Highest-paying jobs in the US
Compare occupations by median annual pay, with education and training requirements.
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment ProjectionsPeriod: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wagesRetrieved 2026-10-05T08:25:31+00:00
Ranked by the annual median wage supplied in the BLS Employment Projections dataset. National BLS detailed occupations only. Wages are median annual employee wages, not starting salaries or self-employed earnings. Missing wages are excluded from pay rankings. A “+” means a lower bound, not an exact wage; equal reported bounds share a rank. Education describes the typical entry requirement, not a guarantee of eligibility. Training, licensing, and experience may still be needed.
| Rank | Name | Typical education | Median annual wage | Projected growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pediatric surgeons DetailsEducation: Doctoral or professional degree. Experience: None. Training: Internship/residency. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages. Wage shown is the published top-coded bound. | Doctoral or professional degree | $559,030+ | 2.0% |
| 2 | Cardiologists DetailsEducation: Doctoral or professional degree. Experience: None. Training: Internship/residency. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Doctoral or professional degree | $496,010 | 4.8% |
| 3 | Radiologists DetailsEducation: Doctoral or professional degree. Experience: None. Training: Internship/residency. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Doctoral or professional degree | $420,860 | 3.4% |
| 4 | Surgeons, all other DetailsEducation: Doctoral or professional degree. Experience: None. Training: Internship/residency. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Doctoral or professional degree | $414,010 | 4.0% |
| 5 | Anesthesiologists DetailsEducation: Doctoral or professional degree. Experience: None. Training: Internship/residency. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Doctoral or professional degree | $391,490 | 3.6% |
| 6 | Orthopedic surgeons, except pediatric DetailsEducation: Doctoral or professional degree. Experience: None. Training: Internship/residency. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Doctoral or professional degree | $358,550 | 4.0% |
| 7 | Oral and maxillofacial surgeons DetailsEducation: Doctoral or professional degree. Experience: None. Training: Internship/residency. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Doctoral or professional degree | $352,220 | 5.6% |
| 8 | Emergency medicine physicians DetailsEducation: Doctoral or professional degree. Experience: None. Training: Internship/residency. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Doctoral or professional degree | $335,550 | 3.2% |
| 9 | Dermatologists DetailsEducation: Doctoral or professional degree. Experience: None. Training: Internship/residency. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Doctoral or professional degree | $328,730 | 6.8% |
| 10 | Physicians, pathologists DetailsEducation: Doctoral or professional degree. Experience: None. Training: Internship/residency. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Doctoral or professional degree | $312,400 | 4.8% |
| 11 | Prosthodontists DetailsEducation: Doctoral or professional degree. Experience: None. Training: Internship/residency. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Doctoral or professional degree | $311,180 | 5.8% |
| 12 | Ophthalmologists, except pediatric DetailsEducation: Doctoral or professional degree. Experience: None. Training: Internship/residency. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Doctoral or professional degree | $300,080 | 4.5% |
| 13 | Obstetricians and gynecologists DetailsEducation: Doctoral or professional degree. Experience: None. Training: Internship/residency. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Doctoral or professional degree | $292,910 | 1.7% |
| 14 | Orthodontists DetailsEducation: Doctoral or professional degree. Experience: None. Training: Internship/residency. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Doctoral or professional degree | $289,140 | 6.0% |
| 15 | Psychiatrists DetailsEducation: Doctoral or professional degree. Experience: None. Training: Internship/residency. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Doctoral or professional degree | $281,870 | 7.2% |
| 16 | Physicians, all other DetailsEducation: Doctoral or professional degree. Experience: None. Training: Internship/residency. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Doctoral or professional degree | $265,930 | 3.4% |
| 17 | General internal medicine physicians DetailsEducation: Doctoral or professional degree. Experience: None. Training: Internship/residency. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Doctoral or professional degree | $256,560 | 4.0% |
| 18 | Neurologists DetailsEducation: Doctoral or professional degree. Experience: None. Training: Internship/residency. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Doctoral or professional degree | $248,560 | 6.4% |
| 19 | Family medicine physicians DetailsEducation: Doctoral or professional degree. Experience: None. Training: Internship/residency. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Doctoral or professional degree | $244,180 | 3.3% |
| 20 | Nurse anesthetists DetailsEducation: Master's degree. Experience: None. Training: None. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Master's degree | $236,590 | 9.7% |
| 21 | Airline pilots, copilots, and flight engineers DetailsEducation: Bachelor's degree. Experience: Less than 5 years. Training: Moderate-term on-the-job training. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Bachelor's degree | $232,140 | 8.3% |
| 22 | Dentists, all other specialists DetailsEducation: Doctoral or professional degree. Experience: None. Training: Internship/residency. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Doctoral or professional degree | $224,990 | 1.3% |
