Last updated: 2025 BLS data · Page refreshed:
Explore employment and salary data across 22 major industry groups. Find the highest-paying industries, most employed sectors, and career opportunities by industry classification.
Compare average salaries across states. Click any state for industry details.
Click any industry to explore job opportunities, salary ranges, and employment data across all 51 states.
Detailed breakdown of all 22 industry groups ranked by total employment, with average salary and job count.
| # | Industry Group | Total Employment | Occupations | Avg Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Office & Administrative Support | 17,680,370 | 50 | $48K |
| 2 | Food Preparation & Serving | 13,663,580 | 15 | $36K |
| 3 | Transportation & Material Moving | 13,539,400 | 46 | $58K |
| 4 | Sales | 13,390,150 | 21 | $58K |
| 5 | Management | 10,924,340 | 35 | $114K |
| 6 | Business & Finance | 10,390,580 | 30 | $79K |
| 7 | Healthcare Practitioners | 9,706,970 | 63 | $135K |
| 8 | Education & Training | 9,058,340 | 59 | $74K |
| 9 | Production | 8,495,360 | 99 | $50K |
| 10 | Healthcare Support | 7,891,600 | 16 | $45K |
| 11 | Construction & Extraction | 6,372,320 | 57 | $58K |
| 12 | Installation, Maintenance & Repair | 6,060,310 | 49 | $61K |
| 13 | Computer & Math | 5,243,030 | 19 | $102K |
| 14 | Building & Grounds Maintenance | 4,511,570 | 8 | $45K |
| 15 | Protective Service | 3,756,940 | 22 | $60K |
| 16 | Personal Care & Service | 3,225,720 | 29 | $40K |
| 17 | Community & Social Service | 2,640,240 | 13 | $59K |
| 18 | Architecture & Engineering | 2,580,030 | 33 | $90K |
| 19 | Arts, Design & Entertainment | 2,010,130 | 36 | $61K |
| 20 | Life, Physical & Social Science | 1,428,950 | 42 | $82K |
| 21 | Legal | 1,264,240 | 7 | $90K |
| 22 | Farming, Fishing & Forestry | 429,910 | 11 | $45K |
What is an industry group?
Industry groups are broad classifications that organize occupations by economic sector. The 22 industry groups represent major divisions such as Healthcare, Technology, Manufacturing, and more. Within each group are multiple occupations with distinct salary ranges and employment levels.
Use this page to compare industries, then drill down into individual states to see how each industry performs in your region.
We track 22 major industry groups based on SOC code classification, covering 760 occupations.
Office & Administrative Support leads with 17,680,370 workers.
By average median salary, the highest-paying industry is Healthcare Practitioners at $135368/year.
Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) codes are used by the BLS to categorize occupations into 22 major groups. Each 2-digit prefix represents an industry.
All data is from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025.
Data: BLS OEWS 2025. Industry groupings follow the Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) system. Employment figures represent all workers across the United States in each industry group. Our Methodology · Data Sources