The PayScale Index » Metro Area Rankings

The PayScale Index (US): Trends in Compensation

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Wage Trends by Metro Area

In the last year, where did wages increase the most overall and where did they dip the deepest? PayScale looked at the top metro areas by population and then listed them from best to worst in terms of wage improvement for jobs. See who came out on top and who has a ways to go.

Rank	Metro Area	Q1 2012 Year-Over-Year Percentage Change in Pay
1	Seattle	3.2%
2	Houston	2.7%
3	Philadelphia	1.8%
4	St. Louis	1.7%
5 - Tie	Dallas	1.5%
5 - Tie	Washington, D.C.	1.5%
7	Chicago	1.4%
8	Atlanta	1.3%
9	Boston	1.2%
10 - Tie	New York	1.1%
10 - Tie	Los Angeles	1.1%
12 - Tie	San Francisco	1.0%
12 - Tie	Minneapolis	1.0%
12 - Tie	San Diego	1.0%
15 - Tie	Detroit	0.5%
15 - Tie	Tampa	0.5%
17	Miami	0.3%
18	Riverside	-0.3%
19	Phoenix	-0.5%
20	Baltimore	-0.7%

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Methodology for The PayScale Index: Trends in Compensation

The PayScale Index tracks quarterly changes in total cash compensation for full-time, private industry employees in the United States. In addition to a national index, it includes separate indices for specific industries, metropolitan areas, job categories, and company sizes. The PayScale Index uses 2006 average total cash compensation as a baseline.

See full methodology for compensation trend reports.

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