Bijan Shahrokhi 
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Article Contents
Product management is a demanding career but many still aspire to take on the challenge. Being responsible for a product’s success is a huge responsibility but the process is both meaningful and rewarding.
On top of that, the base product manager salary is more than adequate. Product Management has been included in the top ten of Glassdoor’s 50 Best Jobs in America 2022 where one of the qualifying factors is earning potential.
If you’re planning to become a PM and are doing your research into the career, you’ll understand why the product manager salary is about 50k more than the average annual mean wage of a full-time salary worker in this article.
What does a Product Manager do?
Product managers are responsible for developing and maintaining products, working closely with the engineering team and other key stakeholders. In other words, product managers are the CEO of their products. They oversee the end-to-end process of product development from research and development to release, while simultaneously prioritizing to ensure projects are completed on schedule.
Learn more about what a Product Manager does by reading our post: “What do product managers do? A comprehensive guide with examples.“
Why are Product Managers paid well?
Product management is one of the fastest-growing roles in the tech industry – and for a good reason. In a highly fragmented market where users can switch to a competitor within a few clicks in an app store, a great product – and the experience users have with it – can lead to retention and growth.
To create a great product, you need a specific set of hard and soft skills. On top of that, a good product manager has to have a deep understanding of the market and its trends. It’s not easy to acquire all of these.
Lastly, the lifecycle of a product is never-ending. New needs arise and there’s always something to improve because the market and user behavior are ever-changing, especially in tech.
For a company or product to keep up, a good Product Manager is needed.
How much do Product Managers make in Tech?
Suppose you’re wondering what salary expectations are for Product Managers in tech. In that case, the exact amount depends on multiple factors. For instance, stock grants and bonuses can boost your base salary considerably.
Some of the additional factors that can change the amount you receive as a Product Manager include:
Company
Product Managers who work in big tech companies like Facebook/Meta, Apple, Amazon, Netflix, or Google are well compensated because a lot is expected from them. Leading the development of products in one of the FAANG organizations can be demanding. A PM may need to take on a more specialized role. Hence, the attractive salary package.
To uncover the Product Manager salaries in a FAANG company, let’s take a look at data from Glassdoor, a popular online job board that provides insights about jobs and companies:
How Much is the Google Product Manager salary?
A starting Product Manager working at Google (PM1) can expect about $148K per year as base pay. There are also bonuses, stocks per year, and additional compensation in the form of tips. This brings the total average pay of a Google PM1 to about $235K annually.
How Much Do Amazon Product Managers Make?
As a start, an L5 Product Manager at Amazon can be paid as much as $172K total pay per year on average. As the PM moves to the L6 level, the total pay increases to $248K.
How Much do Facebook Product Managers Make?
On Facebook/Meta, they have an 18-month program for people with less than one year of Product Management experience. When an aspiring PM is accepted, he or she is called an RPM or Rotational Product Manager.
An RPM, which is a PM at the L3 level, has an average base compensation of about $119K. If you add in the bonuses and stocks, the total average pay of an RPM in Facebook/Meta can be as much as $166K per year.
How Much do Product Managers Make at Apple?
If you were to be accepted as a Product Manager at Apple (ICT3), you’re looking at a $215K total average salary for an entire year. When you reach ICT5, you could be looking at $384K.
How Much do Netflix Product Managers Make?
The data for a Netflix Product Manager on Glassdoor is based on only eight salaries. Those who may be interested to apply for a PM job at Netflix can look forward to about $120K total average compensation per year. As a Senior Product Manager at Netflix, your annual salary could reach up to $500K per year.
How about Tech Startup Product Manager Salary?
Startup Product Managers are compensated differently. The salary of a PM at a startup will depend on a number of factors such as experience level.
The maturity of the company will also affect the product manager salary. The younger the company, the less a PM might get paid since he or she will be joining for equity and because of his or her belief in the vision.
According to ZipRecruiter, PMs at startup companies are paid an average of $90K a year or about $44/hour.
Note: The Product Manager role has different levels. Most of the figures stated above are that of a starting PM. As your level goes up, your salary at the specified companies will also increase.
Product Manager Roles
Another factor that affects a PM’s salary package is role. Product Manager is simply a blanket term. As mentioned early on, PMs tend to take on a more specific role depending on the needs of a company, which is why there are different types of Product Managers with varying salary ranges.
Let’s take a look at the three kinds of PMs and their average annual product manager salaries:
- Technical Product Manager (TPM) salary – $121,775 / yr
- Data and Analyst Product Manager (DAPM) salary – $126,056 / yr
- Growth Product Manager (GPM) – $132,685 / yr
Check out our blog post: “The Different Types of Product Managers,” if you would like to know more about the types of PMs and their respective responsibilities.
Location
The next factor is location. As with nearly every occupation, your location plays a substantial role in the amount of money you’ll make. The median salary package for a PM in the Bay Area is about $260,000 a year, for example, while product managers in Denver can expect to take home around $175,000.
Indeed is a great platform to check Product Manager salaries in different cities.
Final Thoughts on Product Manager Salary
Product Managers are compensated for the impact they make on a product. It’s both a professionally and financially rewarding job but before you start your dream PM job, you have to go through the Product Manager interview and get accepted.
To prepare for your future interviews, you can check out the Product Manager Interview Course where you will acquire the knowledge and confidence you need to master product manager interview skills.
In the same course, you will find different company guides such as the Goolge Product Manager Interview Guide and the Facebook Product Manager Interview Guide.
