Vallejo Among 2021’s Best Paying Cities: U.S. News

VALLEJO, CA — While the coronavirus pandemic has no doubt affected the prospects of job seekers in California, a new list by U.S. News & World Report shows that Vallejo still ranks among U.S. cities that offer the highest number of best-paying jobs.

To earn a spot on this year’s list, released Tuesday by U.S. News, workers employed in the country’s 100 highest-paying jobs must make more than workers in other cities do in the same occupation.

Vallejo ranked No. 6 on this year's list of the highest-paying U.S. cities. In all, workers here make more in 29 of the top 100 jobs than workers in other cities across the country.

Here’s a look at the city of Vallejo's top five highest-paying jobs, according to data compiled by U.S. News from the Bureau of Labor Statistics:

1. Nurse Anesthetist: $240,820
2. Nurse Practitioner: $175,060
3. Medical and Health Services Manager: $159,190
4. Pharmacist: $158,250
5. Registered Nurse: $131,970

Cities in California dominated this year’s list of highest-paying cities. In all, California cities comprise 10 of the top 20 cities, including two of Vallejo's North Bay neighbors: Santa Rosa (No. 14) and Napa (No. 20).

Here are the top 10 highest-paying cities, according to this year’s list:

1. San Francisco, California
2. San Jose, California
3. New York, New York
4. Bridgeport, Connecticut
5. Seattle, Washington
6. Vallejo, California
7. Salinas, California
8. Washington, District of Columbia
9. Los Angeles, California, and Trenton, New Jersey (tie)
10. Sacramento, California

The 2021 list of highest-paying cities annually accompanies the release of U.S. News’ Best Jobs rankings.

To calculate this year’s best jobs, U.S. News looked at data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics to identify jobs with the greatest hiring demand. Jobs are then scored in seven areas: 10-year growth volume, 10-year growth percentage, median salary, employment rate, future job prospects, stress level and work-life balance.

Read more about U.S. News’ methodology for compiling this year’s list.

At a time when health care is more critical than ever, jobs from the sector dominate this year’s list — 42 of the country’s 100 highest-paying jobs are in health care or related roles.

The rankings offer a look at the best jobs across 17 lists — from sectors such as business and technology — to help job seekers at every level achieve their career goals. They take into account the most important aspects of a job, including growth potential, work-life balance and salary.

After ranking No. 3 for the last four years, physician assistant captured the No. 1 spot this year, while software developer landed at No. 2. Nurse practitioner followed at No. 3, while medical and health services manager debuted in the top 10 at No. 4.