According to the 2025 RIMS Risk Management Compensation Survey, the median annual base salary for risk management professionals in the United States rose to $160,000 in 2025, an 11% increase from $144,000 in 2023. In Canada, risk professionals’ salaries increased 15%, from a median base salary of $122,000 in 2023 to $140,000 in 2025.
Respondents earned the highest median salary in the San Francisco metro area at $219,000, followed by D.C. ($198,000), Los Angeles ($197,500), New York ($193,000) and Chicago ($185,000).
As the risk profession continues to mature and risk professionals’ responsibilities and position within the organization evolve, the survey found reporting structures vary notably. U.S. risk professionals report to:
- 40% to finance management (CFO/treasury)
- 18% to legal management (general counsel)
- 13% to executives or senior vice presidents
- 11% to vice presidents
- 9% to the CEO
- 8% to a chief risk officer
- 3% to HR management
- 2% to compliance functions
- 1% to audit.
In Canada, these structures were slightly different:
- 29% report to finance management
- 12% to legal management
- 16% to executive or senior vice president
- 16% to vice president
- 11% to the CEO
- 14% to a chief risk officer
- 1% to HR
- 2% to compliance management
- 4% to audit
Almost all risk professionals are responsible for additional functions, with the vast majority working on insurance (81% in the United States) and claims (73%). Other common areas included:
- business continuity/crisis management (37%)
- safety (34%)
- captive operations (30%)
- compliance (26%)
- legal (19%)
- security (14%)
- strategy (14%)
- finance/accounting (12%)
- operations (11%)
- actuarial (10%)
- internal audit (7%)
- governance/ESG (7%)