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Sales Manager

Sales Manager

Sales Managers at high-growth companies earn $100K–$165K. Median: $130K. Based on 2,898 public job postings (2025–2026). US DOL certified wage filings (FY2026): $169K median. Recruiting from Scratch's network includes 17,000+ sales managers, including 800+ with top-tier-company experience.

💰 $100K–$165K salary range

Median: $130K  ·  Based on 2,898 public job postings  ·  Updated October 16, 2026


📊 Salary breakdown

Sales Manager salary by location

  • All locations: $130K median ($100K–$165K typical range)
  • New York: $149K median, $118K–$189K range (+15% vs. national)
  • San Francisco: $171K median, $142K–$218K range (+31% vs. national)
  • Los Angeles: $116K median, $93K–$163K range (-11% vs. national)
  • Denver: $122K median, $101K–$150K range (-6% vs. national)
  • Dallas: $114K median, $95K–$140K range (-12% vs. national)
  • Miami: $115K median, $85K–$153K range (-12% vs. national)
  • Austin: $105K median, $75K–$147K range (-19% vs. national)
  • Washington DC: $130K median, $119K–$140K range (+0% vs. national)

Highest paying companies

San Francisco

  • Scribe: $338K median
  • Anthropic: $258K median
  • Figma: $218K median
  • incident.io: $211K median
  • DocuSign: $180K median
  • Decagon: $180K median

New York

  • Anthropic: $263K median
  • Ramp: $214K median
  • Handshake: $189K median
  • DualEntry: $188K median
  • Clifford Chance: $182K median
  • Zocdoc: $170K median

Based on companies with 3+ active postings. Median of publicly advertised salary range.

What's typically included

  • Health insurance: 76% of postings
  • Equity (RSU/options): 65% of postings
  • Flexible PTO: 53% of postings
  • Parental leave: 27% of postings
  • Learning/education budget: 15% of postings
  • Visa sponsorship: 4% of postings

Typical experience required: 5–5 years.

Sales salaries by seniority

What does a Sales Manager do?

Sales Managers are revenue leaders who build pipeline and close business. This benchmark reflects Manager-level base compensation at high-growth and AI-native companies.

Government wage data

For corroboration, U.S. Department of Labor certified wage filings (FY2026) show a median of $169K for Sales Manager roles, ranging $140K–$200K, across 250 filings. This is reported separately from — never blended with — the job-posting median above.

Common questions

What is the average Sales Manager salary at an AI startup?
The median pay is $130K, with a typical range of $100K–$165K, based on 2,898 public job postings collected in 2025–2026.

What is the Sales Manager salary in New York?
New York Sales Managers at AI-native startups earn a median of $149K, with a typical range of $118K–$189K (25th–75th percentile). That's 15% above the $130K US national median. 12% below San Francisco's $171K. Based on 287 qualifying postings, 2025–2026.

What is the Sales Manager salary in San Francisco?
San Francisco Sales Managers at AI-native startups earn a median of $171K, with a typical range of $142K–$218K (25th–75th percentile). That's 31% above the $130K US national median. Based on 174 qualifying postings, 2025–2026.

What is the Sales Manager salary in Los Angeles?
Los Angeles Sales Managers at AI-native startups earn a median of $116K, with a typical range of $93K–$163K (25th–75th percentile). That's 11% below the $130K US national median. 32% below San Francisco's $171K. Based on 74 qualifying postings, 2025–2026.

What is the Sales Manager salary in Denver?
Denver Sales Managers at AI-native startups earn a median of $122K, with a typical range of $101K–$150K (25th–75th percentile). That's 6% below the $130K US national median. 29% below San Francisco's $171K. Based on 50 qualifying postings, 2025–2026.

Where does this salary data come from?
It is aggregated from public job postings on company career pages — no private placement or client data. We require a minimum of 15 postings per role.

Methodology

Figures are the midpoint of each posting's advertised USD salary range, aggregated from 2,898 public job postings (2025–2026). The range shown is the 25th–75th percentile; the median is the 50th percentile. Equity is separate and not included; where a posting's range reflects on-target earnings (OTE) for commission roles, that is included in the midpoint. Roles require at least 15 postings to be published. Last refreshed October 16, 2026.

Hiring Sales Managers? RFS recruiters specialize in Sales placements at AI-native and high-growth startups. Talk to an RFS recruiter →

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