Average Salary by State: 50-State Comparison (2025)

Last updated: 2025 BLS data · Page refreshed:

District of Columbia has the highest average salary at $89,679 per year, while Mississippi has the lowest at $57,873. The gap is $31,805.

Data: BLS OEWS, May 2025 | Last updated: 2026-05-19

$89,679
#1: District of Columbia
$57,873
#50: Mississippi
$31,805
Highest vs Lowest Gap
51
States Compared

Salary Heatmap: All 50 States (2025)

Darker green = higher average salary. Click any state for details.

Click for full breakdown →
AK AL AR AZ CA CO FL GA HI IA ID IL IN KS KY LA ME MI MN MO MS MT NC ND NE NM NV NY OH OK OR PA SC SD TN TX UT VA WA WI WV WY VT NH MA RI CT NJ DE MD DC
$57,873
$89,679

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS 2025 Annual

AL $63,963 AK $79,599 AZ $72,019 AR $58,447 CA $83,172 CO $76,493 CT $78,019 DE $71,614 DC $89,679 FL $67,772 GA $69,372 HI $73,976 ID $67,243 IL $74,900 IN $68,360 IA $68,184 KS $65,075 KY $66,085 LA $62,928 ME $70,351 MD $79,476 MA $81,221 MI $70,102 MN $79,901 MS $57,873 MO $67,599 MT $65,918 NE $68,499 NV $69,352 NH $75,725 NJ $80,366 NM $68,121 NY $83,189 NC $67,685 ND $70,391 OH $69,737 OK $63,871 OR $75,924 PA $70,617 RI $78,209 SC $66,430 SD $64,417 TN $66,638 TX $68,700 UT $68,195 VT $74,078 VA $73,984 WA $86,472 WV $62,235 WI $71,762 WY $66,073

All 50 States Ranked by Average Salary (2025)

Ranked by average median salary. Click any state for the full breakdown.

# State Avg. Median Salary Workers Occupations
1 District of Columbia $89,679 684,180 464
2 Washington $86,472 3,506,210 756
3 New York $83,189 9,642,480 776
4 California $83,172 18,149,550 793
5 Massachusetts $81,221 3,578,730 717
6 New Jersey $80,366 4,257,550 736
7 Minnesota $79,901 2,934,820 720
8 Alaska $79,599 317,080 511
9 Maryland $79,476 2,722,100 728
10 Rhode Island $78,209 472,060 544
11 Connecticut $78,019 1,662,590 674
12 Colorado $76,493 2,854,110 734
13 Oregon $75,924 1,951,300 718
14 New Hampshire $75,725 674,400 628
15 Illinois $74,900 6,059,240 745
16 Vermont $74,078 289,980 527
17 Virginia $73,984 4,059,070 746
18 Hawaii $73,976 609,100 533
19 Arizona $72,019 3,202,590 709
20 Wisconsin $71,762 2,917,050 727
21 Delaware $71,614 466,740 514
22 Pennsylvania $70,617 6,057,100 773
23 North Dakota $70,391 422,360 551
24 Maine $70,351 626,560 628
25 Michigan $70,102 4,381,740 774
26 Ohio $69,737 5,533,340 774
27 Georgia $69,372 4,840,120 744
28 Nevada $69,352 1,533,110 668
29 Texas $68,700 14,047,440 793
30 Nebraska $68,499 1,012,230 661
31 Indiana $68,360 3,187,170 752
32 Utah $68,195 1,701,020 690
33 Iowa $68,184 1,550,560 709
34 New Mexico $68,121 860,180 633
35 Florida $67,772 9,817,300 777
36 North Carolina $67,685 4,917,060 744
37 Missouri $67,599 2,906,800 731
38 Idaho $67,243 844,160 617
39 Tennessee $66,638 3,266,470 730
40 South Carolina $66,430 2,288,900 709
41 Kentucky $66,085 1,988,120 699
42 Wyoming $66,073 272,990 504
43 Montana $65,918 501,470 602
44 Kansas $65,075 1,422,140 667
45 South Dakota $64,417 453,200 559
46 Alabama $63,963 2,076,000 687
47 Oklahoma $63,871 1,700,930 709
48 Louisiana $62,928 1,918,070 678
49 West Virginia $62,235 694,420 618
50 Arkansas $58,447 1,291,640 671
51 Mississippi $57,873 1,140,550 672

Salary Heatmap: All 50 States (2025)

Darker green = higher average salary. Click any state for details.

DC $89,679 WA $86,472 NY $83,189 CA $83,172 MA $81,221 NJ $80,366 MN $79,901 AK $79,599 MD $79,476 RI $78,209 CT $78,019 CO $76,493 OR $75,924 NH $75,725 IL $74,900 VT $74,078 VA $73,984 HI $73,976 AZ $72,019 WI $71,762 DE $71,614 PA $70,617 ND $70,391 ME $70,351 MI $70,102 OH $69,737 GA $69,372 NV $69,352 TX $68,700 NE $68,499 IN $68,360 UT $68,195 IA $68,184 NM $68,121 FL $67,772 NC $67,685 MO $67,599 ID $67,243 TN $66,638 SC $66,430 KY $66,085 WY $66,073 MT $65,918 KS $65,075 SD $64,417 AL $63,963 OK $63,871 LA $62,928 WV $62,235 AR $58,447 MS $57,873

Top 10 Highest-Paying States

District of Columbia $89,679
Washington $86,472
New York $83,189
California $83,172
Massachusetts $81,221
New Jersey $80,366
Minnesota $79,901
Alaska $79,599
Maryland $79,476
Rhode Island $78,209

Key Insights

The difference between District of Columbia ($89,679) and Mississippi ($57,873) is $31,805 per year.

Higher salaries don't always mean more purchasing power. States like California and New York pay more but also have significantly higher costs of living.

Overview

This page is part of our comprehensive Salary Statistics data collection.

State Salary Statistics

Salaries in District of Columbia $89,679 Salaries in Washington $86,472 Salaries in New York $83,189 Salaries in California $83,172 Salaries in Massachusetts $81,221 Salaries in New Jersey $80,366 Salaries in Minnesota $79,901 Salaries in Alaska $79,599 Salaries in Maryland $79,476 Salaries in Rhode Island $78,209 Salaries in Connecticut $78,019 Salaries in Colorado $76,493 Salaries in Oregon $75,924 Salaries in New Hampshire $75,725 Salaries in Illinois $74,900 Salaries in Vermont $74,078

Explore Other Data

City Income by State Median household income data

Frequently Asked Questions

Which state has the highest average salary?
District of Columbia at $89,679 per year.
Which state has the lowest average salary?
Mississippi at $57,873 per year.
Does a higher salary mean a better standard of living?
Not necessarily. Cost of living varies significantly. A $60,000 salary in Mississippi may go further than $80,000 in California.

Dive Deeper

Average American Salary · Highest Paying Jobs

Cite This Page

AmericaByNumbers. "Average Salary by State 2025." https://americabynumbers.com/salary-by-state/. Accessed May 19, 2026. Data: BLS OEWS 2025.

Click to copy. Free to use with attribution.

Data Source & Methodology

State averages computed as the mean of all occupation medians within each state, based on BLS OEWS 2025 data.

For full methodology details, see our Methodology page. View all Data Sources.