Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
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Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2023
17-1022 Surveyors
Make exact measurements and determine property boundaries. Provide data relevant to the shape, contour, gravitation, location, elevation, or dimension of land or land features on or near the earth’s surface for engineering, mapmaking, mining, land evaluation, construction, and other purposes.
National estimates for Surveyors
Industry profile for Surveyors
Geographic profile for Surveyors
National estimates for Surveyors:
Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Surveyors:
| Employment (1) |
Employment
RSE (3) |
Mean hourly
wage |
Mean annual
wage (2) |
Wage RSE (3) |
| 50,740 |
3.9 % |
$ 35.58 |
$ 74,000 |
0.8 % |
Percentile wage estimates for Surveyors:
| Percentile |
10% |
25% |
50%
(Median) |
75% |
90% |
| Hourly Wage |
$ 19.92 |
$ 24.51 |
$ 32.95 |
$ 44.00 |
$ 52.72 |
| Annual Wage (2) |
$ 41,430 |
$ 50,970 |
$ 68,540 |
$ 91,520 |
$ 109,660 |
Industry profile for Surveyors:
Industries with the highest published employment and wages for Surveyors are provided.
For a list of all industries with employment in Surveyors, see the Create Customized Tables function.
Industries with the highest levels of employment in Surveyors:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services |
38,520 |
2.34 |
$ 34.80 |
$ 72,380 |
| Local Government, excluding Schools and Hospitals (OEWS Designation) |
2,160 |
0.04 |
$ 39.44 |
$ 82,030 |
| State Government, excluding Schools and Hospitals (OEWS Designation) |
1,450 |
0.07 |
$ 46.05 |
$ 95,780 |
| Highway, Street, and Bridge Construction |
970 |
0.26 |
$ 40.41 |
$ 84,050 |
| Other Specialty Trade Contractors |
780 |
0.10 |
$ 31.95 |
$ 66,450 |
Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Surveyors:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services |
38,520 |
2.34 |
$ 34.80 |
$ 72,380 |
| Metal Ore Mining |
210 |
0.50 |
$ 35.48 |
$ 73,790 |
| Coal Mining |
170 |
0.40 |
$ 34.79 |
$ 72,360 |
| Highway, Street, and Bridge Construction |
970 |
0.26 |
$ 40.41 |
$ 84,050 |
| Natural Gas Distribution |
240 |
0.21 |
$ 39.98 |
$ 83,160 |
Top paying industries for Surveyors:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Federal, State, and Local Government, excluding State and Local Government Schools and Hospitals and the U.S. Postal Service (OEWS Designation) |
450 |
0.02 |
$ 49.01 |
$ 101,950 |
| State Government, excluding Schools and Hospitals (OEWS Designation) |
1,450 |
0.07 |
$ 46.05 |
$ 95,780 |
| Management of Companies and Enterprises |
230 |
0.01 |
$ 43.81 |
$ 91,110 |
| Oil and Gas Extraction |
100 |
0.09 |
$ 41.63 |
$ 86,590 |
| Electric Power Generation, Transmission and Distribution |
300 |
0.08 |
$ 40.61 |
$ 84,470 |
Geographic profile for Surveyors:
States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for Surveyors are provided.
For a list of all areas with employment in Surveyors, see the Create Customized Tables function.
States with the highest employment level in Surveyors:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Texas |
5,430 |
0.40 |
1.20 |
$ 31.84 |
$ 66,220 |
| California |
4,520 |
0.25 |
0.75 |
$ 50.62 |
$ 105,290 |
| Florida |
3,720 |
0.39 |
1.16 |
$ 31.94 |
$ 66,440 |
| Georgia |
1,900 |
0.40 |
1.19 |
$ 30.13 |
$ 62,670 |
| North Carolina |
1,720 |
0.36 |
1.07 |
$ 32.53 |
$ 67,670 |
States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Surveyors:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Alaska |
320 |
1.03 |
3.07 |
$ 42.59 |
$ 88,580 |
| Wyoming |
250 |
0.91 |
2.72 |
$ 35.66 |
$ 74,160 |
| Montana |
450 |
0.89 |
2.67 |
$ 35.64 |
$ 74,140 |
| North Dakota |
300 |
0.72 |
2.17 |
$ 35.23 |
$ 73,270 |
| Louisiana |
1,210 |
0.66 |
1.96 |
$ 31.08 |
$ 64,650 |
Top paying states for Surveyors:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| California |
4,520 |
0.25 |
0.75 |
$ 50.62 |
$ 105,290 |
| New York |
1,540 |
0.16 |
0.49 |
$ 43.05 |
$ 89,550 |
| Alaska |
320 |
1.03 |
3.07 |
$ 42.59 |
$ 88,580 |
| Oregon |
620 |
0.32 |
0.96 |
$ 42.37 |
$ 88,130 |
| Delaware |
130 |
0.28 |
0.84 |
$ 42.23 |
$ 87,830 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Surveyors:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX |
1,570 |
0.49 |
1.47 |
$ 32.53 |
$ 67,670 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA |
1,450 |
0.15 |
0.46 |
$ 46.65 |
$ 97,030 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH |
1,360 |
0.49 |
1.47 |
$ 42.24 |
$ 87,860 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV |
