Market report · San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA
The State of Outbound Sales in San Jose, 2026
How outbound selling looks across the San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA metro right now: who the buyers are, which trades have room, what is being built, what a rep costs to hire here. Then a 4-tool kit to work the market this month.
- 4,295business sites with 20+ people across the categories trades sell to, #38 of our 100 metros
- 86buyer sites per paving contractor, #2 of 94 markets: the best rank of any trade here
Sites: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023; rank among the 100 metros on our market pages. Room: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023 sites per contractor in U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, private ownership, 2026 Q1, among markets with at least 10 contractors.
Executive summary Read this if nothing else
5 things to know about outbound sales in San Jose
Biggest buyer pool
Restaurants: 1,365 sites
with 20 or more people, the largest buyer category in San Jose-Sunnyvale, ahead of retail stores (914).
Where the metro leans
Apartment and residential property managers: 1.26x the U.S. mix
The one category that stands out against the national mix. Trades that serve it have more of these buyers here than average.
Most room
Paving & Asphalt: #2 of 94 markets
86 buyer sites with 20+ people for each of 28 local paving contractors. The most crowded is managed service providers, #86 of 100.
Biggest reason to call
AWS Gilroy Data Center Campus, $2 billion
Under construction, first building opening 2028, full buildout 2037. One of 3 named, sourced projects in this report.
Hiring locally
$124,700 for an in-house SDR's first year (illustrative)
At a $55,000 base salary, once commission, payroll taxes and benefits, tools, recruiting and training, turnover and manager time are added, before ramp time.
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, private ownership, 2026 Q1; project sources as of 2026-09; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025. Full list at the end.
Chapter 01 The market
Who buys in San Jose-Sunnyvale
4,295 business sites in San Jose-Sunnyvale have 20 or more people on site in the categories commercial trades sell to. That ranks #38 of the 100 metros we publish. Here is what those buyers are and where they sit.
The largest buyer categories
Sites with 20 or more people are the ones worth an SDR's time: big enough to have a facility lead, a service budget and a contract that comes up for renewal. The "vs. U.S. mix" column compares each category's share of local employment with its national share (1.00x is the U.S. average).
| Category | Sites with 20+ | All sites | vs. U.S. mix | 1-yr change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RestaurantsLargest pool | 1,365 | 4,932 | 0.93x | +171 |
| Retail stores | 914 | 4,376 | 0.53x | -2 |
| Manufacturing plants | 546 | 2,056 | 0.89x | +14 |
| Wholesale distributors | 385 | 2,131 | 0.47x | +8 |
| Medical, dental and outpatient offices | 367 | 4,668 | 0.88x | +244 |
| Grocery stores | 239 | 774 | 0.66x | +21 |
| Senior living and nursing | 130 | 415 | 0.65x | +24 |
| Private K-12 schools | 111 | 179 | 1.07x | +1 |
| Hosting and data processing companies | 105 | 421 | 1.08x | -1 |
| Hotels | 99 | 270 | 0.63x | -12 |
San Jose-Sunnyvale leans toward apartment and residential property managers (1.26x). A trade that already sells to those buyers elsewhere has a deeper pool here than the national numbers suggest, and a case study from one of them travels well on the phone.
It is thinner than the U.S. mix in golf courses and country clubs (0.32x) and trucking companies (0.35x). A program built around those buyers runs out of fresh accounts sooner here.
Growing fastest over the past year, by establishment count: medical, dental and outpatient offices (+244), restaurants (+171) and apartment and residential property managers (+42). New sites have no incumbent vendor yet.
The metro
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA: 2 counties in this report's counts.
Santa Clara County holds 98% of the larger business sites, so most programs start there.
Where the sites are
| County | Sites with 20+ | Share of metro |
|---|---|---|
| Santa Clara CountyStart here | 4,194 | 98% |
| San Benito County | 89 | 2% |
Chapter 02 The competition
Which trades have the most room in San Jose
Buyer sites per contractor is a rough read on how crowded a trade is: more sites for each local competitor means more doors nobody else is knocking on. Each trade's San Jose figure is ranked against the other markets we track.
| Trade | Rank among markets | Sites per contractor | Contractors | 1-yr change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paving & AsphaltMost room | #2 of 94 | 86 | 28 | +1 |
| Commercial Flooring | #3 of 68 | 148 | 11 | -1 |
| Fire Protection | #5 of 96 | 78 | 38 | -3 |
| Commercial Roofing | #6 of 89 | 116 | 23 | +1 |
| Commercial HVAC & Mechanical | #9 of 100 | 15 | 105 | +1 |
| Commercial Painting & Coatings | #13 of 86 | 85 | 32 | -2 |
| Commercial Construction | #24 of 100 | 6.1 | 237 | -1 |
| Commercial Landscaping | #24 of 100 | 4.5 | 560 | +29 |
| Commercial Electrical | #28 of 100 | 12 | 173 | +5 |
| Commercial Cleaning & Janitorial | #78 of 100 | 3.1 | 551 | +34 |
| Managed Service Providers | #86 of 100 | 1.6 | 1,629 | +87 |
Paving & asphalt (#2), commercial flooring (#3) and fire protection (#5) rank best in San Jose. For those trades a program can work longer before it calls the same building twice, and fewer competitors have already pitched each owner.
