No. 12 City for Tech Jobs: San Diego

Number of high-tech Jobs: 110,985

High-tech payroll: $10.3 billion

Average wage: $93,250

Area employers: Qualcomm, AT&T, Sempra Energy

This year, local chipmaker Qualcomm (QCOM) is weighing options for its mobile video business—one being a shut-down, the company said. That news came a few months after Roseville (Calif.)-based telco SureWest Communications (SURW) said it would cut 7 percent of its workforce. In 2009, San Diego area tech companies actually added some jobs in research and development and testing, but overall employment was flat, year-over-year, because area companies cut staff in telecommunications services and computer systems design and related services. The area's average high-tech worker made double the average wage in the private sector.