An estimated 2.1 million people work for the U.S. federal government. About a third of them are involved in the daily administrative grind of running the world’s largest economy in the third-most populous country. Other federal job categories include clerical, technical, professional, and blue-collar work.
Pay varies within these categories. To be among the highest paid federal employees requires advanced technical specialties in fields such as computer engineering, health care, pharmacology, financial analysis, and space science. And some of these jobs are rare. For example, only 360 employees at the Fish and Wildlife Service are among the federal government’s highest paid employees, with an average annual salary of $144,620.
To determine the highest paid jobs in the federal government 24/7 Wall St. reviewed salary data from FederalPay.org. Data on the number of employees and the department that employs the most of each position also came from FederalPay. (And these are the best paying jobs in America.)
The largest group of highest-paid federal employees are lawyers who work in the U.S. Justice Department. Nearly 38,000 of them earn an average annual salary of $146,902. Medical officers working at the Veterans Health Administration make up the second-largest group, at nearly 34,000, with an average annual salary of $251,055
These plum jobs are found in the federal administrations in charge of aviation safety, food and drug safety, and social security. Computer and electronics engineers at the departments of Energy and State are among the highest paid federal workers under the White House Cabinet. The Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, and Houston’s Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center also offer good salaries for qualified experts.
Though these salaries might not always compare favorably to similar positions in the private sector, federal employees enjoy some of the most generous workplace benefits, including 13 to 26 days of paid vacation annually, 13 days of paid sick leave that cover personal or family medical needs, 11 paid federal holidays per year, and publicly subsidized health insurance, according to the nonprofit Partnership for Public Service. (These are the highest paid doctors in America.)
Here is the highest paying job in the federal government
25. General engineer
> Avg. yearly salary: $132,872
> Number of employees: 10,943
> Leading department for occupation: Department of Energy
[in-text-ad]
24. Electronics engineering
> Avg. yearly salary: $134,134
> Number of employees: 2,524
> Leading department for occupation: Federal Aviation Administration
24/7 Wall St.
23. Computer engineering
> Avg. yearly salary: $134,502
> Number of employees: 1,064
> Leading department for occupation: Goddard Space Flight Center
22. Foreign affairs
> Avg. yearly salary: $134,649
> Number of employees: 2,563
> Leading department for occupation: Department of State
[in-text-ad-2]
21. Aerospace engineering
> Avg. yearly salary: $134,909
> Number of employees: 5,278
> Leading department for occupation: Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center
20. Financial institution examining
> Avg. yearly salary: $136,418
> Number of employees: 5,848
> Leading department for occupation: Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
[in-text-ad]
19. Computer science
> Avg. yearly salary: $136,476
> Number of employees: 1,398
> Leading department for occupation: Federal Aviation Administration
18. Health system administration
> Avg. yearly salary: $137,579
> Number of employees: 627
> Leading department for occupation: Veterans Health Administration
17. Actuarial science
> Avg. yearly salary: $138,561
> Number of employees: 283
> Leading department for occupation: Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation
[in-text-ad-2]
16. Financial analysis
> Avg. yearly salary: $141,314
> Number of employees: 1,255
> Leading department for occupation: Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
15. Pharmacology
> Avg. yearly salary: $143,745
> Number of employees: 647
> Leading department for occupation: Food and Drug Administration
[in-text-ad]
14. Fish and wildlife Administration
> Avg. yearly salary: $144,620
> Number of employees: 360
> Leading department for occupation: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
24/7 Wall St.
13. Financial management
> Avg. yearly salary: $145,322
> Number of employees: 679
> Leading department for occupation: Veterans Health Administration
12. General attorney
> Avg. yearly salary: $146,902
> Number of employees: 37,964
> Leading department for occupation: Executive Office of U.S. Attorneys
[in-text-ad-2]
11. Physicist
> Avg. yearly salary: $147,212
> Number of employees: 711
> Leading department for occupation: National Institute of Standards of Technology
10. Astronomy and space science
> Avg. yearly salary: $150,579
> Number of employees: 387
> Leading department for occupation: Goddard Space Flight Center
[in-text-ad]
9. Podiatrist
> Avg. yearly salary: $152,591
> Number of employees: 808
> Leading department for occupation: Veterans Health Administration
24/7 Wall St.
8. Program management
> Avg. yearly salary: $153,310
> Number of employees: 9,950
> Leading department for occupation: Internal Revenue Service
7. Technical systems program manager
> Avg. yearly salary: $162,583
> Number of employees: 610
> Leading department for occupation: Federal Aviation Administration
[in-text-ad-2]
6. Patent administration
> Avg. yearly salary: $170,328
> Number of employees: 389
> Leading department for occupation: Patent and Trademark Office
5. Patent attorney
> Avg. yearly salary: $174,665
> Number of employees: 387
> Leading department for occupation: Patent and Trademark Office
[in-text-ad]
4. Administrative law judge
> Avg. yearly salary: $178,224
> Number of employees: 1,697
> Leading department for occupation: Social Security Administration
3. Dental officer
> Avg. yearly salary: $192,586
> Number of employees: 1,759
> Leading department for occupation: Veterans Health Administration
2. Securities compliance examining
> Avg. yearly salary: $199,912
> Number of employees: 349
> Leading department for occupation: Security and Exchange Commission
[in-text-ad-2]
1. Medical officer
> Avg. yearly salary: $251,055
> Number of employees: 33,865
> Leading department for occupation: Veterans Health Administration
Want to Retire Early? Start Here (Sponsor)
Want retirement to come a few years earlier than you’d planned? Or are you ready to retire now, but want an extra set of eyes on your finances?
Now you can speak with up to 3 financial experts in your area for FREE. By simply clicking here you can begin to match with financial professionals who can help you build your plan to retire early. And the best part? The first conversation with them is free.
Click here to match with up to 3 financial pros who would be excited to help you make financial decisions.
Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.
Latest from 24/7