Managed service providers is the most crowded trade here, #86 of 100: 1.6 buyer sites for each of 1,629 local managed service providers. Winning there takes a sharper reason to switch than a lower price.
Fire protection (-3) and commercial painting & coatings (-2) lost contractor establishments over the past year, so the same buildings are split among fewer firms than a year ago. Managed service providers (+87) and commercial cleaning & janitorial (+34) added them.
Open programs
Our availability workbook does not cover San Jose yet. We take one client per trade per territory, so ask before you plan around it.
Chapter 03 The projects
What is being built, and who owns the buildings
3 named, sourced projects and 7 anchor owners in San Jose-Sunnyvale. Each one is a reason to call that has nothing to do with your company and everything to do with the buyer's building.
The projects
- 01 · $2 billion AWS Gilroy Data Center Campus Under construction, first building opening 2028, full buildout 2037 An Amazon Web Services data center campus on Camino Arroyo Drive in Gilroy, south Santa Clara County, with more than 25 diesel backup generators. A phased campus with a decade-long buildout means repeated waves of electrical, mechanical cooling and fire protection work, starting with the first building due in 2028. San Jose Spotlight, 2026-09-09
- 02 · ~$190 million Parkside at Clara District Broke ground July 2026, opening fall 2028 A 301-unit apartment building with rooftop lounge, fitness center and an expanded adjacent public park at 2301 Calle Del Mundo in Santa Clara's Clara District near Levi's Stadium. A two-year build with mechanical, electrical, sprinkler and finish packages across 301 units, plus landscaping for the dog park and expanded public park. San Jose Spotlight, 2026-07-16
- 03 3150 El Camino Real (former Fish Market site) Broke ground August 2026, occupancy spring 2029 A seven-story, 368-apartment building with 74 affordable units and a two-level underground garage at 3150 El Camino Real in Palo Alto. Underground parking and a seven-story frame mean a long structural phase, followed by mechanical, electrical, sprinkler, flooring and painting work through 2028 and 2029. San Jose Spotlight, 2026-08-13
Projects current as of 2026-09; each source is linked on its card. Values are as reported by the source.
The anchor owners
Health systems, campuses, large employers and industrial parks hold the biggest concentrations of commercial buildings in San Jose-Sunnyvale. One relationship with a facilities team here can cover many buildings.
Health system · San Jose, Santa Clara County
County of Santa Clara Health System
The Mercury News reported in September 2026 that the county health system runs four hospitals and 15 health centers, and was opening a 10-story, 230,000 square-foot Valley Health Center San Jose-Campbell.
County-owned hospitals, led by Santa Clara Valley Medical Center, and a growing set of clinic buildings need mechanical, life-safety, cleaning and interior work through public procurement.
The Mercury NewsCampus · San Jose, Santa Clara County
San Jose State University
Wikipedia lists 37,661 students at San Jose State in fall 2024, citing the university's enrollment dashboard.
A downtown campus of classroom, lab, residence and athletic buildings needs HVAC service, cleaning, roofing and grounds work.
WikipediaAirport · San Jose, Santa Clara County
San Jose Mineta International Airport (SJC)
Wikipedia lists 10,675,167 passengers at SJC in 2025, sourced to the airport.
Terminals, parking and airfield support buildings need cleaning, HVAC service, electrical work and pavement upkeep.
WikipediaMajor employer · Cupertino, Santa Clara County
Apple Park
Wikipedia lists Apple Park at 2,820,000 square feet of floor area on 64 acres, accommodating more than 15,000 staff as of May 2023.
A corporate campus of this size runs large janitorial, HVAC, electrical and landscape programs.
WikipediaIndustrial park · Sunnyvale, Santa Clara County
Moffett Park
The Mercury News reported in July 2023 that Sunnyvale adopted a plan for the 1,300 acres in the northern area of the city known as Moffett Park, home to technology companies including Google.
Office and R&D buildings across the district, plus new mixed-use construction under the plan, need mechanical, electrical, roofing and landscape work.
The Mercury NewsPublic owner · unincorporated Santa Clara County (Mountain View / Sunnyvale)
Moffett Federal Airfield (NASA Ames)
Wikipedia says NASA announced in 2014 that it would lease 1,000 acres of the airfield to Google for 60 years, and that Hangar One covers 8 acres.
