The highest paying jobs in America
The 100 best paid jobs in the United States, ranked by median annual salary straight from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. No surveys, no guesses, just official government wage data for May 2025.
The top of the list is dominated by physician and surgeon specialties. Pediatric Surgeons lead at $559,030 a year. The tenth ranked job still pays a median of $311,180 a year, well above the $50,980 median for all U.S. jobs.
| # | Job | Median annual | Hourly | Typical education | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pediatric Surgeons | $559,030 | $268.76 | Doctoral or professional degree | 1,190 |
| 2 | Cardiologists | $496,010 | $238.47 | Doctoral or professional degree | 17,290 |
| 3 | Radiologists | $420,860 | $202.34 | Doctoral or professional degree | 26,770 |
| 4 | Anesthesiologists | $391,490 | $188.22 | Doctoral or professional degree | 38,760 |
| 5 | Orthopedic Surgeons, Except Pediatric | $358,550 | $172.38 | Doctoral or professional degree | 14,100 |
| 6 | Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons | $352,220 | $169.34 | Doctoral or professional degree | 4,910 |
| 7 | Emergency Medicine Physicians | $335,550 | $161.32 | Doctoral or professional degree | 32,880 |
| 8 | Dermatologists | $328,730 | $158.04 | Doctoral or professional degree | 11,370 |
| 9 | Physicians, Pathologists | $312,400 | $150.19 | Doctoral or professional degree | 11,110 |
| 10 | Prosthodontists | $311,180 | $149.61 | Doctoral or professional degree | 870 |
| 11 | Ophthalmologists, Except Pediatric | $300,080 | $144.27 | Doctoral or professional degree | 8,950 |
| 12 | Obstetricians and Gynecologists | $292,910 | $140.82 | Doctoral or professional degree | 21,260 |
| 13 | Orthodontists | $289,140 | $139.01 | Doctoral or professional degree | 6,210 |
| 14 | Psychiatrists | $281,870 | $135.51 | Doctoral or professional degree | 27,980 |
| 15 | General Internal Medicine Physicians | $256,560 | $123.35 | Doctoral or professional degree | 67,150 |
| 16 | Neurologists | $248,560 | $119.50 | Doctoral or professional degree | 10,590 |
| 17 | Family Medicine Physicians | $244,180 | $117.39 | Doctoral or professional degree | 107,510 |
| 18 | Nurse Anesthetists | $236,590 | $113.75 | Master's degree | 51,840 |
| 19 | Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers | $232,140 | Salaried | Bachelor's degree | 103,560 |
| 20 | Dentists, All Other Specialists | $224,990 | $108.17 | Doctoral or professional degree | 5,230 |
| 21 | Chief Executives | $213,990 | $102.88 | Bachelor's degree | 204,350 |
| 22 | Pediatricians, General | $210,040 | $100.98 | Doctoral or professional degree | 39,390 |
| 23 | Industrial-Organizational Psychologists | $193,950 | $93.24 | Master's degree | 790 |
| 24 | Computer and Information Systems Managers | $175,140 | $84.20 | Bachelor's degree | 670,570 |
| 25 | Physicists | $172,250 | $82.81 | Doctoral or professional degree | 20,430 |
| 26 | Architectural and Engineering Managers | $171,270 | $82.34 | Bachelor's degree | 220,260 |
| 27 | Dentists, General | $170,950 | $82.19 | Doctoral or professional degree | 124,390 |
| 28 | Natural Sciences Managers | $167,220 | $80.39 | Bachelor's degree | 108,690 |
| 29 | Marketing Managers | $166,790 | $80.19 | Bachelor's degree | 395,240 |
| 30 | Financial Managers | $166,570 | $80.08 | Bachelor's degree | 841,710 |
| 31 | Computer Hardware Engineers | $161,740 | $77.76 | Bachelor's degree | 76,660 |
| 32 | Podiatrists | $160,300 | $77.07 | Doctoral or professional degree | 9,680 |
| 33 | Lawyers | $159,670 | $76.76 | Doctoral or professional degree | 754,500 |
| 34 | Judges, Magistrate Judges, and Magistrates | $153,990 | $74.03 | Doctoral or professional degree | 24,030 |
| 35 | Human Resources Managers | $149,280 | $71.77 | Bachelor's degree | 220,660 |
