Entry-level CEO salary in San Francisco, CA

Based on 24 certified H-1B filings at DOL wage level I in the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA metro area, FY2025. Includes Oakland, Berkeley, Burlingame, Fremont, San Mateo.

Also listed as: Chief Executive

Median salary$144,225
Middle 50%$131.5k–$168.5k
vs. all levels here−39%comparison median $236,900
Filings24FY2025 · latest two fiscal years

Salary range

Box: middle 50% of filings. Whiskers: 10th–90th percentile. 99% of filings are between $131,477 and $220,000.
PercentileSalary
10th$131,477
25th$131,494
50th (median)$144,225
75th$168,501
90th$210,472

Cost of living

San Francisco's median entry-level CEO salary of $144,225 is worth about $124,700 at national average prices.

Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024 (U.S. = 100; San Francisco = 115.6).

Compared with all workers here

All Chief Executives in the San Francisco, CA area earned a median of $239,200+ in May 2025 (5,190 employed). The H-1B median here is $144,225, 50% lower.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS metropolitan area estimates. BLS wages include some incentive pay; H-1B figures are base salary.

Employers filing at this level

EmployerMedianFilings
About Intelligencetoo few2
Animal & Vegan Advocacy Internationaltoo few2
Scanit Technologiestoo few2

Employers with at least 2 filings here. Median shown at 10+ filings.

By experience level

Wage levelMedianFilings
Entry-level · Level I $144,225 24
Mid-level · Level II $253,550 18
Senior · Level III – 0
Expert · Level IV too few 2

Median shown when a level has at least 10 filings.

Minimum H-1B salary by level

Wage levelPrevailing wage (most common)Median offered salaryFilings
Entry-level · Level I$131,477$144,22524
Mid-level · Level II$228,218$253,55018

The prevailing wage is the minimum an employer must pay for this job and area. Amounts vary by county within a metro and by wage source.