Historic hangars, research buildings and airfield pavement on federal land are maintained under federal and lessee programs.
WikipediaRetail center · San Jose and Santa Clara, Santa Clara County
Westfield Valley Fair
Wikipedia lists Westfield Valley Fair at 2,200,000 square feet with 8,500 parking spaces, citing the owner.
A large two-level mall with anchor stores and 8,500 parking spaces needs cleaning, HVAC, flooring and pavement work.
WikipediaAnchor facts checked 2026-10; each source is linked on its card.
Which trades the work touches
| Trade | Projects and owners |
|---|---|
| Commercial HVAC & Mechanical | 10 |
| Commercial Electrical | 8 |
| Commercial Cleaning & Janitorial | 5 |
| Paving & Asphalt | 4 |
| Fire Protection | 4 |
| Commercial Landscaping | 4 |
| Commercial Flooring | 3 |
| Commercial Roofing | 3 |
| Commercial Construction | 3 |
| Commercial Painting & Coatings | 1 |
Chapter 04 The calendar
The San Jose selling calendar
Outbound runs every month, but the weather changes what a buyer wants to hear. These are the NOAA records for the San Jose-Sunnyvale metro's counties, month by month.
| Measure | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail and damaging wind reportstotal, 2015 to 2024 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Cooling degree daysaverage month | 0 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 34 | 106 | 228 | 222 | 142 | 36 | 0 | 0 |
| Heating degree daysaverage month | 532 | 443 | 405 | 306 | 162 | 39 | 2 | 2 | 14 | 120 | 361 | 557 |
| Average high (°F)average month | 58 | 59 | 63 | 67 | 74 | 81 | 86 | 86 | 83 | 76 | 64 | 57 |
NOAA logged 0 hail reports of 1 inch or larger and 1 damaging wind reports across the metro's counties from 2015 to 2024: #97 of 100 markets for hail and #95 for wind. August carried 100% of the reports. Storms are not the main driver here, so roof age, leaks and budget timing carry the roofing conversation.
The metro averages 777 cooling degree days a year (#63 of 97 markets) and 2,942 heating degree days (#69 of 97). Cooling load peaks in July, August and September; heating in January, February, March, April, November and December. Peak months are when HVAC calls lead with service and response times; the rest of the year they lead with planned work and budgets.
9 months average a high of 60°F or more (March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October and November). That is when exterior painting, paving and landscaping crews are busiest, so in-season calls catch owners while they can see the work that needs doing. The contracts themselves are bid on each property's own dates, so the selling runs all year.
Trades with no weather season
Cleaning, construction, electrical, flooring and fire protection sell on contract end dates, budgets and inspection cycles. Learn each account's date on the first call and come back before it.
Chapter 05 The numbers
What one meeting takes, trade by trade
What booking a meeting has taken on our own calling floor for the trades we run in San Jose, next to the records we can prospect here. The sales center figures are national; it does not break them out by city yet.
| Trade | Dials per appointment | Reached proposal | Proposals won | Dials for 10 meetings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fire ProtectionFastest to book | 78 | 21.6% | 13.2% | about 780 |
| Paving & Asphalt | 86 | 32.2% | 7.4% | about 860 |
| Commercial Landscaping | 88 | 18.8% | 12.7% | about 880 |
| Commercial Electrical | 96 | 14.6% | 21.1% | about 960 |
| Commercial HVAC & Mechanical | 98 | 16.6% | 24.9% | about 980 |
| Commercial Painting & Coatings | 115 | 31.2% | 14.4% | about 1,150 |
| Commercial Flooring | 122 | 30.8% | 9.8% | about 1,220 |
| Commercial Roofing | 140 | 25.9% | 16.1% | about 1,400 |
| Commercial Cleaning & Janitorial | 142 | 23.9% | 21.7% | about 1,420 |
| Managed Service Providers | 162 | 10.0% | 20.5% | about 1,620 |
All of these trades together: 122 dials per appointment
The records behind a San Jose program
Before a program starts we size the list: the decision-maker records Abstrakt can prospect for each trade in the San Jose territory.
- 4,712Commercial Roofing
- 4,712Commercial Construction
- 1,965Commercial HVAC & Mechanical
- 1,514Commercial Cleaning & Janitorial
Source: Abstrakt territory record counts, as of October 2026: estimated decision-maker records Abstrakt can prospect for each program in the territory. Shown for the programs the count covers.
Read it this way
Divide the records by the dials one meeting takes and you see how long a list lasts before it repeats. A thin list means a program has to work every record well, not just call more.
Chapter 06 Build or buy
What an in-house SDR costs in San Jose
Before you hire a sales development rep in San Jose, price the whole job, not just the salary.
