Highest & Lowest Paid US Occupations

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics surveys employers nationwide each year to estimate what every detailed occupation pays. The highest-paid list below ranks jobs by median annual wage (the middle earner in that job) — medicine dominates because specialist physicians and surgeons consistently out-earn every other field. The lowest-paid list ranks by mean annual wage (the average across everyone in that job) and is mostly food-service, hospitality, and entry-level care roles — jobs that are often part-time, tipped, or seasonal, which keeps their average pay low even though many workers put in full-time hours.