Salaries in Houston.

3,445 roles. One city.

Cost-of-living index: 0.97x national average. Last updated August 2026.

3,445 roles tracked

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Highest Paying

$327,000

SVP of Data

Median of All Roles

$134,000

Defense Backend Engineer

Entry Level

$32,000

Hotel Clerk / Front Desk

The salary figures on this page are computed estimates, not observed wages. Each one is a national role baseline scaled by a Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parity cost-of-living multiplier (2025 index) and rounded to the nearest $1,000. No published wage percentile is consulted and no wage survey response enters the calculation, so an Orbyt estimate must not be cited as a Bureau of Labor Statistics figure or as measured pay. The published wage data Orbyt holds is Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, and Department of Labor H-1B Labor Condition Application filings, which record a filed minimum visa base wage rather than market pay. Where BLS publishes a wage for the occupation a role maps to, it is shown on that role's page as a separate benchmark, labelled with its occupation code, metro area and the number of employed workers it covers. Last updated August 2026.

Houston, TX has a cost-of-living index of 0.97x the national average. The highest-paying role is SVP of Data at $327,000, while the median across all 3,445 roles is $134,000. Houston's economy is deeply rooted in energy, with a growing presence in healthcare, aerospace, and technology.

About the Houston market

Houston's economy is deeply rooted in energy, with a growing presence in healthcare, aerospace, and technology. The Texas Medical Center is the world's largest, driving massive demand for clinical and research roles. Houston's low cost of living and no state income tax make it an attractive destination for professionals seeking strong purchasing power.

Energy & Oil/GasHealthcareAerospace & NASAManufacturingTechnology

Top 50 salaries in Houston

#	Role	Median	Range
1	SVP of Data	$327,000	$277,000 – $425,000
2	SVP of Product	$324,000	$275,000 – $421,000
3	Senior VP of Security	$323,000	$275,000 – $420,000
4	SVP of AI Innovation	$314,000	$267,000 – $408,000
5	Chief Security Officer	$314,000	$244,000 – $408,000
6	Senior VP of Product	$313,000	$245,000 – $407,000
7	Chief Science Officer	$313,000	$244,000 – $407,000
8	SVP of Technology	$308,000	$261,000 – $400,000
9	VP of Cloud	$306,000	$260,000 – $397,000
10	VP of Analytics	$306,000	$260,000 – $397,000
11	VP of Developer Experience	$306,000	$260,000 – $397,000
12	VP of Network Engineering	$306,000	$260,000 – $397,000
13	SVP of Engineering	$305,000	$259,000 – $396,000
14	VP of Finance	$303,000	$257,000 – $393,000
15	VP of IT	$303,000	$258,000 – $394,000
16	VP of Information Security	$303,000	$258,000 – $394,000
17	VP of Data	$303,000	$258,000 – $394,000
18	SVP of Sales	$303,000	$236,000 – $393,000
19	SVP of Finance	$302,000	$257,000 – $392,000
20	VP of Engineering	$300,000	$255,000 – $390,000
21	VP of Data Engineering	$300,000	$255,000 – $390,000
22	Chief Architect	$300,000	$255,000 – $390,000
23	VP of Solutions Engineering	$300,000	$255,000 – $390,000
24	VP of Quality	$300,000	$255,000 – $390,000
25	VP of Cybersecurity	$300,000	$255,000 – $390,000
26	Senior VP of Design	$298,000	$233,000 – $387,000
27	VP of Data Science	$297,000	$253,000 – $386,000
28	Chief Machine Learning Officer	$297,000	$232,000 – $386,000
29	VP of Reliability Engineering	$297,000	$253,000 – $386,000
30	Chief AI Officer	$295,000	$219,000 – $380,000
31	Chief Commercial Officer	$295,000	$230,000 – $384,000
32	VP of AI Product	$294,000	$250,000 – $382,000
33	VP of AI Engineering	$294,000	$250,000 – $382,000
34	VP of AI	$294,000	$250,000 – $382,000
35	VP of Infrastructure	$294,000	$250,000 – $382,000
36	VP of Partner Engineering	$294,000	$250,000 – $382,000
37	Chief Strategy Officer	$292,000	$228,000 – $379,000
38	VP of AI Research	$291,000	$248,000 – $378,000
39	Senior Head of Product	$291,000	$228,000 – $379,000
40	VP of Mobile	$291,000	$248,000 – $378,000
41	VP of Information Technology	$291,000	$248,000 – $378,000
42	VP of Security Engineering	$291,000	$248,000 – $378,000
43	VP of Site Reliability Engineering	$291,000	$248,000 – $378,000
44	VP of Platform Engineering	$288,000	$245,000 – $375,000
45	VP of Security	$288,000	$245,000 – $375,000
46	Chief Legal Officer	$288,000	$225,000 – $375,000
47	VP of Field Engineering	$288,000	$245,000 – $375,000
48	VP of Database Engineering	$288,000	$245,000 – $375,000
49	SVP of People	$288,000	$244,000 – $374,000
50	SVP of Design	$288,000	$224,000 – $374,000

Tax considerations

Texas has no state income tax, giving Houston workers strong take home pay. The city's overall cost of living is below the national average, further stretching your salary.

Negotiating in Houston

Emphasize industry specialization in energy or healthcare. Houston employers pay significant premiums for domain expertise in these sectors over generalist candidates.

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