Computer Programmers Salary — Salem, Oregon

The average Computer Programmers in Salem, Oregon earns $104,560 a year.

$104,560 / year, mean
↓ 2.5% below national average 33th percentile in Oregon

Salem pays below most of Oregon for this role, though still within a normal range for the state. That's close to the national average for computer programmers — a fairly typical rate for this role. Cost of living here is close to the national average — not a major factor either way. This is a high-confidence estimate, based on a large sample of reported wages.

Percentile within Oregon

0th 50th 100th
Employment (this metro)
70
Estimate confidence
RSE 2.8%
Cost of living 104 #29 most expensive of 188 cities in this dataset 100 = U.S. average · Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024
Crime index 2419 #180 safest of 188 cities in this dataset Per 100k residents · Source: FBI Crime Data Explorer
Median home value $454,689 #32 priciest of 188 cities in this dataset Source: zillow_real
Median household income $76,010 #65 highest of 188 cities in this dataset Source: Census Bureau ACS 5-year

Combining these four figures gives a fuller picture than salary alone: Salem ranks #29 for cost of living and #32 for home prices among the 188 cities in this pilot dataset, which matters as much as the headline salary number when comparing where to live.

San Jose $150,780 San Diego $129,530 New York $128,880 Santa Cruz $128,360 San Francisco $127,030 Bend $122,240 Baltimore $117,960 Lexington Park $116,010 Corvallis $115,020 Spokane $113,420 San Luis Obispo $113,250 Charlottesville $113,190 Naples $113,080 Sacramento $112,710 Santa Rosa $112,410 Portland $111,950 Richmond $111,950 Austin $109,100 Louisville $108,930 Santa Maria $108,440 Trenton $108,350 Los Angeles $108,020 Virginia Beach $107,770 Bremerton $107,480 Philadelphia $107,240 Bellingham $106,700 Indianapolis $106,400 Dallas $106,330 Visalia $105,690 Vallejo $105,130 Tampa $104,980 Miami $104,920 Elkhart $104,760 Eugene $104,710 Riverside $104,620 Salem $104,560 Crestview $103,710 Chicago $103,330 Evansville $102,360 Merced $102,030 Jacksonville $101,960 Olympia $101,790 Blacksburg $99,690 Houston $99,430 Lexington $99,180 Syracuse $98,960 Champaign $98,760 Fresno $98,190 Buffalo $98,170 Modesto $97,650 Pensacola $96,940 Reading $96,760 Allentown $96,360 Oxnard $96,290 Medford $96,240 Kiryas Joel $95,490 Fort Myers $95,430 Midland $95,170 Orlando $94,810 Detroit $94,570 Palm Bay $93,040 Roanoke $92,990 Hagerstown $92,270 Harrisburg $92,060 Fort Wayne $91,790 Atlantic City $90,990 Pittsburgh $90,530 York $90,380 Rochester $90,250 Lancaster $89,990 Port St. Lucie $89,990 South Bend $89,880 Lakeland $89,000 Scranton $88,960 Traverse City $88,790 Bloomington $88,760 Albany $88,020 Kalamazoo $87,730 Waco $87,720 Grand Rapids $87,050 Ann Arbor $86,980 Binghamton $86,440 Beaumont $84,760 Sarasota $83,970 Corpus Christi $83,550 College Station $83,510 Utica $82,900 State College $82,860 Gainesville $82,680 Amarillo $82,460 McAllen $81,490 Killeen $81,020 Dover $80,490 Lansing $80,240 Longview $78,530 Lubbock $77,460 Erie $76,540 Tallahassee $75,480 El Paso $73,590 Panama City $71,650 Springfield $71,250 Flint $71,060
CityMean salaryvs. Salem
Albany, New York$88,020-15.8%
Allentown, Pennsylvania$96,360-7.8%
Amarillo, Texas$82,460-21.1%
Ann Arbor, Michigan$86,980-16.8%
Atlantic City, New Jersey$90,990-13.0%
Austin, Texas$109,100+4.3%
Baltimore, Maryland$117,960+12.8%
Beaumont, Texas$84,760-18.9%
Bellingham, Washington$106,700+2.0%
Bend, Oregon$122,240+16.9%
Binghamton, New York$86,440-17.3%
Blacksburg, Virginia$99,690-4.7%
Bloomington, Indiana$88,760-15.1%
Bremerton, Washington$107,480+2.8%
Buffalo, New York$98,170-6.1%
Fort Myers, Florida$95,430-8.7%
Champaign, Illinois$98,760-5.5%
Charlottesville, Virginia$113,190+8.3%
Chicago, Illinois$103,330-1.2%
College Station, Texas$83,510-20.1%
Corpus Christi, Texas$83,550-20.1%
Corvallis, Oregon$115,020+10.0%
Crestview, Florida$103,710-0.8%
Dallas, Texas$106,330+1.7%
Detroit, Michigan$94,570-9.6%
Dover, Delaware$80,490-23.0%
Elkhart, Indiana$104,760+0.2%
El Paso, Texas$73,590-29.6%
Erie, Pennsylvania$76,540-26.8%
Eugene, Oregon$104,710+0.1%
Evansville, Indiana$102,360-2.1%
Flint, Michigan$71,060-32.0%
Fort Wayne, Indiana$91,790-12.2%
Fresno, California$98,190-6.1%
Gainesville, Florida$82,680-20.9%
Grand Rapids, Michigan$87,050-16.7%
Hagerstown, Maryland$92,270-11.8%
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania$92,060-12.0%
Houston, Texas$99,430-4.9%
Indianapolis, Indiana$106,400+1.8%
Jacksonville, Florida$101,960-2.5%
Kalamazoo, Michigan$87,730-16.1%
Killeen, Texas$81,020-22.5%
Kiryas Joel, New York$95,490-8.7%
Lakeland, Florida$89,000-14.9%
Lancaster, Pennsylvania$89,990-13.9%
Lansing, Michigan$80,240-23.3%
Lexington, Kentucky$99,180-5.1%
Lexington Park, Maryland$116,010+11.0%
Longview, Texas$78,530-24.9%
Los Angeles, California$108,020+3.3%
Louisville, Kentucky$108,930+4.2%
Lubbock, Texas$77,460-25.9%
McAllen, Texas$81,490-22.1%
Medford, Oregon$96,240-8.0%
Merced, California$102,030-2.4%
Miami, Florida$104,920+0.3%
Midland, Texas$95,170-9.0%
Modesto, California$97,650-6.6%
Naples, Florida$113,080+8.1%
New York, New York$128,880+23.3%
Sarasota, Florida$83,970-19.7%
Olympia, Washington$101,790-2.6%
Orlando, Florida$94,810-9.3%
Oxnard, California$96,290-7.9%
Palm Bay, Florida$93,040-11.0%
Panama City, Florida$71,650-31.5%
Pensacola, Florida$96,940-7.3%
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania$107,240+2.6%
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania$90,530-13.4%
Portland, Oregon$111,950+7.1%
Port St. Lucie, Florida$89,990-13.9%
Reading, Pennsylvania$96,760-7.5%
Richmond, Virginia$111,950+7.1%
Riverside, California$104,620+0.1%
Roanoke, Virginia$92,990-11.1%
Rochester, New York$90,250-13.7%
Sacramento, California$112,710+7.8%
San Diego, California$129,530+23.9%
San Francisco, California$127,030+21.5%
San Jose, California$150,780+44.2%
San Luis Obispo, California$113,250+8.3%
Santa Cruz, California$128,360+22.8%
Santa Maria, California$108,440+3.7%
Santa Rosa, California$112,410+7.5%
Scranton, Pennsylvania$88,960-14.9%
South Bend, Indiana$89,880-14.0%
Spokane, Washington$113,420+8.5%
Springfield, Illinois$71,250-31.9%
State College, Pennsylvania$82,860-20.8%
Syracuse, New York$98,960-5.4%
Tallahassee, Florida$75,480-27.8%
Tampa, Florida$104,980+0.4%
Traverse City, Michigan$88,790-15.1%
Trenton, New Jersey$108,350+3.6%
Utica, New York$82,900-20.7%
Vallejo, California$105,130+0.5%
Virginia Beach, Virginia$107,770+3.1%
Visalia, California$105,690+1.1%
Waco, Texas$87,720-16.1%
York, Pennsylvania$90,380-13.6%
Gross salary
104,560/yr
Estimated take-home
74,540/yr
Est. total withheld
28.7%