The salary is the smallest part of the decision. About 13,390 people hold the role in the San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA metro, and every one of their employers is competing for the same hires.
| Cost | Year one |
|---|---|
| Base salary | $55,000 |
| Commission and bonus | $15,000 |
| Payroll taxes and benefits (25% of pay) | $17,500 |
| Tools and data ($550 a month) | $6,600 |
| Recruiting and training | $7,000 |
| Turnover (35% a year, rehiring) | $2,450 |
| Manager and QA time (5 hours a week) and admin (4 hours a month) | $21,150 |
| Total, before ramp time | $124,700 |
Headcount: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025. Sales representatives of services, except advertising, insurance, financial services and travel (SOC 41-3091). The cost lines are the starting values of our SDR cost calculator: $15,000 commission, 25% payroll taxes and benefits, $550 a month in tools, $7,000 recruiting and training, 35% yearly turnover, and manager, QA and admin time. Change any of them there.
$124,700
for one in-house SDR's first year at a $55,000 base salary.
That buys one rep. It does not buy the list, the manager's coaching system or cover when the rep leaves.
Part two Apply this
The San Jose market toolkit
4 working tools built from the chapters above. Tick the boxes as you go (they stay ticked in this browser), copy the scripts into your CRM, or save the whole guide as a PDF and print this part as a worksheet.
Tool 01
Account scorecard
Before an account goes on the call list, check every line that fits. Call the accounts with the most ticks first, and leave the ones with none for later.
Tool 02
Discovery question bank
Ask fewer, better questions. Pick three or four for the call and save the rest for the meeting. Each one comes with the reason it earns its place.
Restaurants: 1,365 sites here
From our fire protection talk track. Staying open and passing inspection. Multi-unit operators are worth more than single locations.
- When was your hood suppression system last inspected, and when is the next one due?Due dates tell you when to call and what to offer.
- Have you had a failed inspection or a citation recently?Failed inspections threaten the ability to stay open and create urgency.
- How many locations do you operate, and does each one use a different vendor?Multi-unit operators are more valuable and often want one vendor across locations.
Retail stores: 914 sites here
From our paving talk track. First impressions and liability. Many stores lease, so confirm who controls the lot before pitching.
- Does the store control the parking lot, or does the landlord or shopping center manage it?This is the first qualifying question, since many retail lots belong to the landlord.
- Are there potholes, cracks or faded striping customers have complained about?Visible problems in front of customers drive action and point to a first job.
- Is a remodel or refresh planned for this location?Remodels are when lot work often gets funded and scheduled.
Manufacturing plants: 546 sites here
From our fire protection talk track. Insurer recommendations and process hazards. The safety manager often owns the relationship, not facilities.
- Who owns the fire protection relationship here, facilities, maintenance or the EHS manager?The safety manager often owns it rather than facilities, so this tells you who to meet.
- Has your insurer's loss-control visit produced any recommendations?Insurer recommendations create deadlines and defined scope.
- Do you have special-hazard suppression on any processes, and who services it?Special-hazard systems need specialized service and are often a separate opportunity.
Any first meeting
Plain practice that works in every market.
- How are you handling this today, and what would you change about it?The gap between today and what they want is the whole reason to meet.
- What happens if nothing changes this year?Tells you whether there is a cost to waiting, or only curiosity.
- Who else would need to agree before anything moves?Names the people who can stall the deal, while you can still invite them.
- When does the current contract or budget come up for review?Gives you the date to plan around, even when the answer today is no.
- What would make a first meeting worth your time?Lets the buyer set the agenda, which is the agenda they will show up for.
Tool 03
Trigger watchlist
Each of these changes gives a buyer a reason to take the call this month instead of next year. Tick the ones you will track, and set a news alert or CRM field for each so you hear about it first.
Tool 04
30-day action plan
4 weeks, 15 steps, nothing you need to buy. Tick each one off as you finish it; your progress stays in this browser.
Week 1Draw the territory
Week 2Check the rules, then write the talk track
Week 3Make the calls
Week 4Measure and decide
Sources and notes
- U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023: business sites by category, size and county, San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, private ownership, 2026 Q1: contractor establishments, one-year change and concentration (location quotient).
- Projects: named public sources linked on each card, current as of 2026-09.
- Anchor owners: sources linked on each card, checked 2026-10.
- NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, 2015 to 2024: hail and damaging wind reports by month across the metro's counties.
- NOAA NCEI nClimDiv county monthly series, 1991-2020 averages: degree days and average highs by month.
- Abstrakt sales center, Performance Intelligence, national, as of October 2026: dials, appointments, proposals and wins by trade. Method.
- Abstrakt territory record counts, as of October 2026: decision-maker records per program in the San Jose territory.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025: Sales representatives of services, except advertising, insurance, financial services and travel (SOC 41-3091).
- The toolkit's discovery questions come from our trade talk tracks; the plan and checklists are sales practice, not data.
