US salary data by occupation and location
Look up salary data for 830 occupations across all 50 states and major metro areas. Every page shows median pay, wage ranges, top-paying locations, employment size, and BLS job outlook data. Built on official government sources, not job-board estimates.
How do you want to look up salary data?
Most people are looking for one of three things: a specific occupation, a state-level overview, or a metro-area comparison. Pick whichever matches your situation.
Popular occupation pages
These are some of the most-viewed occupations on the site. Each page includes the national median, full wage distribution, top-paying states and metros, and BLS employment projections.
Occupation salary pages
| Occupation | Median salary | Employment |
|---|---|---|
| Pediatric Surgeons | $559K | 1,190 |
| Cardiologists | $496K | 17,290 |
| Radiologists | $420.9K | 26,770 |
| Surgeons, All Other | $414K | 25,140 |
| Anesthesiologists | $391.5K | 38,760 |
| Orthopedic Surgeons, Except Pediatric | $358.6K | 14,100 |
| Oral And Maxillofacial Surgeons | $352.2K | 4,910 |
| Emergency Medicine Physicians | $335.6K | 32,880 |
State and metro salary hubs
State and metro pages show the local wage landscape: which occupations lead, how many jobs exist, and how pay compares to the national level.
Top state salary hubs
| State | Avg median | Highest-paid occupation |
|---|---|---|
| District of Columbia | $89.7K | Neurologists |
| Washington | $86.5K | Cardiologists |
| New York | $83.2K | Cardiologists |
| California | $83.2K | Ophthalmologists, Except Pediatric |
| Massachusetts | $81.2K | Radiologists |
| New Jersey | $80.4K | Radiologists |
Top metro salary hubs
| Metro | Avg median | Highest-paid occupation |
|---|---|---|
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | $98.7K | Ophthalmologists, Except Pediatric |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | $95.7K | Ophthalmologists, Except Pediatric |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | $92.6K | Cardiologists |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ | $87.1K | Cardiologists |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH | $83.8K | Radiologists |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | $82.7K | Radiologists |
What each salary page covers
Every salary page on this site answers the same core questions using consistent, official data.
- Median and wage range10th, 25th, 50th, 75th and 90th percentiles — not just the average.
- Top-paying locationsWhich states and metros pay the most, ranked by median annual wage.
- Employment and concentrationHow many jobs exist and where the occupation is unusually concentrated.
- Job outlook and entry requirementsBLS projected growth, annual openings, typical education and experience.
Common questions about salary data
Where does the salary data come from? +
All wage data comes from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) program, which surveys about 1.1 million establishments each year. Employment projections come from the BLS Employment Projections program. Cost-of-living adjustments use BEA Regional Price Parities.
Why do you show median salary instead of average? +
The median is the midpoint. Half of workers earn more and half earn less. Averages are skewed upward by very high earners, so they make most occupations look like they pay more than a typical worker actually receives. The median is a better answer to "what does this job actually pay?"
How often is the data updated? +
BLS publishes OEWS wage data once per year, usually in the spring for the previous May reference period. This site is updated when each new release is published. The current data reflects the May 2025 estimates.
How is this different from sites like Glassdoor or Indeed? +
Job-board salary estimates are based on self-reported data or scraped job postings. The numbers here come from a federal survey of employers, covering over 800 occupations with consistent methodology nationwide. The trade-off is that the data is annual rather than real-time, but it is far more reliable for comparing occupations and locations.