San Francisco reigns supreme, adding 11K tech jobs while other cities stagnate

San Francisco has reasserted its dominance in tech hiring with unprecedented force, adding nearly 11,000 net new positions over the past 12 months—nearly double New York’s growth and dwarfing other metropolitan areas by massive margins. This hiring surge, driven primarily by artificial intelligence expansion, signals that geography remains a critical factor for tech career advancement despite years of remote work predictions.

The data reveals a stark reality: while many proclaimed the death of Silicon Valley during the pandemic, San Francisco has not only recovered but accelerated past its competitors. For professionals seeking to break into tech or advance their careers, these numbers suggest that location strategy remains as important as ever.

The hiring landscape by the numbers

According to Pave, a compensation data platform tracking 337,700 current employees across major metropolitan areas, San Francisco added 10,970 net new hires over the last 12 months. This represents nearly double New York’s 5,690 new positions and more than triple Los Angeles’s 3,050 additions.

The contrast becomes even more striking when examining other metropolitan areas that have been positioned as emerging tech hubs. Austin, frequently cited as a pandemic-era beneficiary of remote work trends, actually lost 271 net positions. Miami, despite three years of marketing as the “next tech hub,” added only 368 new hires—representing just 3% of San Francisco’s growth.

Other notable markets showed similarly modest or negative results: Portland declined by 157 positions, Boulder dropped 135, and most major metropolitan areas remained flat or contracted. This data suggests that rather than experiencing a broad geographic distribution of tech jobs, the industry is actually concentrating more heavily in established hubs.

Why geographic concentration drives career velocity

The concentration of hiring in San Francisco creates compounding advantages that extend far beyond simple job availability. When a metropolitan area adds 11,000 new positions, professionals benefit from what economists call agglomeration effects—the clustering of related economic activity that creates mutual benefits.

This density translates into more interview opportunities, stronger negotiating leverage, and faster career progression. Companies hiring aggressively tend to promote internally more rapidly and offer higher compensation to retain talent in competitive markets. Each networking interaction—whether at industry events, coffee meetings, or casual encounters—carries higher probability of generating meaningful professional opportunities.

The network effects prove particularly valuable for career optionality. Professionals in high-density markets who experience setbacks can more easily transition to new roles without rebuilding their professional connections from scratch. This safety net becomes increasingly important as career paths become less linear and job tenure continues to shorten across the industry.

The remote work paradox

While remote work options have expanded significantly since 2020, the highest-value opportunities remain disproportionately concentrated in San Francisco. Companies may advertise remote-friendly policies, but their leadership teams, key decision-makers, and most strategic hires often remain clustered in traditional tech hubs.

This pattern reflects practical realities about how high-growth companies operate. Venture capital firms, which fund the most promising startups, maintain heavy concentrations in the Bay Area. The informal networks that drive business development, partnership formation, and talent acquisition function most effectively through in-person interactions. Even companies that embrace distributed teams often establish their primary operations where they can access the deepest talent pools and strongest ecosystem support.

Pave’s dataset, which focuses heavily on technology companies, captures precisely these high-growth, equity-heavy roles that offer the strongest career acceleration potential. These positions typically provide not just higher base compensation but also equity packages that can generate substantial wealth over time—benefits that become particularly valuable in markets with higher exit rates and company valuations.

Economic calculations beyond cost of living

San Francisco’s high cost of living represents a legitimate concern, but the economic analysis requires examining total career value rather than immediate purchasing power. A professional earning $120,000 in Austin versus $180,000 in San Francisco faces more complex trade-offs than simple cost-of-living adjustments suggest.

The equity component of compensation packages often proves decisive in long-term wealth building. San Francisco companies typically offer more generous equity grants, and those grants carry higher expected values due to the concentration of successful exits and higher company valuations in the region. Additionally, the accelerated career progression available in high-density markets often leads to more senior roles and higher lifetime earnings.

The networking value compounds over time in ways that prove difficult to quantify but often decisive for career trajectories. Professionals who build relationships in concentrated tech markets frequently find that casual connections become co-founders, investors, or hiring managers at their next companies. These relationship-driven opportunities rarely exist in markets with limited tech density.

Strategic exceptions to geographic concentration

Certain career paths and company types offer viable alternatives to San Francisco concentration. Fully remote companies with distributed leadership—such as GitLab, Zapier, or Automattic—enable strong career development regardless of location.

Specialized technical roles also provide more geographic flexibility. Security engineers, DevOps specialists, and data scientists often command premium compensation across markets due to supply-demand imbalances that transcend geographic boundaries. These professionals can often negotiate remote arrangements or command local premiums in secondary markets.

Senior professionals with established networks and proven track records can operate effectively from secondary markets, leveraging existing relationships to access opportunities and maintain career momentum. However, even experienced professionals often find that periodic engagement with primary tech hubs helps maintain their competitive edge and network strength.

Actionable strategies for career development

For professionals serious about maximizing their tech career trajectory, the data suggests several concrete approaches. Consider relocating to San Francisco for at least 6-12 months to build network connections, gain pattern recognition about successful companies and career paths, and establish relationships that can provide long-term career value.

Track hiring patterns rather than relying solely on job board postings. Companies often fill positions through referrals and network connections before posting publicly, making geographic proximity valuable for accessing these hidden opportunities. Follow talent flows by monitoring where successful professionals move and which companies they join.

Optimize early career decisions for learning and network building rather than immediate compensation maximization. The relationships and experience gained in high-density markets often generate higher long-term returns than modest salary premiums in lower-cost locations.

Understanding market dynamics

This geographic concentration reflects fundamental characteristics of the technology industry rather than temporary market conditions. Tech operates as a hits-driven business where successful companies generate outsized returns, and these companies benefit from clustering near talent, capital, and specialized knowledge.

The artificial intelligence boom has intensified this clustering effect. AI companies require specialized talent that remains concentrated in traditional tech hubs, access to venture capital that understands complex technical challenges, and proximity to research institutions and other AI companies for collaboration and talent acquisition.

Despite five years of predictions about remote work democratizing tech employment, the fundamental economics of innovation continue to favor geographic concentration. Knowledge spillovers, informal collaboration, and serendipitous connections that drive breakthrough innovations occur most readily when professionals work in close proximity.

The career implications

The Bay Area’s addition of nearly 11,000 net new tech positions while most other markets stagnate or contract represents more than a statistical curiosity—it reflects the continuing importance of geographic strategy in career development. Professionals who position themselves in high-growth markets gain access to opportunities, relationships, and career acceleration that prove difficult to replicate elsewhere.

For individuals currently located in secondary tech markets, the data suggests that waiting for opportunities to emerge locally may prove less effective than proactively engaging with established tech hubs. The concentration of hiring, investment, and innovation in San Francisco shows no signs of reversing, despite ongoing predictions about geographic distribution.

The network effects, career velocity, and long-term wealth creation potential available in concentrated tech markets often justify the short-term costs and inconveniences of relocation. Ten years from now, the professionals who positioned themselves where the growth actually occurred will likely find themselves significantly ahead of those who optimized for immediate comfort or cost savings.