Where US job ads show the pay
In the 14 states and Washington DC with a pay-transparency law, 73% of job ads state the pay. In the other 36 states, 36% do. A monthly count of 302,219 live job ads posted on employers' own careers sites.
Findings
The law roughly doubles the share of ads with pay
Every place with a posting law except Connecticut has a higher share of ads showing pay than any state without one. Leaving it aside, the law states sit between 67% in Virginia and 78% in Washington. Without a law, Mississippi is lowest at 26% and Alaska highest at 60%.
Laws that stop short of the job ad don't move the number. Rhode Island and Nevada require employers to share a range with applicants but not in the ad; at 50% and 38%, they look like states with no law at all.
Massachusetts (October 2025, now 72%), Virginia (July 2026, now 67%), Maine (July 2026, now 69%) and Connecticut (October 2026, now 56%) brought in posting rules in the last 12 months. Delaware's law starts in September 2027; today 45% of its ads show pay.
By state
Share of job ads that show pay
Bars run from 0 to 100%. States with fewer than 100 live ads are left out.
By field
Software Development shows the pay most, hospitality & tourism least
All states. Fields with at least 1,500 live ads.
Ranges
How wide are the ranges?
Across 71,086 annual salary ranges, the typical top figure is 31% above the bottom one, roughly $100,000 to $131,000. But 30% of ranges have a top at least 1.5 times the bottom, which tells you less about what the job pays.
The laws
States that require pay in job ads
| State | Since | Who it covers | Ads with pay |
|---|---|---|---|
| Colorado | Jan 2021 | All employers with employees in Colorado | 76% |
| Washington | Jan 2023 | Employers with 15+ employees | 78% |
| California | Jan 2023 | Employers with 15+ employees | 75% |
| New York | Sep 2023 | Employers with 4+ employees | 77% |
| Hawaii | Jan 2024 | Employers with 50+ employees | 71% |
| Washington DC | Jun 2024 | All employers | 72% |
| Maryland | Oct 2024 | All employers | 70% |
| Minnesota | Jan 2025 | Employers with 30+ employees in Minnesota | 73% |
| Illinois | Jan 2025 | Employers with 15+ employees | 71% |
| New Jersey | Jun 2025 | Employers with 10+ employees over 20 calendar weeks | 69% |
| Vermont | Jul 2025 | Employers with 5+ employees | 77% |
| Massachusetts | Oct 2025 | Employers with 25+ employees | 72% |
| Virginia | Jul 2026 | All employers | 67% |
| Maine | Jul 2026 | Employers with 10+ employees | 69% |
| Connecticut | Oct 2026 | All employers | 56% |
Checked against each state's own guidance in October 2026. Some cities, including New York City, Jersey City and Cleveland, have their own rules too.
How we count
What is included?+
Every live job on Joboru US with a state: 302,219 ads on 6 October 2026. All come straight from employers' own careers sites. Remote jobs with no state are left out, and states with fewer than 100 live ads are not shown.
What counts as showing pay?+
A dollar figure for the role, hourly or annual, either in the employer's structured pay field or stated in the job description. Bonuses, sign-on payments and commission alone do not count.
Which states require pay in job ads?+
California, Colorado, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Vermont, Virginia, Washington and Washington DC, as of 6 October 2026.
Can I use this data?+
Yes, with a link to this page. The CSV has every state's counts and is updated with each report.