Chief Salary

$33K

$120.5K

$200K

$124,409

/year

$59.81

/hour

Chief Salary Comparison by Location

Nationwide

United States

$124,409

Columbus

Ohio

$120,167

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    How much does a Chief make?

    As of Aug 27, 2026, the average annual pay for a Chief in the United States is $124,409 a year.

    Just in case you need a simple salary calculator, that works out to be approximately $59.81 an hour. This is the equivalent of $2,392/week or $10,367/month.

    While ZipRecruiter is seeing annual salaries as high as $200,000 and as low as $33,000, the majority of Chief salaries currently range between $93,000 (25th percentile) to $146,000 (75th percentile) with top earners (90th percentile) making $171,500 annually across the United States. The average pay range for a Chief varies greatly (by as much as 53000), which suggests there may be many opportunities for advancement and increased pay based on skill level, location and years of experience.

    A Chief in your area makes on average $120,167 per year, or $4,242 (3.410%) less than the national average annual salary of $124,409. Ohio ranks number 30 out of 50 states nationwide for Chief salaries.

    To estimate the most accurate annual salary range for Chief jobs, ZipRecruiter continuously scans its database of millions of active jobs published locally throughout America.

    Find your next high paying job as a Chief on ZipRecruiter today.

    What are Top 10 Highest Paying Cities for Chief Jobs

    We've identified 10 cities where the typical salary for a Chief job is above the national average. Topping the list is Wilton, CT, , with Conway, NH, and Redding, CA, close behind in the second and third positions. Redding, CA, beats the national average by $30,777 (24.7%), and Wilton, CT, furthers that trend with another $34,173 (27.5%) above the $124,409 average.

    With these 10 cities having average salaries higher than the national average, the opportunities for economic advancement by changing locations as a Chief appears to be exceedingly fruitful.

    Finally, another factor to consider is the average salary for these top 10 cities varies very little at 5% between Wilton, CT, and Sitka, AK, , reinforcing the limited potential for much wage advancement. The possibility of a lower cost of living may be the best factor to use when considering location and salary for a Chief role.

    City

    Annual Salary

    Hourly Wage

    Wilton, CT

    $158,582

    $76.24

    Conway, NH

    $155,245

    $74.64

    Redding, CA

    $155,186

    $74.61

    Deer Lodge, MT

    $154,799

    $74.42

    Newport, WA

    $153,837

    $73.96

    Berkeley, CA

    $152,332

    $73.24

    Danbury, CT

    $151,819

    $72.99

    07961, NJ

    $151,395

    $72.79

    Aspen, CO

    $150,376

    $72.30

    Sitka, AK

    $149,873

    $72.05

    What are Top 5 Best Paying Related Chief Jobs in the U.S.

    We found a few related jobs that pay more than jobs in the Chief category.

    For example Work From Home Cfo Real Estate jobs pay as much as $137,124 (110.2%) more than the average Chief salary of $124,409. If you're qualified, finding work as a Work From Home Cfo Real Estate may help you make more money than that of the average Chief position.

    Job Title

    Annual Salary

    Hourly Wage

    Work From Home Cfo Real Estate

    $261,533

    $125.74

    Divisional Cfo

    $157,532

    $75.74

    Healthcare Cfo

    $123,586

    $59.42

    Budget Officer

    $106,822

    $51.36

    Southwest Ceo

    $99,736

    $47.95

    About Our Data

    ZipRecruiter salary estimates, histograms, trends and comparisons are derived from both employer job postings and third party data sources.

    Infographic detailing Chief salary across the United States as of August 2026. Displays a bar chart with salary percentiles, a national average salary of $124,409 per year or $59.81 an hour, and a color-coded map showing state-by-state salary variations.