Best-Paying Jobs in Denver and Beyond

The 2022 Best Jobs Report from U.S. News & World Report doesn’t just offer updated information about the going rate for a dizzying array of professions in fields such as health care, business, technology, STEM specialties and more. It also reveals the cities where workers who land these gigs are paid the most, and four Colorado places – Denver, Boulder, Colorado Springs and Greeley – made the cut.

Denver is among the top five cities in the country for highest salaries in five professions, Boulder for four, Colorado Springs for two and Greeley for one. And while some of the selections make sense based on the types of industry that call the communities home, others definitely qualify as surprises.

Who knew, for example, that the wages in Denver and Boulder were so exemplary for office clerks and people who work at salons?

The U.S. News ranking of the 100 best jobs today is about more than dollars and cents; the methodology also draws upon growth volume, growth percentages, future job prospects and even stress levels. Leading the list is information security analyst (median salary: $103,590, education needed: bachelor’s degree, projected jobs: 47,100), followed by nurse practitioners (median salary: $111,680, education needed; master’s degree, projected jobs: 114,900), physician assistants (median salary: $115,390, education needed: master’s degree, projected jobs 40,100), medical and health services manager (median salary: $104,280, education needed: bachelor’s degree, projected jobs: 139,600), and software developer (median salary: $110,140, education needed: bachelor’s degree, projected jobs: 409,500).

As for the best-paying jobs, the two heading the roster are anesthesiologists and surgeons, which require a doctorate and garner a median salary of $208,000. The number of such positions is shrinking: U.S. News estimates the projected jobs for anesthesiologists at -200 and surgeons at -1,200. But if there are openings in Colorado Springs, applicants should jump at the opportunity, since the annual mean salary there is in the American top five for both positions: $287,900 for anesthesiologists, $288,050 for surgeons.

The top jobs in Denver are a more eclectic lot. Included are petroleum engineer and geographer – naturals given Colorado’s place in the energy-industry landscape. But the Mile High City also ponies up big for sales managers, skin-care specialists and office clerks. Boulder also treats its office clerks well compared to the rest of the country, and pays big for financial managers, technical writers and nail technicians, while Greeley is a fine place to settle for computer systems analysts.

Continue to see the jobs for which Denver, Boulder, Colorado Springs and Greeley are in the top five highest- paying cities in the U.S. in 2022, complete with annual mean salaries and links related to each specialty.

Denver

Sales manager
Annual mean salary: $177,550

Petroleum engineer
Annual mean salary: $160,100

Geographer
Annual mean salary: $92,330

Esthetician and Skincare Specialist
Annual mean salary: $69,790

Office Clerk
$46,310

Boulder

Financial manager
Annual mean salary: $187,940

Technical Writer
Annual mean salary: $95,360

Office Clerk
Annual mean salary: $47,160

Nail Technician
Annual mean salary: $44,000

Colorado Springs

Anesthesiologist
Annual mean salary: $287,900

Surgeon
Annual mean salary: $288,050

Greeley

Computer systems analyst
Annual mean salary: $121,790

Click to see the list for 2021.