The average salary in District of Columbia is $81,932 per year (median, 2024). The highest-paying job in DC is Physicians, Pathologists at $234,320. This page covers all 477 occupations tracked by BLS in District of Columbia.
Data: BLS OEWS, May 2024 | Last updated: 2026-04-02
Ranked by median annual salary. Click any job for the full breakdown.
| # | Occupation | Median Salary | Mean Salary | Workers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Physicians, Pathologists | $234,320 | $225,150 | 40 |
| 2 | Chief Executives | $206,690 | $307,770 | 1,350 |
| 3 | Obstetricians and Gynecologists | $199,010 | $208,050 | 30 |
| 4 | Public Relations Managers | $183,500 | $224,110 | 8,220 |
| 5 | Lawyers | $183,500 | $238,990 | 34,660 |
| 6 | Computer and Information Systems Managers | $181,650 | $189,220 | 4,550 |
| 7 | Financial Examiners | $180,290 | $170,530 | 460 |
| 8 | Emergency Management Directors | $176,450 | $167,680 | 140 |
| 9 | Art Directors | $175,440 | $146,630 | 600 |
| 10 | Nuclear Engineers | $174,390 | $163,610 | 260 |
| 11 | Financial Managers | $172,060 | $190,630 | 7,570 |
| 12 | Architectural and Engineering Managers | $171,270 | $173,270 | 1,390 |
| 13 | Human Resources Managers | $171,220 | $180,750 | 2,160 |
| 14 | Aerospace Engineers | $166,310 | $152,400 | 410 |
| 15 | Compensation and Benefits Managers | $164,980 | $168,590 | 170 |
| 16 | Database Architects | $164,720 | $162,980 | 560 |
| 17 | Marine Engineers and Naval Architects | $164,420 | $158,200 | 240 |
| 18 | Purchasing Managers | $163,240 | $162,040 | 1,220 |
| 19 | Managers, All Other | $163,240 | $168,180 | 18,450 |
| 20 | General and Operations Managers | $162,990 | $174,250 | 34,580 |
| 21 | Life Scientists, All Other | $160,140 | $172,440 | 0 |
| 22 | Engineers, All Other | $158,830 | $151,300 | 2,640 |
| 23 | Economists | $158,830 | $163,540 | 3,290 |
| 24 | Marketing Managers | $156,750 | $169,080 | 3,330 |
| 25 | Natural Sciences Managers | $154,420 | $149,960 | 1,500 |
| 26 | Physical Scientists, All Other | $154,420 | $147,300 | 750 |
| 27 | Transportation, Storage, and Distribution Managers | $151,680 | $146,990 | 550 |
| 28 | Optometrists | $149,990 | $148,610 | 70 |
| 29 | Training and Development Managers | $148,450 | $162,820 | 160 |
| 30 | Electronics Engineers, Except Computer | $145,870 | $146,740 | 530 |
The average salary in District of Columbia ($81,932) exceeds the national average.
The highest-paying job, Physicians, Pathologists, pays $152,388 more than the DC average.
This page is part of our comprehensive Salary Statistics data collection.
Click to copy. Free to use with attribution.
All salary figures for District of Columbia from BLS OEWS, May 2024.
For full methodology details, see our Methodology page. View all Data Sources.