Side-by-side distribution
Program Manager
$168,386
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 55.2%
- Live roles
- 1,940
Project Manager
$125,000
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 28.7%
- Live roles
- 3,448
Highest-paying jobs
Technical Program Manager, Architecture
Staff Technical Program Manager, Agentic Workflows & Program Intelligence
Sr. Staff Program Manager & Chief of Staff, Operations
Engineering Program Manager, RISCV
Technical Program Manager, Product Software
Program Manager, IP Product
Technical Program Manager, AI Safety & Safeguards
Technical Program Manager, AI Accelerator Software
Technical Program Manager, Enterprise
Technical Program Manager, Model Deployment & Capacity
Highest-paying jobs
Project Manager, ERP Implementation - Contractor
Senior Director, Project Team Leader / Executive Committee Business Manager
Implementation Project Manager
Implementation Project Manager
SAP Project Systems Sr. Manager SCON
Senior Registered Engineer / Project Manager, Electrical
Senior Project Manager (Public)
Senior Data Center Construction Project Manager
Salesforce Project Manager
Software Technical Project Manager - Secret Clearance
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
Anduril Industries
|
$189,500 | 73 |
|
OpenAI
|
$255,500 | 41 |
Anthropic
|
$327,500 | 26 |
| AX Axon | $165,809 | 18 |
Harvey
|
$174,300 | 14 |
Palantir
|
$126,500 | 12 |
| SA Scale AI | $203,400 | 11 |
CoreWeave
|
$183,500 | 10 |
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
House Buyers of America
|
$105,000 | 31 |
Atwell, LLC
|
$117,500 | 29 |
Consigli Construction
|
$133,000 | 25 |
| MC Michels Corporation | $129,000 | 24 |
EC Electric
|
$147,500 | 21 |
BKF
|
$162,500 | 19 |
Apex Companies
|
$130,000 | 19 |
LaBella Associates
|
$102,500 | 19 |
Program Manager salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco | $212,385 | 218 |
| Austin | $206,000 | 20 |
| Seattle | $196,114 | 54 |
| New York | $178,750 | 170 |
| Atlanta | $170,625 | 7 |
| Boston | $170,000 | 33 |
| Los Angeles | $158,750 | 28 |
| London | $157,765 | 6 |
| Chicago | $148,500 | 24 |
| Toronto | $125,000 | 23 |
Project Manager salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| Seattle | $170,750 | 12 |
| San Francisco | $162,500 | 57 |
| Austin | $145,000 | 15 |
| Denver | $137,000 | 21 |
| Los Angeles | $130,000 | 39 |
| Boston | $122,830 | 24 |
| Chicago | $121,065 | 42 |
| New York | $118,938 | 150 |
| Atlanta | $118,750 | 8 |
| London | $102,420 | 11 |
Program Manager vs Project Manager: which pays more?
The median for Program Manager is $168,386 per year (typically $130,000–$203,400), versus $125,000 for Project Manager ($100,300–$150,000). That puts Program Manager about 35% ahead at the median.
Both figures are computed live from active listings on JobsRadar and normalized to annualized USD, so Program Manager and Project Manager 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.