Average Salaries in Altoona, PA
Explore salaries across 243 occupations in Altoona, PA. The average median wage across all tracked occupations is $55.7K, -9.6% vs the national average. See the highest-paying roles, where the jobs are, and how local wages compare to the rest of the country.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey, May 2024 estimates. Coverage: 243 occupations and 52,430 total jobs in Altoona, PA.
How the metro compares
Altoona, PA pays modestly below the national average. That can be partly offset by a lower cost of living compared with higher-paying markets.
Altoona, PA is a smaller metro labor market. Some occupations may have limited local demand.
The highest-paid occupation tracked here is Nurse Anesthetists. Drill into any occupation below to see its local pay distribution, employment, and how it compares to the national market.
Top-paying and largest occupations in Altoona, PA
Two different lenses on the local labor market: which occupations pay the most, and which employ the most workers. The highest-paid list tends to favor specialized professional and technical roles. The largest list reflects where the everyday jobs actually are.
Top wages
Highest-paid occupations in Altoona, PA
| Occupation | Median annual wage | Employment |
|---|---|---|
| Nurse Anesthetists | $218.2K | 60 |
| Chief Executives | $203.5K | 70 |
| Computer And Information Systems Managers | $134.7K | 80 |
| Pharmacists | $131.6K | 130 |
| Architectural And Engineering Managers | $129.0K | 50 |
| Nurse Practitioners | $122.0K | 100 |
| Dentists, General | $120.7K | 30 |
| Physician Assistants | $115.3K | 160 |
| Marketing Managers | $113.5K | 60 |
| Financial Managers | $106.3K | 230 |
Most jobs
Largest occupations in Altoona, PA
| Occupation | Employment | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| Retail Salespersons | 2,070 | $28.2K |
| Home Health And Personal Care Aides | 1,720 | $28.9K |
| Fast Food And Counter Workers | 1,630 | $26.4K |
| Cashiers | 1,570 | $26.2K |
| Registered Nurses | 1,560 | $80.5K |
| General And Operations Managers | 1,430 | $81.3K |
| Office Clerks, General | 1,260 | $40.1K |
| Laborers And Freight, Stock, And Material Movers, Hand | 1,220 | $36.9K |
| Stockers And Order Fillers | 1,190 | $31.9K |
| Heavy And Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers | 1,140 | $51.0K |
What Altoona, PA specializes in
The location quotient measures how concentrated an occupation is here compared to the national average. A value above 1.00 means the occupation is more common in Altoona, PA than in the country as a whole, which signals what this metro is known for.
Location quotient
Most concentrated occupations in Altoona, PA
| Occupation | Location quotient | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| Print Binding And Finishing Workers | 7.38 | N/A |
| Food Cooking Machine Operators And Tenders | 6.55 | $36.0K |
| Paper Goods Machine Setters, Operators, And Tenders | 5.65 | $46.0K |
| Dietetic Technicians | 5.33 | $28.5K |
| Crossing Guards And Flaggers | 4.94 | $51.5K |
| Food Batchmakers | 4.72 | $30.6K |
| Eligibility Interviewers, Government Programs | 4.57 | $53.0K |
| Brickmasons And Blockmasons | 3.57 | $75.0K |
| Packaging And Filling Machine Operators And Tenders | 3.56 | $34.5K |
| Nurse Anesthetists | 3.04 | $218.2K |
Peer markets
Comparable metros
| Metro | Average median | Highest-paid occupation |
|---|---|---|
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | $90.4K | Training And Development Managers |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | $89.2K | Natural Sciences Managers |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | $81.4K | Nurse Anesthetists |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ | $80.1K | Orthopedic Surgeons, Except Pediatric |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | $78.4K | Nurse Anesthetists |
| Vallejo, CA | $77.4K | Lawyers |
| Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA | $77.2K | Podiatrists |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH | $77.1K | Neurologists |
Common salary questions for Altoona, PA
What does "average median" mean? +
It is the average of all occupation-level medians in this area. It gives a rough sense of the overall wage level here compared to other states or metros, but it is not the same as a household income figure or a single blended salary.
What is a location quotient? +
A location quotient (LQ) compares how concentrated an occupation is in this area versus the national average. An LQ of 2.0 means the occupation is twice as concentrated here as it is nationally. High-LQ occupations are what this area specializes in.
How are comparable areas selected? +
Peer areas are other metros with a similar overall wage level and employment size. They give you a quick sense of how this area ranks among places with a comparable labor market.