ADP Debuts Metro-Level Pay Growth Data to Help Employers Benchmark Local Talent Markets

NewsData.io · United States · Sep 11, 2026

ADP's August 2026 Pay Insights report introduced pay growth data for 56 U.S. metropolitan areas, breaking out base and gross pay by worker mobility, demographics, sector, employer size, and pay quartile. National base pay rose 3.2% year-over-year, while cities like Hartford, San Jose, and Rochester led with base pay growth of 3.5–3.6% and gross pay gains up to 5.6%. The report highlights a growing gap between base and gross pay in many markets, signaling that some employers are leaning on short-term incentives rather than permanent wage increases. For staffing agencies, the granular metro-level data offers actionable benchmarking to sharpen candidate compensation guidance and identify markets where hiring pressure is intensifying.