 |
| Customer Success | $169,950 | 1,954 |
| UX Designer | $165,000 | 35 |
| Sales | $150,000 | 2,085 |
| Project Manager | $149,613 | 930 |
| Marketing Manager | $140,000 | 692 |
Highest-paying roles in Colorado
| Role | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| Data Scientist | $191,500 | 12 |
| Recruiter | $160,000 | 75 |
| Software Engineer | $150,375 | 276 |
| UX Designer | $145,000 | 3 |
| DevOps | $145,000 | 53 |
| Customer Success | $140,000 | 327 |
| Product Manager | $137,500 | 212 |
| Project Manager | $118,500 | 158 |
| Sales | $112,500 | 423 |
| Marketing Manager | $112,500 | 137 |
California vs Colorado: which pays more?
The median for California is $155,000 per year (typically $100,000–$200,000), versus $117,500 for Colorado ($73,840–$165,000). That puts California about 32% ahead at the median.
Both figures are computed live from active listings on JobsRadar and normalized to annualized USD, so California and Colorado are compared on equal terms regardless of the currency each role was originally posted in. Only roles that publish a salary range feed the medians; numbers refresh every few hours as new roles post and older ones close, so this comparison reflects the market right now rather than a fixed survey. Use it as a directional benchmark when weighing one path against the other.