Side-by-side distribution
Program Manager
$170,000
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 55.1%
- Live roles
- 1,914
Project Manager
$122,500
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 30.4%
- Live roles
- 3,387
Highest-paying jobs
Senior Engineering Program Manager II - New Ventures
Technical Program Manager
Technical Program Manager
Sr. Staff Program Manager & Chief of Staff, Operations
Technical Program Manager, Architecture
Staff Technical Program Manager, Physical Design
Technical Program Manager, Product Software
Engineering Program Manager, RISCV
Corporate Program Manager
Technical Program Manager, Strategic Initiatives
Highest-paying jobs
Senior Project Manager (Creative Services)
Seller/Doer Project Manager
Senior Transportation Engineer / Project Manager
Project Manager - Store Growth & Acquisitions
Senior Director, Project Team Leader / Executive Committee Business Manager
Senior Construction Project Manager
Senior Technical Project Manager
Engineering Operations Project Manager
SAP Project Systems Sr. Manager SCON
Senior Project Manager - Civil Transportation
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
Anduril Industries
|
$171,000 | 109 |
|
OpenAI
|
$255,500 | 29 |
Aurora Innovation
|
$221,500 | 22 |
Anthropic
|
$327,500 | 20 |
| AX Axon | $170,625 | 20 |
|
Fluidstack
|
$213,000 | 13 |
| TW Twitch | $156,375 | 12 |
|
Everpure
|
$212,500 | 11 |
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
Atwell, LLC
|
$117,500 | 36 |
| MC Michels Corporation | $125,000 | 35 |
House Buyers of America
|
$105,000 | 31 |
Consigli Construction
|
$128,750 | 28 |
Pulley
|
$130,000 | 22 |
EC Electric
|
$130,000 | 21 |
Woolpert
|
$133,000 | 20 |
LaBella Associates
|
$98,750 | 20 |
Program Manager salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco | $203,400 | 200 |
| Austin | $203,000 | 24 |
| Seattle | $192,489 | 72 |
| New York | $187,000 | 137 |
| Los Angeles | $170,000 | 19 |
| Boston | $168,813 | 50 |
| Denver | $151,051 | 19 |
| Atlanta | $146,500 | 7 |
| Chicago | $137,500 | 15 |
| Toronto | $117,664 | 27 |
Project Manager salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| Austin | $203,000 | 21 |
| San Francisco | $162,500 | 59 |
| Seattle | $144,000 | 21 |
| Los Angeles | $130,000 | 38 |
| Boston | $130,000 | 33 |
| Denver | $130,000 | 23 |
| Atlanta | $126,000 | 9 |
| Chicago | $120,000 | 47 |
| New York | $112,500 | 149 |
| Berlin | $95,570 | 4 |
Program Manager vs Project Manager: which pays more?
The median for Program Manager is $170,000 per year (typically $132,500–$200,475), versus $122,500 for Project Manager ($98,713–$146,381). That puts Program Manager about 39% 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.