Product managers handle everything from ideation to marketing, overseeing the entire product development process. Discover how much product managers make and the factors that can influence their earning potential in this role.
Product managers have become vitally important given the world’s continued adoption of all things digital. These professionals head up the entire product development process, ensuring that the products created align with customer needs and match the company’s goals. Due to the rise of innovation and data-driven decision-making, the global product management market is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 9.39 percent from 2025 to 20341 [1]. This signifies the importance of product managers in the current digital landscape.
Whether you’re starting out as a product manager or considering a career shift to this field, it’s helpful to gain insights into your earning potential in this role. Given their crucial position in an organization, product managers tend to command competitive salaries that are higher than the national average across the US. Explore the average product manager salary, as well as the factors impacting how much you can earn in this role.
Product managers are the backbone of the product life cycle. In addition to defining the features and requirements of a product, a product manager analyzes market and competitor trends. In doing so, they can form a product strategy that not only generates profits for the company but also makes sure user needs are met. Product managers facilitate seamless coordination across sales, engineering, marketing, design, and other product teams. In this role, you would also liaise with stakeholders to identify the target audience for the product and how the product can benefit them.
Although your responsibilities as a product manager can vary based on your target users and company, the typical duties you can expect include:
Setting a product vision and strategy for the team
Curating and developing ideas that can provide value to customers
Defining and prioritizing product features to ensure their alignment with the product strategy and customer needs
Developing roadmaps to communicate with various teams regarding how to achieve business goals
Monitoring and reporting on the work progress and product performance
Using marketing knowledge to analyze market competition, conduct market research, and understand customer behavior
According to Glassdoor, the average annual pay for a product manager in the US is $124,915. This can increase to $197,703 when considering additional pay, such as bonuses and commissions [2]. According to data from five salary aggregate sites, the average annual salary for a product manager can range from $111,729 to $159,405, which is much higher than the national average. The product manager base salaries reported by five different organizations are as follows [2, 3, 4, 5, 6]:
Zippia [3] | Indeed [4] | Glassdoor [2] | Talent.com [5] | ZipRecruiter [6] |
---|---|---|---|---|
$111,729 | $122,761 | $124,915 | $130,000 | $159,405 |
*All salary data as of February 2025
The exact salary you can expect to earn as a product manager will depend on a number of factors, including your educational background, experience, geographic location, and company.
Your product manager salary can vary based on your education and work experience, the geographic area and industry you’re working in, your skill set for the role, the company you’re working at, and your specific responsibilities.
Advanced academic degrees often lead to earning higher salaries. According to Zippia, although the most common educational qualification for a product manager is a bachelor’s degree, having a master’s degree can help you earn a higher salary [3]:
Associate degree: $101,684
Bachelor’s degree: $115,111
Master’s degree: $127,434
The longer you work in a role, the more skills and knowledge you accumulate. This often results in higher salaries for workers with several years of experience. According to Glassdoor, the average potential salaries based on your experience are as follows [2]:
0–1 year: $95,402
1–3 years: $110,254
4–6 years: $121,773
7–9 years: $129,736
10–14 years: $140,280
15+ years: $157,018
Additionally, your job level at your company, based on your years of experience, can impact your salary [3]:
Entry-level product manager: $82,900
Mid-level product manager: $88,589
Senior-level product manager: $201,528
Salaries can also vary depending on the industry you’re working in. This is due to differences in working conditions, clientele, and training requirements. According to Zippia, product managers in the retail industry earn the highest salaries, whereas product managers in the manufacturing industry earn the lowest salaries when compared to other industries [3]:
Retail: $114,839
Hospitality: $114,288
Technology: $114,210
Telecommunication: $112,010
Finance: $109,384
Manufacturing: $106,561
Areas with greater demand for a job role or higher costs of living often lead to higher salaries. According to Zippia, product manager salaries for different US cities are as follows [3]:
San Francisco, CA: $132,367
Seattle, WA: $107,963
New York, NY: $105,696
Washington, NJ: $100,187
Washington, DC: $99,221
Phoenix, AZ: $96,742
Boston, MA: $96,607
Richmond, VA: $96,573
Possessing in-demand skills is an additional factor that could improve your chances of earning a higher salary. According to Payscale, popular product manager skills and their associated salaries are as follows [7]:
Product management: $96,827
Product development: $95,808
Strategic planning: $98,321
Project management: $90,641
Business strategy: $104,164
Your salary could be dependent on your company or employer. Larger or more profitable companies often offer more competitive salaries. According to Zippia, the companies that offer the highest salaries for product managers are [3]:
Meta: $174,262
Airbnb: $170,677
Roku: $169,269
Credit Karma: $165,608
Netflix: $165,348
Lyft: $164,052
The Walt Disney Company: $162,460
ByteDance: $162,278
Your role or department could have an impact on your potential salary. Roles that require you to perform complex tasks or undertake more responsibilities will often offer higher compensation. According to ZipRecruiter, product manager salaries in different roles and positions include [6]:
Digital product manager: $133,209
Software technical manager: $125,610
Product evangelist: $87,306
Product marketing manager: $148,769
Product managers oversee the entire product life cycle, working with various teams and stakeholders to ensure the product meets customer needs and business objectives. Whether you’re starting out in your career or looking to expand your skill set, earning a Professional Certificate or undertaking a course can help you obtain industry-relevant knowledge to stay up-to-date with new trends in your field and maximize your product manager salary.
If you’re interested in starting a career as a product manager, you can opt for the IBM Product Manager Professional Certificate on Coursera, which can help equip you with the product management methodologies, tools, and skills necessary to enter this field. If you’re looking to become a product manager for a specific product, consider taking a Specialization course on Coursera, such as the University of Alberta’s Software Product Management Specialization for software products or Duke University’s AI Product Management Specialization for machine learning products.
Precedence Research. “Product Lifecycle Management Market Size, Share, and Trends 2025 to 2034, https://www.precedenceresearch.com/product-lifecycle-management-market.” Accessed February 6, 2025.
Glassdoor. “Product Manager Salaries, https://www.glassdoor.com/Salaries/us-product-manager-salary-SRCH_IL.0,2_IN1_KO3,18.htm?countryRedirect=true.” Accessed February 6, 2025.
Zippia. “Product Manager Salary, https://www.zippia.com/salaries/product-manager/.” Accessed February 6, 2025.
Indeed. “Product manager salary in the United States, https://www.indeed.com/career/product-manager/salaries.” Accessed February 6, 2025.
Talent.com. “Product Manager average salary in the USA, 2025, https://www.talent.com/salary?job=product+manager.” Accessed February 6, 2025.
ZipRecruiter. “Product Manager Salary, https://www.ziprecruiter.com/Salaries/Product-Manager-Salary.” Accessed February 6, 2025.
Payscale. “Average Product Manager, (Unspecified Type) Salary, https://www.payscale.com/research/US/Job=Product_Manager%2C_(Unspecified_Type)/Salary.” Accessed February 6, 2025.
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