The highest paying job in District of Columbia is Physicians, Pathologists, with a median salary of $234,320 per year. Below is the complete ranking of the top 25 careers in DC based on 2024 Bureau of Labor Statistics data.
Data: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2024
Ranked by median annual salary. Click any job to see the full salary breakdown including percentile data and state-by-state comparisons.
| Rank | 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 | Lawyers | $183,500 | $238,990 | 34,660 |
| 5 | Public Relations Managers | $183,500 | $224,110 | 8,220 |
| 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 | Managers, All Other | $163,240 | $168,180 | 18,450 |
| 19 | Purchasing Managers | $163,240 | $162,040 | 1,220 |
| 20 | General and Operations Managers | $162,990 | $174,250 | 34,580 |
| 21 | Life Scientists, All Other | $160,140 | $172,440 | N/A |
| 22 | Economists | $158,830 | $163,540 | 3,290 |
| 23 | Engineers, All Other | $158,830 | $151,300 | 2,640 |
| 24 | Marketing Managers | $156,750 | $169,080 | 3,330 |
| 25 | Natural Sciences Managers | $154,420 | $149,960 | 1,500 |
Average Salary in District of Columbia · All District of Columbia Jobs · Build Your Resume →
The top-paying careers in District of Columbia are concentrated in Management fields. The #1 job, Physicians, Pathologists, pays $146,789 more than the state average of $87,530 per year.
Among the top 25, the minimum median salary is $154,420, meaning all jobs on this list pay significantly above the national average.
See how District of Columbia's top salaries compare to other states.
Rankings are based on median annual salary from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2024 estimates. We use median rather than mean salary because it better represents typical earnings and is less affected by outliers.
Only occupations with state-level data published by BLS are included. Some specialized or rare occupations may not have data for every state. For full methodology details, see our Methodology page.