- The average yearly U.S. salary for a full-time worker is $57,200. (Full-time workers 16 years and older.)
- For those 25 and over, the average yearly salary is $60,060.
Technically, we are talking about median salaries, meaning half the population makes more and half makes less. This is a more accurate picture of the labor market than an “average” salary estimate, as a true “average” salary would be skewed higher by the very few who earn tens of millions (or more) per year.
We base this average/median off of Bureau of Labor Statistics data that report a median wage/salary of $1100 per week in the first quarter of 2023.
That number represents workers across all ages, sexes, education levels, professions, etc.
Other Averages/Medians:
We can find plenty of other interesting information when we break the data down further:
- Men earn $61,672 vs. $51,792 for women. (Women make roughly 84% of men’s salaries.)
- Median annual salary for whites: $58,760. For African-Americans: $46,072. For Hispanics: $45,136. For Asians: $76,336.
- Median annual salary for college graduates: $84,292. High school graduates, no college: $45,968. No high school diploma: $35,464.
- Workers aged 45 to 54 have the highest median salary, at $64,428, but the 35 to 44 age group (at $63,596), and the 55-64 group (at $63,336) are only slightly behind. Younger workers from 25-34 have a significantly lower median salary: $52,936.
- Jobs traditionally thought of as “white collar,” described as “management, professional, and related occupations” in the BLS statistics, have the highest median salary, at $79,612. Jobs in “farming, fishing, and forestry occupations” pay the worst, with a median salary of $32,864. Service jobs also have a similarly low median salary, at $36,972.
- To be in the highest-earning 10% of the population, a worker would need to be making $141,336 or more. Those making $29,848 or less would be in the lowest 10%.
Previous Average Salary Numbers:
- Third Quarter 2019: $47,788
- First Quarter 2018: $45,812
- Third Quarter 2017: $44,668