| 23 | Chief executives DetailsEducation: Bachelor's degree. Experience: 5 years or more. Training: None. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Bachelor's degree | $213,990 | 3.2% |
| 24 | Pediatricians, general DetailsEducation: Doctoral or professional degree. Experience: None. Training: Internship/residency. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Doctoral or professional degree | $210,040 | 1.5% |
| 25 | Industrial-organizational psychologists DetailsEducation: Master's degree. Experience: None. Training: Internship/residency. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Master's degree | $193,950 | 6.5% |
| 26 | Computer and information systems managers DetailsEducation: Bachelor's degree. Experience: 5 years or more. Training: None. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Bachelor's degree | $175,140 | 15.8% |
| 27 | Physicists DetailsEducation: Doctoral or professional degree. Experience: None. Training: None. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Doctoral or professional degree | $172,250 | 7.2% |
| 28 | Architectural and engineering managers DetailsEducation: Bachelor's degree. Experience: 5 years or more. Training: None. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Bachelor's degree | $171,270 | 5.5% |
| 29 | Dentists, general DetailsEducation: Doctoral or professional degree. Experience: None. Training: None. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Doctoral or professional degree | $170,950 | 5.7% |
| 30 | Natural sciences managers DetailsEducation: Bachelor's degree. Experience: 5 years or more. Training: None. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Bachelor's degree | $167,220 | 8.2% |
| 31 | Marketing managers DetailsEducation: Bachelor's degree. Experience: 5 years or more. Training: None. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Bachelor's degree | $166,790 | 6.9% |
| 32 | Financial managers DetailsEducation: Bachelor's degree. Experience: 5 years or more. Training: None. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Bachelor's degree | $166,570 | 9.7% |
| 33 | Computer hardware engineers DetailsEducation: Bachelor's degree. Experience: None. Training: None. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Bachelor's degree | $161,740 | 9.1% |
| 34 | Podiatrists DetailsEducation: Doctoral or professional degree. Experience: None. Training: Internship/residency. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Doctoral or professional degree | $160,300 | 2.0% |
| 35 | Lawyers DetailsEducation: Doctoral or professional degree. Experience: None. Training: None. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Doctoral or professional degree | $159,670 | 4.7% |
| 36 | Judges, magistrate judges, and magistrates DetailsEducation: Doctoral or professional degree. Experience: 5 years or more. Training: Short-term on-the-job training. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Doctoral or professional degree | $153,990 | 2.8% |
| 37 | Human resources managers DetailsEducation: Bachelor's degree. Experience: 5 years or more. Training: None. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Bachelor's degree | $149,280 | 5.5% |
| 38 | Compensation and benefits managers DetailsEducation: Bachelor's degree. Experience: 5 years or more. Training: None. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Bachelor's degree | $149,230 | 1.1% |
| 39 | Sales managers DetailsEducation: Bachelor's degree. Experience: Less than 5 years. Training: None. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Bachelor's degree | $148,270 | 4.5% |
| 40 | Purchasing managers DetailsEducation: Bachelor's degree. Experience: 5 years or more. Training: None. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Bachelor's degree | $148,080 | 4.0% |
| 40 | Air traffic controllers DetailsEducation: Associate's degree. Experience: None. Training: Long-term on-the-job training. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Associate's degree | $148,080 | 1.7% |
| 42 | Medical dosimetrists DetailsEducation: Bachelor's degree. Experience: None. Training: None. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Bachelor's degree | $147,470 | 5.0% |
| 43 | Public relations managers DetailsEducation: Bachelor's degree. Experience: 5 years or more. Training: None. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Bachelor's degree | $146,910 | 5.7% |
| 44 | Petroleum engineers DetailsEducation: Bachelor's degree. Experience: None. Training: None. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Bachelor's degree | $144,910 | 2.0% |
| 45 | Political scientists DetailsEducation: Master's degree. Experience: None. Training: None. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Master's degree | $142,080 | -2.0% |
| 46 | Managers, all other DetailsEducation: Bachelor's degree. Experience: Less than 5 years. Training: None. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Bachelor's degree | $141,900 | 4.9% |
| 47 | Pharmacists DetailsEducation: Doctoral or professional degree. Experience: None. Training: None. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Doctoral or professional degree | $140,910 | 5.2% |
| 48 | Computer and information research scientists DetailsEducation: Master's degree. Experience: None. Training: None. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Master's degree | $140,300 | 21.8% |
| 49 | Database architects DetailsEducation: Bachelor's degree. Experience: Less than 5 years. Training: None. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Bachelor's degree | $139,500 | 9.4% |
| 50 | Optometrists DetailsEducation: Doctoral or professional degree. Experience: None. Training: None. Source period: 2025–2035 projections · 2025 median annual wages | Doctoral or professional degree | $136,570 | 9.5% |
Wages marked + are top-coded: the published figure is the lower bound of the capped wage.
825 ranked entries.