BLS OEWS, May 2025

Project manager salary in Washington, DC

What project managers are paid in Washington, DC, 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

$127,030

Middle half earn

$95,150 to $163,550

People in this job here

38,230

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Project Management Specialists, Washington, DC, annual pay, May 2025

10th percentile
$74,110
25th percentile
$95,150
Median
$127,030
75th percentile
$163,550
90th percentile
$192,450

Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025, SOC 13-1082. Percentiles across everyone employed in the occupation, not experience levels.

At a glance

How Washington, DC compares

  • The median here is 24% above the national median of $102,320.
  • Washington, DC ranks 4th for median pay among the 50 largest US metros with published figures for this occupation.
  • About 38,230 people work in this occupation here, roughly 1 in every 82 jobs in the metro.
  • Pay varies widely within the job: the 90th percentile earns 2.6 times the 10th.

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

Washington, DC against the national figures
PercentileWashington, DCNational
10th percentile$74,110$61,580
25th percentile$95,150$78,440
Median$127,030$102,320
75th percentile$163,550$133,100
90th percentile$192,450$167,970

Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025, SOC 13-1082. National page for project managers

By metro

Other metros for project 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 project manager

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

  • Project planning
  • Budget management
  • Risk management
  • Stakeholder communication
  • Schedule development
  • Resource allocation
  • Scope management
  • Vendor management
  • Change control
  • Status reporting

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

Negotiating

Using these numbers

Below $95,150 puts you in the bottom quarter for project managers in Washington, DC. That is worth raising, with evidence of what you deliver.

The median, $127,030, 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 $163,550 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 Project Management Specialists, 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 Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV as BLS defines it.

Questions

Questions about project manager pay in Washington, DC

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