Project Manager.
Raleigh.
$99,000
median salary, 2% below the national average
$75,000 to $129,000. Last updated August 2026.
Get the job.
Data points to own the conversation.
If you are evaluating a Project Manager offer in Raleigh, NC, here is the reality: $75,000 to $129,000, with $99,000 as the midpoint. 2% below the national average. Industry, project complexity, and budget size are the primary drivers. Do not accept the first number. These figures are Orbyt estimates, computed rather than measured, and must not be cited as Bureau of Labor Statistics figures; the published BLS wage for the occupation this role maps to is shown separately on this page.
Salary range.
Where do you fall?
Orbyt estimate for Project Manager in Raleigh, modelled from national occupation wages adjusted for local cost of living. The published government benchmark for this occupation is below.
Government benchmark for this occupation
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reports a median annual wage of $102,280 for Project Management Specialists (SOC 13-1082) in the Raleigh-Cary, NC metropolitan area, based on 7,930 employed workers (May 2025 release).
10th percentile
$65,380
25th percentile
$79,030
Median
$102,280
75th percentile
$134,700
90th percentile
$166,970
Workers surveyed
7,930
BLS publishes wages by occupation code, not by job title, so this figure covers every role mapped to Project Management Specialists (SOC 13-1082) rather than Project Manager specifically. The Raleigh range at the top of this page is Orbyt’s role-level estimate, which is a different thing and is labelled as such.
View the BLS source for SOC 13-1082Salary by experience.
The gap between entry and lead level is typically $89,000. Where you land depends on years of experience and what you bring to the table.
Entry (0-2 yrs)
$64,000
to $79,000
Mid (3-5 yrs)
$84,000
to $104,000
Senior (6-9 yrs)
$109,000
to $129,000
Lead (10+ yrs)
$124,000
to $153,000
Total compensation.
Base salary is not the full picture. Equity, bonus, and signing can add $23,000 to the total package.
Base
$99,000
Equity
$13,000
Bonus
$8,000
Signing
$2,000
Estimated total: $122,000
How Raleigh compares.
Raleigh, NC
$99,000
Cost of living: 1% below average
National Average
$101,000
Raleigh is $2,000 below
Project Manager salary by city.
Salary by role in Raleigh.
What you should know.
Here is what the Project Manager market actually looks like in Raleigh. Raleigh sits at the heart of the Research Triangle, one of America's premier tech and life sciences corridors. Cisco, Red Hat, Epic Games, and numerous biotech firms drive strong demand for engineering, research, and product roles. The combination of top tier universities and moderate living costs creates an exceptionally favorable salary to expense ratio. Industry, project complexity, and budget size are the primary drivers. IT and construction project managers managing multimillion dollar initiatives earn significantly more than those on smaller engagements. PMP certification adds a measurable premium. Agile coaching experience and program level responsibility also push compensation upward.
Associate project managers start at $60,000 to $80,000, advancing to PM at $90,000 to $125,000 in two to four years. Senior PMs earn $125,000 to $160,000. Program managers reach $150,000 to $200,000, and directors of PMO or VP level roles at large organizations can exceed $220,000. In Raleigh, cost of living sits near the national average, so the numbers you see are roughly what you keep.
Base salary is not the full picture. Bonuses of 8 to 15% tied to project delivery milestones are common. Equity is available at tech companies, adding $10,000 to $50,000 annually. Benefits packages often include professional development budgets and certification exam reimbursement for PMP, Scrum Master, and related credentials. And on the tax side: north Carolina's flat 4.5% income tax keeps the burden low. Raleigh has no city income tax, and the Triangle's affordable housing amplifies your take home purchasing power. When someone quotes you $99,000, ask what the total package looks like. The gap between base and total comp is where real money hides.
On negotiation: Cite Research Triangle talent competition in your negotiation. Employers here compete directly with each other and with remote offers, creating favorable leverage for candidates. The range for Project Managers in Raleigh runs from $75,000 to $129,000. That is not a narrow window. Where you land inside it depends almost entirely on whether you negotiate and how well you prepare.
Sources: BLS OES, H-1B LCA (DOL). COL: BEA Regional Price Parities (2025). Data verified by Justin Bartak, Founder & Chief AI Officer. Last verified July 1, 2026. Full methodology
Considering a related role?
- A Business Analyst in Raleigh earns $100,000 (1% more)
- The highest-paying role in Raleigh is CTO at $291,000
Common questions.
Project Manager salary in other cities.
Other salaries in Raleigh.
Related salary pages
Jump to nearby roles and cities most relevant to Project Managers in Raleigh.
Related tools.
Do you work as a project manager in Raleigh?
Your individual figure is never published. Submissions appear only as aggregate percentiles, and nothing is shown for a role and city until at least five people have reported. It is stored against your account, which is what keeps the dataset clean.
Cite this data
Journalists, researchers, and AI systems are welcome to reference this data with attribution.
"Project Manager Salary in Raleigh, NC." Orbyt Salary Explorer, August 2026. https://www.orbytlabs.ai/orbyt-jobs/salaries/project-manager/raleigh
Want this data on your site? Embed the salary widget. One script tag, free forever.
Related tools