| 36 | Compensation and Benefits Managers | $149,230 | $71.75 | Bachelor's degree | 22,940 |
| 37 | Sales Managers | $148,270 | $71.28 | Bachelor's degree | 637,080 |
| 38 | Purchasing Managers | $148,080 | $71.19 | Bachelor's degree | 84,320 |
| 39 | Air Traffic Controllers | $148,080 | $71.19 | Associate's degree | 22,510 |
| 40 | Medical Dosimetrists | $147,470 | $70.90 | Bachelor's degree | 3,410 |
| 41 | Public Relations Managers | $146,910 | $70.63 | Bachelor's degree | 74,850 |
| 42 | Petroleum Engineers | $144,910 | $69.67 | Bachelor's degree | 18,060 |
| 43 | Political Scientists | $142,080 | $68.31 | Master's degree | 5,540 |
| 44 | Pharmacists | $140,910 | $67.75 | Doctoral or professional degree | 321,970 |
| 45 | Computer and Information Research Scientists | $140,300 | $67.45 | Master's degree | 37,200 |
| 46 | Database Architects | $139,500 | $67.07 | Bachelor's degree | 67,140 |
| 47 | Optometrists | $136,570 | $65.66 | Doctoral or professional degree | 42,790 |
| 48 | Software Developers | $135,980 | $65.38 | Bachelor's degree | 1,687,890 |
| 49 | Physician Assistants | $135,880 | $65.33 | Master's degree | 162,150 |
| 50 | Aerospace Engineers | $134,960 | $64.89 | Bachelor's degree | 67,710 |
| 51 | Computer Network Architects | $134,050 | $64.45 | Bachelor's degree | 179,740 |
| 52 | Nurse Midwives | $134,040 | $64.44 | Master's degree | 7,920 |
| 53 | Nuclear Engineers | $133,970 | $64.41 | Bachelor's degree | 15,280 |
| 54 | Advertising and Promotions Managers | $133,660 | $64.26 | Bachelor's degree | 21,470 |
| 55 | Training and Development Managers | $133,000 | $63.94 | Bachelor's degree | 48,050 |
| 56 | Nurse Practitioners | $132,300 | $63.61 | Master's degree | 323,040 |
| 57 | Electronics Engineers, Except Computer | $130,220 | $62.60 | Bachelor's degree | 96,900 |
| 58 | Veterinarians | $130,100 | $62.55 | Doctoral or professional degree | 83,900 |
| 59 | Actuaries | $130,000 | $62.50 | Bachelor's degree | 26,670 |
| 60 | Information Security Analysts | $129,180 | $62.11 | Bachelor's degree | 190,650 |
| 61 | Astronomers | $128,820 | $61.94 | Doctoral or professional degree | 2,120 |
| 62 | Law Teachers, Postsecondary | $128,500 | Salaried | Doctoral or professional degree | 20,060 |
| 63 | Biochemists and Biophysicists | $127,410 | $61.26 | Doctoral or professional degree | 33,830 |
| 64 | Mathematicians | $126,710 | $60.92 | Master's degree | 2,030 |
| 65 | Industrial Production Managers | $126,060 | $60.61 | Bachelor's degree | 246,250 |
| 66 | Fundraising Managers | $125,470 | $60.32 | Bachelor's degree | 38,810 |
| 67 | Chemical Engineers | $125,040 | $60.12 | Bachelor's degree | 21,070 |
| 68 | Sales Engineers | $124,900 | $60.05 | Bachelor's degree | 51,790 |
| 69 | Economists | $124,720 | $59.96 | Master's degree | 17,790 |
| 70 | Economics Teachers, Postsecondary | $123,920 | Salaried | Doctoral or professional degree | 11,560 |
| 71 | Medical and Health Services Managers | $123,860 | $59.55 | Bachelor's degree | 597,080 |
| 72 | Commercial Pilots | $123,220 | Salaried | Postsecondary nondegree award | 47,630 |
| 73 | Nuclear Power Reactor Operators | $122,890 | $59.08 | High school diploma or equivalent | 5,150 |
| 74 | Electrical Engineers | $120,630 | $58.00 | Bachelor's degree | 198,750 |
| 75 | Data Scientists | $120,230 | $57.80 | Bachelor's degree | 262,440 |
| 76 | Administrative Law Judges, Adjudicators, and Hearing Officers | $117,860 | $56.67 | Doctoral or professional degree | 16,370 |
| 77 | Materials Scientists | $117,790 | $56.63 | Bachelor's degree | 8,470 |
| 78 | Financial Risk Specialists | $117,330 | $56.41 | Bachelor's degree | 63,850 |
| 79 | Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors | $115,160 | $55.36 | Bachelor's degree | 21,450 |
| 80 | Construction Managers | $114,990 | $55.28 | Bachelor's degree | 380,360 |
| 81 | Art Directors | $114,850 | $55.22 | Bachelor's degree | 53,070 |
