10 US Cities with Most Job Openings per Capita

If you’re looking for a new job, your success may greatly depend on where you’re located and which industry you have experience in.

Each month, Bright looks at job postings and resumes aggregated from various internet sources, and supplements it with government, financial and other data sources to  measure changes in employment. We’ve estimated 171,000 net jobs created in April of 2013, with the following metro areas faring the best in terms of job openings per capita:

1. San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA
It’s no coincidence that the San Jose metro area is #1 in terms of job openings per capita and also the fastest growing area for tech jobs. Bright found that tech jobs have grown 3.8% since the beginning of the year, and won’t be slowing down any time soon. Tech, professional services, financial services, healthcare and media have all significantly contributed to the 146 open jobs for every 10,000 residents.

2. Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD
In the #2 spot for both jobs/capita and tech job growth is the Washington, DC metro area with 122 jobs per 10,000 people. Like in San Jose, other job producing industries are professional services, healthcare and financial services.

3. Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX
We’re starting to see a trend here: #3 for both jobs/capita and tech job growth is the Austin, TX metro area with 119 jobs/10,000 people. The boom in the tech industry is not just affecting the coasts – it’s beginning to spread throughout the United States and more large metro areas are becoming major tech hubs. Other hiring industries? You guessed it: professional services, healthcare and financial services.

4. Charlotte-Gastonia-Rock Hill, NC-SC
Fourth on the list is the Charlotte metro area, where jobs are not spurred primarily by the tech industry. Financial services is the biggest contributor, followed by healthcare, professional services, then tech.

5. Houston, Sugar Land-Baytown, TX
Houston is the place to be for healthcare professionals looking to find a new job – followed by… yep: tech, professional services and financial services.

6. Fresno, CA
Fresno, CA is one of two areas on the Top 10 List that doesn’t have significant tech industry growth. So, if you’re not in tech, this is the place for you! There are 105 job openings per 10,000 people and you will find plenty of opportunities coming up in transportation, professional services, healthcare, financial services, and retail.

7. Kansas City, MO
In addition to Houston, Kansas City is another great place for healthcare professionals to find open positions. There are 104 open positions/10,000 people, and other top industries include transportation, professional services, financial services and tech.

8. San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX
Along with Fremont, San Antonio is a great place to find a new job if you’re not in tech, although it is still 18th on the list of tech sector growth MSAs. The top industries are healthcare, transportation, financial services, professional services and retail and you’ll find 98 job openings per 10,000 people.

9. Raleigh-Cary, NC
Raleigh is another big tech spot, 6th on the tech sector growth list, which is undoubtedly contributing to it being #9 in terms of jobs/capita. This is another great location for healthcare professionals, as well as those in professional services, financial services and agriculture.

10. Baltimore-Towson, MD
Despite being the 4th fastest growing MSA for tech jobs, Baltimore-Towson, MD is actually growing faster in healthcare jobs than it is in tech jobs and is 10th on the list of jobs per capita. As with many of the other MSAs, you may also find solid job growth if you’re in financial services, professional services or transportation.

With the tech industry growth we’re seeing throughout the United States, we’ll see more and more of a gap between the supply and demand for tech workers. As this problem worsens, it may even be exasperated further by looming immigration reform. In short, tech workers are in high-demand, in nearly every major metro area of the United States.

So, if you think it’s time for a career change, or just want to pick up a few new marketable skills, perhaps you should prepare for one of the most in demand tech jobs on the market: Java Developer, Software Engineer, Business Analyst, .NET Developer, Systems Engineer, Web Developer, Network Engineer, or Systems Administrator. You shouldn’t have a problem finding something quickly but, if you do, stay tuned to the monthly Bright Employment Reports to see the hottest areas for your industry.

Jen Picard is a Marketing Director at Bright.com, a SmartRecruiters partner. Download the full Bright Employment Report. When she’s not at doing marketing at Bright, you can find Jen snowboarding in Tahoe, traveling abroad, or enjoying a night in with friends and a good bottle of wine. She’s a graduate of the University of California, Santa Barbara, with a degree in Socio-Economic and Political Global Studies.