Single filer, federal + Oregon state tax + FICA, 2025 rates. Does not include state-specific payroll withholdings beyond income tax (see Data transparency). Not tax advice — verify with a professional for your specific situation.

View cost of living in this state All Computer Programmers salaries in Oregon → All Computer Programmers salaries →
Community reality check

Community reality check for Salem

These notes add local color around Salem, Oregon: comfort ranges, budget constraints and location trade-offs reported in public discussions.

Relocation gap2.0× calculator gap
City comparison anecdotal

Discussion highlights that calculators may imply roughly 2x gross income for comparable standard of living, while some employers offer only about 10% location premiums. Tech total compensation can be an exception, so the page should distinguish salary from total compensation.

2.0×calculator multiplier10%HCOL premium cited$200KAtlanta TC example$450KBay Area TC example

Anecdotal public-discussion signals, not official salary data, rent data or financial advice. Read this alongside the official figures on the page.

Data transparency

Sources used for this page

Official occupation and area metadata behind the visible salary, cost, housing and safety signals.

Occupation 15-1251 SOC code
Official area Salem, OR BLS metro/geographic area
Area code 41420 Stable geographic key
Reference year 2025 BLS OEWS
Cost: bea_realHousing: zillow_realCrime: latest availableNet-pay source: or_dor_verificado 2025
No additional caveats are attached to this row.
Methodology

How this page is built

The salary figure is the mean annual wage reported by the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) program for this occupation and metro area. Percentile and national-average comparisons are calculated directly from the 188 cities currently in this dataset, not from a fixed external benchmark. Cost of living, crime and housing figures come from BEA, FBI and Zillow respectively — see "Data transparency" above for the exact sources and reference years used on this specific page.

Confidence: the RSE (relative standard error) shown under Overview indicates how reliable the salary estimate is for this metro — a lower RSE means a larger underlying sample.

On this page

Where this is

AK HI

Highlighted: Oregon

Population (metro area)
435,085