BLS OEWS, May 2025

Marketing manager salary in San Diego, CA

What marketing managers are paid in San Diego, CA, from the 10th to the 90th percentile, with how your own pay compares. Figures from the BLS OEWS release dated May 2025.

Median annual pay

$174,840

Middle half earn

$132,130 to $228,110

People in this job here

3,790

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Marketing Managers, San Diego, CA, annual pay, May 2025

10th percentile
$99,510
25th percentile
$132,130
Median
$174,840
75th percentile
$228,110
90th percentile
$305,740

Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025, SOC 11-2021. Percentiles across everyone employed in the occupation, not experience levels.

At a glance

How San Diego, CA compares

  • The median here is 5% above the national median of $166,790.
  • San Diego, CA ranks 8th for median pay among the 48 largest US metros with published figures for this occupation.
  • About 3,790 people work in this occupation here, roughly 1 in every 406 jobs in the metro.
  • Pay varies widely within the job: the 90th percentile earns 3.1 times the 10th.

Worked from BLS OEWS, May 2025. Not adjusted for the cost of living.

San Diego, CA against the national figures
PercentileSan Diego, CANational
10th percentile$99,510$90,260
25th percentile$132,130$123,020
Median$174,840$166,790
75th percentile$228,110$216,410
90th percentile$305,740$293,610

Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025, SOC 11-2021. National page for marketing managers

By metro

Other metros for marketing managers

Median annual pay in the largest US metros where BLS published figures for this occupation, highest first, May 2025.

Medians from BLS OEWS, May 2025.

Skills

What employers look for in a marketing manager

The skills our marketing manager resume example leads with, written for US employers.

  • Go-to-market strategy
  • Demand generation
  • Brand positioning
  • Campaign management
  • Budget ownership
  • Team leadership
  • Product marketing
  • Pipeline and attribution
  • Agency management
  • Content strategy

See the full marketing manager resume example, with bullets and keywords.

Negotiating

Using these numbers

Below $132,130 puts you in the bottom quarter for marketing managers in San Diego, CA. That is worth raising, with evidence of what you deliver.

The median, $174,840, is the middle of the market, not a ceiling. An offer at or near it is a fair starting point to negotiate from.

Asking for $228,110 or more puts you in the top quarter, so it needs a reason an employer will accept: a wider scope, a competing offer, or a skill that is hard to hire for.

Percentiles are not experience levels. They describe everyone doing the job, so a senior hire can sit at the median of a market full of senior people.

About the numbers

What these figures are

The US Bureau of Labor Statistics surveys employers for its Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, and these figures are from the release dated May 2025. They cover wage and salary workers in Marketing Managers, a category that is often broader than a single job title. Self-employed people are not included.

They are base pay: bonuses, equity and overtime are not included, and they are not adjusted for the cost of living. The metro is San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA as BLS defines it.

Questions

Questions about marketing manager pay in San Diego, CA

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