Hourly wages in the United States have risen by a cumulative 3% since 1979. Most of the wage growth over this period was enjoyed by those at the top of the income distribution, while wages stagnated or fell for workers in the middle and bottom of the income distribution, according to a 2019 report by the Congressional Research Service. 

Changes in technology, international trade patterns, government policies, national and local economic forces, and in the U.S. demographic are among the range of variables that affect workers’ paychecks. But few factors have a greater bearing on pay than occupation. In 2018 and this year, the nation’s highest-wage workers continued to be those in managerial, professional, and technical positions, while low wage workers tended to be in service occupations.

Most of the positions on this list are managerial or involve advanced technical skills, and they typically require years of additional education — at least a bachelor’s degree and in many cases a professional degree or higher. 

High pay can also reflect growing demand for certain occupations in the U.S. economy. A number of high-paying jobs are in programming and health care, sectors that increasingly comprise a larger share of the economy. 

24/7 Wall St. reviewed the 25 occupations listed on job review and data company 

Glassdoor’s “25 Highest Paying Jobs in America” list, which is based on its survey of American workers between July 1, 2018, and June 30, 2019. For a larger list of high-paying jobs see the 79 jobs with six-figure salaries. 

Click here to see the highest paying jobs of 2019.
Click here to see our detailed findings and full methodology.

[in-text-ad]

[in-text-ad-2]

[in-text-ad]

[in-text-ad-2]

[in-text-ad]

[in-text-ad-2]

[in-text-ad]

[in-text-ad-2]

[in-text-ad]

[in-text-ad-2]

Detailed findings and methodology

Higher education has generally always corresponded with higher pay, and this pattern has become even more pronounced in recent decades and 2019. Wages for workers without a college degree declined between 1979 and 2018, while wages for college-educated workers rose over the same period. 

Most of the positions on this list are managerial or involve advanced technical skills, and they typically require years of additional education — at least a bachelor’s degree and in many cases a professional degree or higher. 

High pay can also reflect growing demand for certain occupations in the U.S. economy. A number of high-paying jobs are in programming and health care, sectors that increasingly comprise a larger share of the economy. 

Due to the ongoing growth and adoption of technological developments, the number of software developer occupations is expected to grow by 21% through 2028, much faster than the average growth projected for all occupations. Similarly, due primarily to the aging of the U.S. population, health care occupations are expected to grow by 14%, also well above the average. 

Below are the 25 occupations found on job review and data company Glassdoor’s “The Highest Paying Jobs of 2019” list. Glassdoor ranks occupations by the highest annual median base salary, as determined by the site’s proprietary algorithm, which controls for factors such as location and seniority. To make this list, a job must have at least 100 salary reports employees at U.S.-based companies made on Glassdoor between July 1, 2018 and June 30, 2019. The number of job openings reflects active job listings on Glassdoor as of Aug. 26 2019. All C-suite-level jobs — executive jobs in leadership positions typically at large corporations — were excluded from Glassdoor’s report. 

To calculate the change in median salary, 24/7 Wall St. used the salaries Glassdoor posted for each occupation in the 2018 list and this year’s list. In the cases where this year’s occupations were not on Glassdoor’s 2018 list, we did not add the change in median salary.

Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.