New research has shown that average salaries for the estimated 10,000 people who work in the city's 18 centres earn £15,200 a year compared to £14,600 nationally.
Phone workers can now expect a starting wage of £6.14 an hour – which is less than the national average for call centre workers of £6.93.
But the rates can rise to £7.81 for fully-trained staff – surpassing the UK's average of £7.49.
The North East's average is £13,200 and more people work in call centres here than in anywhere else in the UK.
One in 10 of the workforce in the city now work in call centres. And council chiefs said the figures would dispel the myth that call centres are "modern day sweatshops".
The report was carried out by Shona Harper, of Contact Centre Professionals, on behalf of the city council, which is examining the impact of call centres on the city.
She said: "When we talk about skilled contact centre agents (after training) then Sunderland is out-performing other areas in terms of salary."
Mike Parker, chief executive of the North East Chamber of Commerce, said it was a common misconception that staff in "call centres" were involved in just sales or administration.
He said: "They are quite important components of all types of business and Sunderland is extremely fortunate in having a number of high-quality employers who have established themselves in substantial centres, providing a wide-range of functions and some of them providing very important technical advice.
"It is one of the misnomers about centres that they are just poor quality jobs in poor conditions, that's a very, poor generalisation."
He said that Sunderland's economy had a range of interesting companies with a mix of high-grade manufacturing and quality service jobs in quality locations.
Coun John Donnelly, who represents Silksworth ward and is chairman of Sunderland council's policy and co-ordination committee said it helped "nail the myth" that call centres were "modern-day sweatshops".
He said: "This is a good thing for the entire economy of the city and I have written to the AMICUS union highlighting the benefits that call centres can bring instead of forecasting doom and gloom. This city has a lot to thank call centres for."
Wages were also spent in and around Sunderland so that helped put money into the local economy, said Coun Donnelly.
He said firms such as electricity company EDF, Barclays, 2-Touch and Northern Rock, were household names providing many high-quality jobs in locations such as Doxford Park.
"I don't think anybody had envisaged this when Doxford was an enterprise zone," he added.
The city's 18 call centres employ an average of 550 people, about 10,000 altogether or roughly one-out-of-every-10 workers.
Coun Donnelly's committee is writing a report on the affect that call centres have had on Sunderland's economy.
Miss Harper's evidence to the committee suggested that there was no danger of Wearside work being shipped out of the country.
The report is due in the spring.