Skip to content
TryHired.
Role hub · Project Management Specialists

Project Manager: what the job is, what it pays, and how to get hired.

The work, the skills that matter, the tools in demand and the pay range, from U.S. government data, plus every TryHired page for the role.

Maid DizdarevicCareer coach · 8x LinkedIn Top Voice
Updated Oct 24, 2026 · Data: BLS OEWS May 2025 · O*NET 31.0
Pay ladder · select a percentile
Median percentile pay

Half of project managers earn more than this and half earn less.

Annual
$102,320
Hourly
$49.19
Source
BLS May 2025
Quick answer

Project Managers analyze and coordinate the schedule, timeline, procurement, staffing, and budget of a product or service on a per project basis. The median pay is $102,320 a year ($49.19 an hour) (BLS, May 2025).

Median pay
$102,320
BLS May 2025
Employed in the U.S.
1,066,670
BLS May 2025
Preparation
Job Zone 4 of 5
considerable preparation

Data Government data groups this job as Project Management Specialists (O*NET-SOC 13-1082.00). Figures on this page are for that occupation.

Explore the role

Every page for Project Managers

SalaryProject Manager salary

Pay by percentile, state and metro, with a negotiation script.

Open →ResumeProject Manager resume

Keywords, bullet formulas and the skills to prove.

Open →Interview questionsProject Manager interview questions

Questions with what they test, plus practice mode.

Open →Career changeProject Manager career change

Where these skills transfer, with skill match and pay change.

Open →Free toolCheck your resume

Parsed text, evidence per bullet, fixes first.

Open →
The work

What project managers do day to day

Data Core tasks rated most important by workers in the role (O*NET).

  1. Communicate with key stakeholders to determine project requirements and objectives.
  2. Identify project needs such as resources, staff, or finances by reviewing project objectives and schedules.
  3. Submit project deliverables to clients, ensuring adherence to quality standards.
  4. Confer with project personnel to identify and resolve problems.
  5. Plan, schedule, or coordinate project activities to meet deadlines.
  6. Request and review project updates to ensure deadlines are met.
  7. Monitor project milestones and deliverables.
  8. Assign duties or responsibilities to project personnel.
Skills that matter

Ranked by importance to the job

Data O*NET importance ratings. The first three are core.

Active ListeningcoreCritical ThinkingcoreJudgment and Decision MakingcoreWritingMonitoringCoordinationTime ManagementReading ComprehensionSpeaking

Knowledge areas: English Language, Administration and Management, Administrative, Customer and Personal Service, Computers and Electronics.

Tools and technology

Software project managers use

Data Examples reported for the role; employer demand flags from O*NET.

  • Atlassian JIRAContent workflow softwareIn demand
  • Adobe InDesignDesktop publishing softwareHot technology
  • Adobe PhotoshopGraphics or photo imaging softwareHot technology
  • AsanaCloud-based data access and sharing softwareHot technology
  • Autodesk AutoCAD Civil 3DComputer aided design CAD softwareHot technology
  • Bentley MicroStationComputer aided design CAD softwareHot technology
  • GitFile versioning softwareHot technology
  • GitHubApplication server softwareHot technology
  • IBM SPSS StatisticsAnalytical or scientific softwareHot technology
  • Marketo Marketing AutomationSales and marketing softwareHot technology
  • Microsoft VisioProcess mapping and design softwareHot technology
  • Procore softwareAnalytical or scientific softwareHot technology

Also called: Fiber Project Manager, Implementation Project Manager, Project Management Consultant.

Method

How this page is built

Tasks, skills, tools, education and related roles come from O*NET 31.0. Pay and employment come from the BLS OEWS May 2025 national estimates. The skill-match score is our calculation: Skill match is the correlation between the two occupations' skill profiles: for each of 35 O*NET skills (10 essential, 25 transferable) we multiply importance by level, subtract the average across all occupations, and correlate the two profiles. 100 means identical shape; 0 or below means unrelated. Only occupations that O*NET itself lists as related are compared.

What this page can't tell you
  • How a specific employer defines the job.
  • Pay for self-employed workers (OEWS covers employees).
  • Your own chances: data describes the occupation, not you.
Sources
  1. O*NET 31.0 Database, U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. TryHired selected, ranked and combined the data; O*NET is not responsible for these pages.
  2. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 estimates (public domain).