BusinessBLS OESTech Hub100/100 · Grade A+BLS.OEWS.2026.v2WA Pay Transparency Law

General Manager Salary in Seattle, WA

2026 · BLS OEWS · 1.1M employer payroll records · Updated daily

Median salary
$206,408
per year
P75 target
$261,322
negotiation anchor
Hourly rate
$99/hr
2,080 hr/yr baseline
+40%
vs US avg
+6%
demand growth
Low
AI risk

Salary Distribution — Seattle

P10Entry Level
$131,783

New graduates, 0–1 yr exp

P2525th Percentile
$163,033

1–3 years experience

P50Median
$206,408

3–7 years, typical professional

P7575th Percentile
$261,322

Senior / high-performer — target

P90Top 10%
$323,292

Staff / principal / lead

Data Confidence
100/100A+
Government earnings data30/30

Bureau of Labor Statistics — OEWS federal authority

BLS Spring 2026 release40/40

1mo since last update

Multi-city cross-validation16/16

8 cities validated

Full percentile coverage14/14

P10, P25, P50, P75, P90 + hourly rate

BLS.OEWS.2026.v2Updated Jun 12, 2026

General Manager Salary by Experience Level in Seattle

How compensation grows from entry-level through staff / lead

Experience LevelYearsPercentileAnnual SalaryMonthlyHourly
Entry00 yrs$134,165$11,180$65
Junior22 yrs$169,255$14,105$81
Mid-LevelTypical44 yrs$194,024$16,169$93
Senior66 yrs$222,921$18,577$107
Staff1010 yrs$288,971$24,081$139
Principal1414 yrs$346,765$28,897$167
Distinguished1818 yrs$361,214$30,101$174

Based on BLS OEWS percentile distribution. Actual salary depends on employer, skills, and negotiation.

Skills That Earn More — General Manager

Estimated premium above the Seattle median based on market demand

P&L Management+4% ≈ +$8K/yr
Team Leadership+4% ≈ +$8K/yr
Strategy+4% ≈ +$8K/yr
Operations+4% ≈ +$8K/yr
Customer Service+4% ≈ +$8K/yr

Estimates based on job-posting salary premiums for verified high-demand skills.

Top Skills Market Premium

Real premium data from LinkedIn, StackOverflow & Levels.fyi job postings

All-skills combined premium
+$41K/yr
Highest single skill
P&L Management +4%
P&L Management+4% · +$8K/yr
Team Leadership+4% · +$8K/yr
Strategy+4% · +$8K/yr
Operations+4% · +$8K/yr
Customer Service+4% · +$8K/yr

Premiums represent verified market uplift for each skill based on job posting analysis. Adding the top-3 skills compounds — but employers rarely pay all premiums simultaneously.

General Manager Intelligence Report

Composite career metrics and full compensation breakdown — computed from BLS demand data

Career Opportunity Score

Composite: demand growth × 1.4 + (100 − AI risk) × 0.4

D44/100
High RiskModerateExceptional
Demand Growth+6%/yr
AI Displacement Risk12% — Low
Risk-Adj. Salary Growth+1.5%/yr
Below Average: Moderate risk from automation. Consider adjacent skills to broaden earning power.
$213K
In 2 yrs
$222K
In 5 yrs
$240K
In 10 yrs

Risk-adjusted growth model. Not financial advice.

Total Compensation — General Manager

Beyond base salary: bonus, equity, and employer-provided benefits

Total Comp Range
$290K$331K
per year
Base (66%)Bonus (13%)Equity (6%)Benefits (15%)
Base Salary
Median market rate
$206,408
Annual Bonus
Typical range: 10–30% of base
$41,282
Equity (annualised)
~9% of base — RSUs/options
$17,545
Benefits Value
~22% — healthcare, 401k, PTO
$45,410
Total Comp (mid)
$310,645

Sources: Levels.fyi TC data, LinkedIn Salary Insights, Robert Half 2025 Guide. Equity assumes established company RSU vesting schedule.

Typical Benefits for General Managers

Total compensation beyond base salary — often adds 20–35% to your effective pay

Health Insurance
Medical, dental, vision
401(k) Match
Avg 3–6% employer match
PTO
15–25 days / year
Remote / Hybrid
Common in this role
Total compensation tip: Always negotiate base salary first. Equity, signing bonus, and remote flexibility have the highest negotiation leverage in the current market.

Compare General Manager Salaries by City

How Seattle, WA stacks up against other major markets

CityMedianP75vs US avg
Seattle, WA (current)$206,408$261,322++40%
New York, NY$211,783$268,127++44%
San Francisco, CA$245,828$311,230++67%
Austin, TX$162,913$206,256++11%
Boston, MA$211,085$267,244++44%
Chicago, IL$166,548$210,858++13%
Los Angeles, CA$204,298$258,651++39%
Denver, CO$170,337$215,655++16%
Washington DC, DC$213,053$269,735++45%

Career Paths from General Manager

O*NET · US Dept of Labor

Higher-paying roles in the same field

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the average General Manager salary in Seattle, WA?

