New York City is the second-largest H1B market in the US, with 72,345 annual petitions spanning both the largest concentration of financial services engineering roles and major tech company offices. NYC is unique among H1B markets: elite hedge fund and investment banking roles often pay more than equivalent Big Tech roles — the inverse of Silicon Valley.
Key fact: New York City is the only major H1B market where finance roles (quant developers, trading engineers at hedge funds) pay more on average than comparable Big Tech software engineering roles — a reversal of the pattern seen in San Francisco and Seattle.
| Role | Median |
|---|---|
| Software Engineer (L3) | $162,000 |
| Senior Software Engineer (L4) | $205,000 |
| Quantitative Developer (L4) | $198,000 |
| Data Engineer (L3) | $152,000 |
| ML Engineer (L4) | $185,000 |
| Quantitative Researcher (L4) | $248,000 |
Source: DOL LCA disclosures, FY2024.
| Employer | Median Wage |
|---|---|
| Goldman Sachs | $165,000 |
| Citadel (NYC) | $195,000 |
| Bloomberg LP | $167,000 |
| JPMorgan Chase | $132,000 |
| Google (NYC) | $175,000 |
| Meta (NYC) | $188,000 |