5 Best-Paying Jobs in Human Resources

There are more than 52,000 current human resources job openings across the U.S. and there’s an average ratio of 26 candidates per job opening, according to Randstad, a global HR services company.

Your salary will depend on a few things: level of experience, specialty, and where in the country you work. For example, a business analyst salary in West Hills, California, is 3% higher than the national median; a human resources manager salary in Las Vegas is 10% lower than the national median; and a human resources consultant salary in Manchester, New Hampshire, is 10% higher than the national median.

Here are the five of the best-paying HR jobs and the skills and companies that can help you meet your salary expectations.

Consultant | Median Annual Salary: $68,660

Salary outlook: HR consultants' salaries can range from $42K to $124K depending on the particular firm, career length and geography. Responsibilities include hiring and training employees, advising managers on organizational policy issues and developing HR initiatives such as compensation, benefits and performance management programs. Some of the highest paying skills include data analysis, project management, performance management, organizational development and employee relations. Consultants at companies like Mercer average $102K and if you're looking to relocate for this position, San Francisco pays 41 percent above the national average of $69,564, followed by Boston (22 percent), Los Angeles (17 percent) and Dallas (14 percent).

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Account Manager | Median Annual Salary: $63,147

Salary outlook: HR account managers are responsible, mainly, for maximizing and managing profitability while satisfying the customer's needs whether it's bringing new clients on board or developing new business opportunities with existing clientele. Job seekers interested in pursuing this role need an outgoing personality, great communication skills and solid work ethic. The highest-paying skills are in strategic sales, contract negotiation, sales management and account sales. San Francisco pays account managers 26 percent above the national average of $51,424, followed by Washington (21 percent), Houston (20 percent) and New York (18 percent). Companies like the Hilti and Baker Hughes can pay anywhere from $80K to $100K.

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Human Resources Manager | Median Annual Salary: $63,024

Salary outlook: HR managers support the company's growth and operation by overseeing daily operations, business planning and budget development for human resources programs. Responsibilities include planning, managing and coordinating all human resources initiatives, recruitment, compensation, benefits, training and employee relations. High-paying skills include performance management and organizational development. Comcast and The Walt Disney Company pay HR managers upwards $75K. San Francisco, New York and Washington are your best bet for increased wages with all paying more than 20 percent above the national average of $59,970.

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Business Analyst | Median Annual Salary: $59,876

Salary outlook: HR business analysts determine, implement and evaluate business metrics to meet ongoing organizational or customer information needs. They communicate complex data in comprehensible ways and develop strategies to meet user needs and requests. Amazon pays its HR business analysts an average $80K and hot spots for salary include San Francisco, New York and Houston, which all pay above the national average of $58,460.

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Human Resources Generalist | Median Annual Salary: $49,329

Salary outlook: HR generalists oversee day-to-day human resources tasks and usually repot to an HR manager or director. Often, this role is required to have a college degree and work experience in business, communications, management or a related field. HR generalists administer employee compensation, training and benefit programs and process, verify and maintain HR documents related to staffing, training and performance evaluations. The Boeing Company pays, on average, more than $60K for this job. Job seekers can browse openings in San Francisco and New York where the pay is more than 20 percent above the national average of $47,778.

See what human resources generalist jobs are available and apply today.

Note: Data is based on PayScale survey data.