1,330 |
0.43 |
1.29 |
$ 35.23 |
$ 73,280 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA |
1,180 |
0.42 |
1.25 |
$ 31.11 |
$ 64,710 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX |
1,170 |
0.30 |
0.89 |
$ 33.35 |
$ 69,370 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA |
1,070 |
0.17 |
0.52 |
$ 49.76 |
$ 103,500 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI |
880 |
0.20 |
0.59 |
$ 40.92 |
$ 85,110 |
| Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ |
870 |
0.38 |
1.14 |
$ 34.85 |
$ 72,480 |
| Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO |
770 |
0.49 |
1.45 |
$ 37.20 |
$ 77,380 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Surveyors:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Longview, TX |
140 |
1.46 |
4.35 |
$ 34.52 |
$ 71,800 |
| Missoula, MT |
90 |
1.39 |
4.17 |
$ 36.52 |
$ 75,960 |
| Anchorage, AK |
210 |
1.25 |
3.74 |
$ 42.46 |
$ 88,320 |
| Fairbanks, AK |
40 |
1.24 |
3.71 |
$ 41.28 |
$ 85,870 |
| Midland, TX |
140 |
1.19 |
3.56 |
$ 34.43 |
$ 71,620 |
| Bismarck, ND |
80 |
1.13 |
3.39 |
$ 34.56 |
$ 71,880 |
| Yuba City, CA |
50 |
1.06 |
3.17 |
(8) |
(8) |
| California-Lexington Park, MD |
50 |
1.05 |
3.13 |
$ 31.99 |
$ 66,540 |
| Billings, MT |
90 |
0.96 |
2.87 |
$ 36.82 |
$ 76,590 |
| Lafayette, LA |
180 |
0.93 |
2.78 |
$ 28.86 |
$ 60,020 |
Top paying metropolitan areas for Surveyors:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Fresno, CA |
120 |
0.30 |
0.91 |
$ 55.44 |
$ 115,310 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA |
320 |
0.28 |
0.84 |
$ 55.29 |
$ 115,010 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA |
640 |
0.27 |
0.79 |
$ 54.72 |
$ 113,820 |
| Sacramento--Roseville--Arden-Arcade, CA |
330 |
0.32 |
0.94 |
$ 54.38 |
$ 113,110 |
| Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA |
40 |
0.21 |
0.63 |
$ 54.05 |
$ 112,420 |
| Redding, CA |
50 |
0.68 |
2.03 |
$ 52.76 |
$ 109,740 |
| San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles-Arroyo Grande, CA |
60 |
0.51 |
1.52 |
$ 50.96 |
$ 105,990 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA |
1,070 |
0.17 |
0.52 |
$ 49.76 |
$ 103,500 |
| San Diego-Carlsbad, CA |
530 |
0.35 |
1.04 |
$ 49.75 |
$ 103,480 |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA |
450 |
0.27 |
0.80 |
$ 48.83 |
$ 101,570 |
Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in Surveyors:
Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Surveyors:
Top paying nonmetropolitan areas for Surveyors:
About May 2023 National, State, Metropolitan, and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
These estimates are calculated with data collected from employers in all industry sectors, all metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas, and all states and the District of Columbia.
The top employment and wage figures are provided above. The complete list is available in the downloadable XLS files.
The percentile wage estimate is the value of a wage below which a certain percent of workers fall.
The median wage is the 50th percentile wage estimate—50 percent of workers earn less than the median and 50 percent of workers earn more than the median.
More about percentile wages.
(1) Estimates for detailed occupations do not sum to the totals because the totals include occupations not shown separately. Estimates do not include self-employed workers.
(2) Annual wages have been calculated by multiplying the hourly mean wage by a "year-round, full-time" hours figure of 2,080 hours;
for those occupations where there is not an hourly wage published, the annual wage has been directly calculated from the reported survey data.
(3) The relative standard error (RSE) is a measure of the reliability of a survey statistic. The smaller the relative standard error, the more precise the estimate.
(8) Estimate not released.
(9) The location quotient is the ratio of the area concentration of occupational employment to the national average concentration.
A location quotient greater than one indicates the occupation has a higher share of employment than average, and a location quotient less than one indicates the occupation is less prevalent in the area than average.
Other OEWS estimates and related information:
May 2023 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2023 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2023 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2023 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2023 Occupation Profiles
Technical Notes
Last Modified Date: April 3, 2024
United States Department of Labor
