Highest-paying Cities for Athletes and Sports Competitors

The top 100 highest paying cities for athletes and sports competitors (ranked by average annual salary) are listed in Table 1. The entry level salary (as measured by the salary of the lowest 10% paid earners) and the number of employment of athletes and sports competitors in those cities are also shown in the table. As shown in the table, with a annual salary of $215,530, Denver-Aurora-Broomfield, Colorado is the highest paying city for athletes and sports competitors. It is followed by New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, New York (average annual salary $199,990). The salary and employment information is computed from data published by U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) in April 2023 [1]. For more salary information of athletes and sports competitors in a specific city, use the links in the table.

Table 1. 100 Highest-paying cities/areas for Athletes and Sports Competitors

Rank	City/Area	Average Salary i	Entry Level Salary i	# of Empl. i
1	Denver-Aurora-Broomfield, Colorado	$215,530	$57,100	260
2	New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, New York	$199,990	$65,580	460
3	Kansas City, Missouri	$186,170	$39,960	170
4	Edison-New Brunswick, New Jersey	$157,490	$21,360	n/a
5	Indianapolis-Carmel, Indiana	$130,040	$30,550	240
6	North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota, Florida	$128,160	$49,790	130
7	Tampa-St Petersburg-Clearwater, Florida	$125,630	$24,470	430
8	Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, Florida	$125,110	$58,770	310
9	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	$114,980	$40,840	120
10	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, Pennsylvania	$108,530	$27,940	190
11	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, Florida	$102,550	$47,470	470
12	Cape Coral-Fort Myers, Florida	$102,120	$23,930	170
13	Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, Connecticut	$101,540	$38,830	50
14	West Palm Beach-Boca Raton-Boynton Beach, Florida	$99,580	$43,820	160
15	Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, Massachusetts	$99,060	$61,160	320
16	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, Georgia	$88,660	$48,610	40
17	Salt Lake City, Utah	$87,000	$17,790	220
18	Cedar Rapids, Iowa	$83,910	$31,170	n/a
19	Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, Connecticut	$80,460	$40,350	130
20	New Orleans-Metairie-Kenner, Louisiana	$79,680	$30,820	170
21	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, Washington	$79,400	$30,620	120
22	Buffalo-Niagara Falls, New York	$76,740	$37,240	50
23	Harrisburg-Carlisle, Pennsylvania	$67,400	$17,610	40
24	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, California	$67,210	$22,210	490
25	Ann Arbor, Michigan	$67,090	$33,930	60
26	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania	$65,040	$24,280	30
27	Lowell-Billerica-Chelmsford, New Hampshire	$64,400	$34,110	n/a
28	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, California	$63,320	$30,950	300
29	Des Moines-West Des Moines, Iowa	$63,320	$30,150	50
30	Norwich-New London, Rhode Island	$62,900	$33,120	100
31	Naples-Marco Island, Florida	$62,620	$36,350	50
32	Newark-Union, Pennsylvania	$62,490	$40,730	30
33	Charlotte-Gastonia-Rock Hill, South Carolina	$60,830	$22,760	370
34	Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, Texas	$59,490	$62,840	160
35	Seattle-Bellevue-Everett, Washington	$59,370	$22,760	60
36	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, California	$59,310	$21,320	270
37	Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, Massachusetts	$58,030	$25,540	330
38	Chicago-Joliet-Naperville (IL Metropolitan Division), Illinois	$57,330	$20,010	250
