New York City: Top City to Hire Software Engineers

New York City is one of the top 10 best cities for hiring software engineers in 2024 for many reasons. As the most populous city in the U.S., New York has the sixth largest talent pool of software engineers and it’s ranked seventh in elite engineering talent. However, with a median salary of $180,000, one of the biggest downsides of New York is it’s the third most expensive place for hiring engineers. 

For companies that can pay the price though, they’ll join New York City’s diverse software engineering ecosystem, which includes financial services giants like Goldman Sachs and digital streaming services like Spotify, and reap the benefits of the city’s talent pool, AI development, and excellent universities.

Why New York City

• Large talent pool: A major advantage of recruiting in New York City is the number of software engineers who are located there. Among all of the best cities for hiring software engineers in 2024, New York has the sixth largest talent pool. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported 105,460 employed software developers in New York State in May 2023, making New York the state with the third highest level of employment. New York City’s talent pool is continuing to grow, and it benefited from the San Francisco Bay Area’s exodus during the pandemic. In 2023, New York City saw a 3.5% net gain in population, the biggest share of relocating tech talent, as people moved to the city from San Francisco, Seattle, and Boston.
• Growing AI hub: New York City has its sights set on becoming an AI hub that could soon challenge San Francisco and Seattle “as the go-to destination for cutting-edge technology.” In early 2024, the governor of New York announced a historic agreement to establish Empire AI, “a first-of-its-kind consortium to secure New York’s place at the forefront of artificial intelligence research.” The consortium is made up of seven New York-based universities and institutions, and it will use a $275 million state investment to launch a state-of-the-art AI computing center at the University of Buffalo. New York also already has plenty of AI talent that new initiatives and investments such as Empire AI can help catalyze. The city has 40,000 AI professionals and is second in the U.S. for venture capital investment in AI. Cohere, a leading Canadian AI company, opened a New York office in March 2024 to connect to its partners in the city, reach a diverse range of talent and enterprises, and support the city’s AI initiatives, while OpenAI is looking to expand to New York in 2025.
• Top-tier computer science schools: New York City and New York State are home to some of the best universities for computer science in the U.S. The Times Higher Education named Cornell University as the eighth best university for computer science in 2024, with Columbia University following in 14th place and New York University in 16th. Since New York City is easily accessible from nearby states, companies can also attract talent from other universities that excel in computer science, such as Princeton University in New Jersey, Yale University in Connecticut, and the University of Pennsylvania in Pennsylvania.

Hiring Challenges in New York City

• High cost of living: Unsurprisingly, New York City is an expensive place to live and operate a business. It only costs about $10 million less each year to run a 500-person tech company in New York than in San Francisco, making it the second most costly market in the U.S. to operate in. There are two main reasons why it’s so expensive: labor and real estate. New York City is the fifth most expensive place to live in the U.S., which means that companies need to pay a premium for employees there. It also has some of the most expensive office space in the country. Even in a tough market with availability remaining at a record high of 17.9% as of January 2024, the city is seeing a record number of leases that start at $100 per square foot.
• AI hiring regulation: In 2023, New York City passed the country’s first law (NYC 144) that regulates how companies use AI in their hiring decisions. Organizations that use certain kinds of software in their hiring and promotion decisions must audit those tools annually and publish the results. Six months after the law was enforced, only eight out of nearly 400 companies have published results on their websites. Companies that don’t comply with the law may need to pay up to $1,500 in penalties per violation each day. While there’s little actual enforcement of NYC 144 so far, this is something that companies hiring in New York City will need to continue to be aware of and take action on. With the city aiming to be a leader in the responsible use of AI and the European Union’s first AI laws going into effect in 2026, this is most likely just the beginning of the city’s attempt at regulating AI use in hiring.

If you’re considering tapping into global tech talent to rapidly grow, manage costs, or expand into new markets, see our full report on the top cities to hire software engineers in 2024.