The median General Manager salary in Seattle, WA is $206K per year (2026), based on BLS OEWS employer payroll data from 1.1 million employers. The top 25% earn $261K+ per year.

What is a good General Manager salary in Seattle, WA?

The 75th percentile ($261K/yr) is the professional benchmark — what the top quarter already earns. It's a documented, negotiable target backed by BLS payroll data. Anything above the median ($206K) is above-average for this role in Seattle, WA.

How much does a General Manager earn per hour in Seattle, WA?

Based on the median annual salary of $206K, a General Manager in Seattle, WA earns approximately $99/hr (2,080-hour work year). The P75 rate is ~$126/hr.

Is Seattle, WA a good market for General Managers?

Seattle, WA pays 40% above the US national average for this role. Demand for General Managers is growing 6% annually, and AI automation risk is rated low for this occupation.

How do I negotiate a higher General Manager salary in Seattle, WA?

Cite the BLS P75 figure ($261K) — it is verifiable public data from government payroll records. Request the full compensation package: base + equity/bonus + benefits. Timing matters: negotiate at the offer stage, not after acceptance. Counter with a specific number, not a range.

How Is This Salary Calculated?

Every number on this page is derived from a transparent, reproducible methodology — no estimates, no black boxes.

Where does the salary data come from?

All US figures come from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey — a mandatory biannual survey of 1.1 million US employers who report actual payroll data. The BLS publishes national, state, and metro-area percentile wages for every Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) code. SalaryScope fetches this via the BLS public API and refreshes every 24 hours. No self-reported data is used at any stage.

How is the Seattle figure calculated?

The BLS publishes metro-area occupational wage statistics for 300+ US metropolitan areas. For Seattle, SalaryScope uses the BLS metro premium ratio (metro median ÷ national median) and applies it to the national baseline. This ratio accounts for local employer density, cost-of-living, and industry concentration. The figures are updated whenever the BLS releases new OEWS metro data.

What do P10, P25, P50, P75, and P90 mean?

These are salary percentiles from employer payroll records. P50 (median) means 50% of workers earn less — this is the market midpoint. P75 means 75% of workers earn less — this is the "top 25% earners" threshold and is the recommended negotiation anchor. P10 and P90 represent the bottom 10% and top 10% of earners respectively. All figures are annual and based on 2,080 working hours per year (52 × 40hrs).

How is total compensation (bonus + equity) estimated?

Total comp is estimated using industry-specific compensation models calibrated to publicly available surveys (LinkedIn Salary, Radford, Levels.fyi). Bonus percentages are set by category: Finance (15–25%), Technology (10–20%), Healthcare (5–10%). Equity/RSUs are annualised over a standard 4-year cliff vest. Benefits value ($15K–$25K) reflects average employer-paid health, retirement match, and PTO. These are estimates — your actual comp depends on employer, level, and negotiation.

How often is data updated?

US BLS salary data refreshes every 24 hours via the BLS public API. OECD international wages refresh monthly. ECB currency rates refresh every 4 hours. The timestamp shown on each page reflects the most recent BLS data pull for that occupation.

Full formulas and source citations on the methodology page.

How much of $206,408 do you actually take home?

Calculate exact net pay after federal, state, and FICA taxes — 2026 brackets.

Salary trend data not available for this occupation.

Education Premium — General Manager

How degree level affects General Manager salary · ACS Census data

High School / GED
-25%
~$155K
Associate's Degree
-12%
~$182K
Bachelor's DegreeBASELINE
~$206K
Master's Degree
+25%
~$258K
Doctoral (PhD)
+18%
~$244K
Professional (MBA/JD/MD)
+45%
~$299K

Source: US Census Bureau ACS PUMS Table B20004 · BLS OES wage data. Premiums shown vs bachelor's degree baseline at median experience.

Am I Paid Fairly?

Enter your current salary to instantly see where you rank in the Seattle market and get your data-backed negotiation opening ask.

📊Your exact market percentile based on BLS distribution
🎯P75 target + 10% stretch as your opening ask price
🚪Walking-away floor so you know when to move on
Seattle benchmarks
$206K
Market median
$261K
P75 target
$323K
Top 10%

Negotiation Calculator

Enter your current salary to see your market position and opening ask

$
General Manager in Seattle — Distribution
P10
$132K
P25
$163K
P50
$206K
P75
$261K
P90
$323K
Enter your salary above to see your negotiation position

Washington Salary Transparency Law

Effective Jan 1, 2023

Employers with 15+ employees must disclose wage scale or salary range

As a job seeker in Washington, you have the legal right to request or see salary ranges in job postings. Use the ranges on this page as your benchmark before applying.

View law →

Data Source & Attribution

Salary data sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, based on 1.1 million employer payroll records. Data is updated via ISR (Incremental Static Regeneration) and reflects the most recent BLS OEWS release cycle. This data is in the public domain under BLS data dissemination policy.

BLS.OEWS.2026.v2

Jun 12, 2026

Full methodology →