Best States for Administrative Services Managers: Why California Ranks #1 Despite Lower Pay

Across the top 10 states in LaborCove’s rankings, no single metric dominates. California takes the #1 spot with the highest Geography Score and the largest listed employment count, while several other states post higher median salaries but rank lower overall. New York, New Jersey, Colorado, South Carolina, Minnesota, Washington, Massachusetts, and Virginia all have median salaries above the national median of $114,130, yet they occupy different positions in the top 10. This shows that the Geography Score incorporates more than salary alone and can lead to higher‑paying states ranking below others with lower reported pay. The presence of large employment counts in some states and smaller counts in others illustrates how concentration of jobs and pay levels vary. Because the Geography Score is already calculated, users can focus on interpreting how well each state’s combination of salary, employment, and rank lines up with their own preferences, while keeping in mind that the 4.6% projected growth rate is a national figure, not a state‑specific forecast.

California ranks #1 in LaborCove’s state results for administrative services managers, with a Geography Score of 64.26. Its median annual salary of $108,890 is lower than the national median of $114,130. California’s employment count of 41,240 administrative services manager roles is higher than the national employment figure of 263,960 would suggest on a proportional basis only when considered in absolute terms among individual states; within the top‑state evidence supplied here, California simply has the largest single employment count. This makes California stand out in the rankings as the state combining the top score with the highest listed employment. Because the national projected employment growth rate of 4.6% is a national occupational figure, it does not describe California specifically. It instead provides overall context for interpreting California’s position as the top‑ranked state in this occupation.

Several of the top‑ranked states have higher median salaries than California but lower LaborCove Geography Scores. New York’s median salary of $142,280 is higher than California’s $108,890, yet New York ranks #2 with a Geography Score of 60.16 compared with California’s 64.26. New Jersey, ranked #3, reports a median salary of $144,460, which is higher than both New York and California. Colorado, ranked #4 with a Geography Score of 56.33, has a median salary of $157,000, which is higher than New Jersey’s $144,460 as well as California’s $108,890. These comparisons show that higher median salaries in New York, New Jersey, and Colorado do not translate directly into a higher overall Geography Score than California, underscoring that LaborCove’s ranking reflects more than pay alone.

Within the top 10 states, California has the largest listed employment count for administrative services managers at 41,240 roles. Texas, ranked #5 with a Geography Score of 50.51, reports an employment count of 22,980, which is lower than California’s employment but still substantial among the top states. New York, ranked #2, has an employment count of 15,010, which is lower than Texas’s 22,980 and lower than California’s 41,240. New Jersey, ranked #3, lists 10,910 roles, which is lower than New York’s 15,010. Among the remaining states with supplied employment data, Massachusetts reports 9,130 roles, Minnesota 7,560, Washington 3,490, Virginia 2,850, and Colorado 2,340. These figures are all lower than California’s 41,240 and lower than Texas’s 22,980, illustrating the range of employment counts even within the top 10.

Comparing state salaries to the national median highlights how compensation varies among the top 10 states. New York’s median salary of $142,280, New Jersey’s $144,460, Colorado’s $157,000, South Carolina’s $124,320, Minnesota’s $137,290, Washington’s $130,630, Massachusetts’s $116,710, and Virginia’s $130,850 are all above the national median of $114,130. California’s median salary of $108,890 is lower than the national median. Texas, at $114,190, is slightly higher than the national median, with a difference of $60. These comparisons show that while most of the top 10 states have salaries above the national median, the highest‑ranked state by Geography Score (California) has a median salary below that benchmark.

LaborCove’s Geography Score provides a single numeric ranking for each state. In this set of top 10 results, California’s score of 64.26 is higher than any other listed state. New York follows with 60.16, while New Jersey and Colorado have Geography Scores of 56.97 and 56.33, respectively. Texas, with a Geography Score of 50.51, ranks #5. South Carolina’s score of 49.29, Minnesota’s 47.70, Washington’s 44.55, Massachusetts’s 43.57, and Virginia’s 42.74 complete the top 10, with each of these scores lower than California’s 64.26. Because the Geography Score already incorporates multiple factors, users can rely on it as a concise way to compare how states rank overall, while using the detailed salary and employment figures to focus on the aspects of the labor market that matter most to them.

LaborCove’s rankings for administrative services managers (SOC 11-3012) are based on authoritative labor‑market data and the proprietary LaborCove Geography Score. For this article, national median salary, national employment, and the national projected employment growth rate are used as context, alongside state‑level median salary, employment, and Geography Score. Occupational employment and wage statistics for this analysis are based on data with a reference period of May 2025. The report year 2026 reflects when LaborCove packages and publishes the results, not the underlying observation date. The 4.6% projected employment growth is a national occupational projection and is not applied to individual states. The Geography Score summarizes multiple metrics into a single comparable value for each state. LaborCove does not disclose the internal weighting of these components, and this article does not infer which specific factors drive any state’s score. Users should treat the rankings as one input among many, alongside their own career goals and personal constraints.