39	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, Washington	$57,180	$21,890	100
40	Providence-Fall River-Warwick, Rhode Island	$56,980	$21,020	n/a
41	Miami-Miami Beach-Kendall, Florida	$55,670	$35,050	150
42	Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, California	$54,790	$21,860	n/a
43	Detroit-Warren-Livonia, Michigan	$54,500	$20,970	70
44	Baltimore-Towson, Maryland	$52,840	$42,000	30
45	Raleigh-Cary, North Carolina	$52,480	$22,350	190
46	Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, Virginia	$51,950	$19,760	n/a
47	New Haven, Connecticut	$51,770	$23,830	n/a
48	Omaha-Council Bluffs, Nebraska	$51,700	$19,720	80
49	Bethesda-Rockville-Frederick, Maryland	$51,010	$31,220	40
50	Lake County-Kenosha County, Wisconsin	$50,780	$27,210	40
51	Cleveland-Elyria-Mentor, Ohio	$49,430	$77,880	50
52	St Louis, Missouri	$49,330	$22,880	40
53	New York-White Plains-Wayne, New York	$48,730	$27,930	190
54	Boise City-Nampa, Idaho	$48,690	$40,130	30
55	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, District of Columbia	$47,710	$31,200	90
56	Grand Rapids-Wyoming, Michigan	$46,820	$41,790	60
57	Midland, Texas	$46,630	$41,550	n/a
58	Port St Lucie, Florida	$46,360	$18,570	40
59	Louisville-Jefferson County, Kentucky	$46,010	$27,770	60
60	Scranton--Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania	$45,290	$17,340	40
61	Myrtle Beach-North Myrtle Beach-Conway, South Carolina	$43,730	$17,200	40
62	Rochester, New York	$42,880	$20,450	n/a
63	Springfield, Missouri	$41,930	$18,840	n/a
64	Lancaster, Pennsylvania	$40,240	$21,780	n/a
65	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, West Virginia	$39,910	$26,410	50
66	Warren-Troy-Farmington Hills, Michigan	$39,790	$17,710	70
67	Greenville-Mauldin-Easley, South Carolina	$39,090	$24,060	40
68	Columbus, Ohio	$38,790	$73,000	220
69	Minneapolis-St Paul-Bloomington, Wisconsin	$38,670	$63,340	120
70	Florence, South Carolina	$38,590	$27,670	n/a
71	Richmond, Virginia	$38,560	$17,500	n/a
72	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, Tennessee	$37,350	$19,450	280
73	Tulsa, Oklahoma	$37,310	$17,580	100
74	Charleston-North Charleston-Summerville, South Carolina	$37,240	$18,860	40
75	Memphis, Tennessee	$36,290	$21,460	150
76	Sebastian-Vero Beach, Florida	$33,970	$25,760	50
77	Columbia, South Carolina	$33,370	$19,370	40
78	Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, Pennsylvania	$33,280	$21,380	150
79	Provo-Orem, Utah	$33,270	$16,400	50
80	Chicago-Joliet-Naperville (IL-IN-WI Area), Illinois	$33,230	$22,880	180
81	Worcester, Massachusetts	$33,060	$23,390	70
82	Jackson, Mississippi	$32,260	$18,820	30
83	Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach, Florida	$31,900	$18,070	120
84	Gainesville, Florida	$31,110	$19,810	n/a
85	Oklahoma City, Oklahoma	$30,950	$20,050	90
86	Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, Wisconsin	$30,940	$23,490	60
87	Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, Florida	$30,620	$21,420	30
88	Las Vegas-Paradise, Nevada	$29,880	$24,470	40
89	Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach-Deerfield Beach, Florida	$28,630	$25,830	30
90	Jacksonville, Florida	$28,370	$17,000	n/a
91	Phoenix-Mesa-Glendale, Arizona	$28,320	$27,890	640
92	Birmingham-Hoover, Alabama	$27,510	$24,360	140
93	Colorado Springs, Colorado	$27,000	$21,220	n/a
94	Greeley, Colorado	$23,260	$19,460	30
95	Ocala, Florida	$23,180	$20,790	50
96	Reading, Pennsylvania	$22,080	$16,690	60
97	Lakeland-Winter Haven, Florida	$22,070	$18,480	180
98	York-Hanover, Pennsylvania	$20,310	$16,540	80
99	Reno-Sparks, Nevada	$18,980	$15,890	130
100	Lexington-Fayette, Kentucky	$18,230	$16,240	110

See also: 💰 Highest paying industries for athletes and sports competitors.