| 82 | Administrative Services Managers | $114,130 | $54.87 | Bachelor's degree | 263,960 |
| 83 | Materials Engineers | $112,860 | $54.26 | Bachelor's degree | 22,770 |
| 84 | Marine Engineers and Naval Architects | $112,230 | $53.96 | Bachelor's degree | 8,250 |
| 85 | Nuclear Technicians | $110,240 | $53.00 | Associate's degree | 6,470 |
| 86 | Elevator and Escalator Installers and Repairers | $109,910 | $52.84 | High school diploma or equivalent | 23,790 |
| 87 | Ship Engineers | $109,530 | $52.66 | Postsecondary nondegree award | 8,400 |
| 88 | Bioengineers and Biomedical Engineers | $109,370 | $52.58 | Bachelor's degree | 23,480 |
| 89 | Engineering Teachers, Postsecondary | $109,270 | Salaried | Doctoral or professional degree | 40,270 |
| 90 | Health Specialties Teachers, Postsecondary | $107,310 | Salaried | Doctoral or professional degree | 221,270 |
| 91 | Transportation, Storage, and Distribution Managers | $107,230 | $51.55 | High school diploma or equivalent | 221,180 |
| 92 | Environmental Engineers | $107,110 | $51.50 | Bachelor's degree | 38,340 |
| 93 | Power Distributors and Dispatchers | $106,730 | $51.31 | High school diploma or equivalent | 8,520 |
| 94 | Facilities Managers | $106,660 | $51.28 | Bachelor's degree | 156,180 |
| 95 | Mining and Geological Engineers, Including Mining Safety Engineers | $106,220 | $51.07 | Bachelor's degree | 6,080 |
| 96 | First-Line Supervisors of Police and Detectives | $106,040 | $50.98 | High school diploma or equivalent | 154,610 |
| 97 | Sociologists | $106,030 | $50.98 | Master's degree | 2,260 |
| 98 | Education Administrators, Kindergarten through Secondary | $105,870 | Salaried | Master's degree | 328,330 |
| 99 | Computer Systems Analysts | $105,850 | $50.89 | Bachelor's degree | 519,530 |
| 100 | General and Operations Managers | $105,770 | $50.85 | Bachelor's degree | 3,503,020 |
Ranked by median annual wage. Figures are national estimates from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS, May 2025.
How we rank the highest paying jobs
Every job on this page is a detailed occupation tracked by the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program, which surveys about 1.1 million U.S. business establishments. We rank purely by the median annual wage, the midpoint of each profession, because it is harder for a handful of extreme earners to distort than the average is. We show the figures exactly as the BLS publishes them, and where the BLS top-codes a figure we label it with a plus sign rather than guessing a value.
Highest paying jobs FAQ
What is the highest paying job in the United States?
By median annual wage, pediatric surgeons top the BLS list at $559,030 a year. Most of the highest paying jobs are physician and surgeon specialties, dentists, and senior executives.
How are these jobs ranked?
Jobs are ranked strictly by the median annual wage published by the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program for May 2025. The median is the midpoint of a profession: half of workers earn more and half earn less. It is a fairer measure than the average, which a few very high earners can pull upward.
Why do some salaries show a plus sign?
Through its May 2024 release, the BLS did not publish an exact figure for wages at or above $239,200 a year ($115.00 an hour) and marked them as top-coded instead. Starting with May 2025, it publishes exact figures for many of these high wages, and no national figure in this ranking is top-coded. Some state-level figures are still top-coded, and we show those as $239,200+ rather than inventing a number.
Do the highest paying jobs require a lot of school?
Most do. Nearly all of the very top jobs require a doctoral or professional degree, or a bachelor’s degree plus years of experience. If you want high pay without a four-year degree, see our ranking of the highest paying jobs without a degree.