Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2015

15-1131 Computer Programmers

Create, modify, and test the code, forms, and script that allow computer applications to run. Work from specifications drawn up by software developers or other individuals. May assist software developers by analyzing user needs and designing software solutions. May develop and write computer programs to store, locate, and retrieve specific documents, data, and information.

National estimates for this occupation
Industry profile for this occupation
Geographic profile for this occupation

National estimates for this occupation: Top

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for this occupation:

Employment (1) Employment
RSE (3) 		Mean hourly
wage		 Mean annual
wage (2) 		Wage RSE (3)
289,420 1.7 % $40.56 $84,360 1.4 %

Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median) 		75% 90%
Hourly Wage $21.37 $28.97 $38.24 $49.79 $62.89
Annual Wage (2) $44,450 $60,250 $79,530 $103,570 $130,800

Industry profile for this occupation: Top

Industries with the highest published employment and wages for this occupation are provided. For a list of all industries with employment in this occupation, see the Create Customized Tables function.

Industries with the highest levels of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Computer Systems Design and Related Services 117,720 6.24 $40.56 $84,370
Software Publishers 21,260 6.50 $49.27 $102,480
Management of Companies and Enterprises 13,880 0.61 $39.73 $82,630
Employment Services 9,890 0.28 $43.44 $90,360
State Government (OES Designation) 8,600 0.39 $34.06 $70,840

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Software Publishers 21,260 6.50 $49.27 $102,480
Computer Systems Design and Related Services 117,720 6.24 $40.56 $84,370
Data Processing, Hosting, and Related Services 6,590 2.27 $38.74 $80,580
Other Information Services 3,520 1.52 $43.05 $89,540
Monetary Authorities-Central Bank 240 1.38 $52.95 $110,130

Top paying industries for this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Securities and Commodity Contracts Intermediation and Brokerage 1,970 0.44 $54.36 $113,070
Monetary Authorities-Central Bank 240 1.38 $52.95 $110,130
Drycleaning and Laundry Services 30 0.01 $51.12 $106,330
Other Financial Investment Activities 1,220 0.28 $50.40 $104,830
Natural Gas Distribution 330 0.29 $50.04 $104,080

Geographic profile for this occupation: Top

States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for this occupation are provided. For a list of all areas with employment in this occupation, see the Create Customized Tables function.




States with the highest employment level in this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
California 38,650 2.49 1.19 $44.31 $92,170
Texas 21,680 1.87 0.89 $41.66 $86,660
New York 19,680 2.19 1.04 $42.31 $88,010
Illinois 16,230 2.77 1.32 $37.19 $77,360
New Jersey 15,170 3.88 1.85 $43.90 $91,310



States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Washington 13,260 4.45 2.12 $57.23 $119,040
New Jersey 15,170 3.88 1.85 $43.90 $91,310
Nebraska 3,120 3.27 1.56 $35.63 $74,110
Alabama 5,850 3.11 1.48 $40.00 $83,190
Connecticut 5,020 3.03 1.44 $38.82 $80,740



Top paying States for this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Washington 13,260 4.45 2.12 $57.23 $119,040
New Mexico 1,200 1.50 0.72 $48.65 $101,190
Alaska 610 1.87 0.89 $45.97 $95,630
Massachusetts 7,130 2.10 1.00 $45.85 $95,370
District of Columbia 1,120 1.66 0.79 $45.03 $93,660




Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in this occupation:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
New York-Jersey City-White Plains, NY-NJ Metropolitan Division 18,460 2.85 1.36 $46.00 $95,690
Chicago-Naperville-Arlington Heights, IL Metropolitan Division 12,090 3.39 1.61 $37.27 $77,510
Seattle-Bellevue-Everett, WA Metropolitan Division 11,970 7.79 3.71 $59.37 $123,490
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA 7,840 3.16 1.51 $40.72 $84,690
Dallas-Plano-Irving, TX Metropolitan Division 7,680 3.30 1.57 $43.02 $89,490
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, CA Metropolitan Division 7,340 1.79 0.85 $45.98 $95,650
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Metropolitan Division 7,210 2.98 1.42 $47.38 $98,550
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA 6,510 6.43 3.07 $45.16 $93,940
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI 6,210 3.30 1.57 $38.85 $80,820
San Francisco-Redwood City-South San Francisco, CA Metropolitan Division 6,110 5.99 2.86 $51.96 $108,070



Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Huntsville, AL 1,910 8.96 4.27 $47.04 $97,840
Trenton, NJ 1,740 7.85 3.74 $44.28 $92,100
Seattle-Bellevue-Everett, WA Metropolitan Division 11,970 7.79 3.71 $59.37 $123,490
Nashua, NH-MA NECTA Division 860 6.75 3.22 $35.44 $73,710
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA 6,510 6.43 3.07 $45.16 $93,940
Columbus, GA-AL 710 6.17 2.94 $38.45 $79,970
San Francisco-Redwood City-South San Francisco, CA Metropolitan Division 6,110 5.99 2.86 $51.96 $108,070
Framingham, MA NECTA Division 970 5.62 2.68 $44.43 $92,420
Columbia, SC 1,830 5.05 2.40 $34.04 $70,800
Columbia, MO 450 4.98 2.37 $25.31 $52,630



Top paying metropolitan areas for this occupation:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Seattle-Bellevue-Everett, WA Metropolitan Division 11,970 7.79 3.71 $59.37 $123,490
San Francisco-Redwood City-South San Francisco, CA Metropolitan Division 6,110 5.99 2.86 $51.96 $108,070
Albuquerque, NM 1,000 2.67 1.27 $50.99 $106,060
Anchorage, AK 320 1.82 0.87 $49.61 $103,190
Vallejo-Fairfield, CA 150 1.16 0.55 $48.43 $100,730
Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA NECTA Division 4,620 2.63 1.25 $48.37 $100,610
Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA 540 1.82 0.87 $48.00 $99,840
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Metropolitan Division 7,210 2.98 1.42 $47.38 $98,550
Hagerstown-Martinsburg, MD-WV 60 0.61 0.29 $47.33 $98,450
Bellingham, WA 100 1.20 0.57 $47.19 $98,150

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in this occupation:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Southwest Montana nonmetropolitan area 380 2.99 1.43 $30.31 $63,050
West Central Illinois nonmetropolitan area 220 1.28 0.61 $33.01 $68,670
Northeastern Wisconsin nonmetropolitan area 180 0.90 0.43 (8) (8)
Piedmont North Carolina nonmetropolitan area 180 0.72 0.34 $35.24 $73,310
Southwest New York nonmetropolitan area 170 0.92 0.44 $32.92 $68,470

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Southeast Alaska nonmetropolitan area 150 4.24 2.02 $41.39 $86,100
Southwest Montana nonmetropolitan area 380 2.99 1.43 $30.31 $63,050
Southwest New Hampshire nonmetropolitan area 100 2.60 1.24 $34.66 $72,090
West Central New Hampshire nonmetropolitan area 110 1.77 0.84 $33.03 $68,700
West Montana nonmetropolitan area 100 1.39 0.66 $37.48 $77,960

Top paying nonmetropolitan areas for this occupation:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Northern Mountains Region of California nonmetropolitan area 70 1.06 0.50 $41.79 $86,920
Southeast Alaska nonmetropolitan area 150 4.24 2.02 $41.39 $86,100
Southeast Idaho nonmetropolitan area 60 1.35 0.64 $40.07 $83,340
South Central Tennessee nonmetropolitan area 100 0.95 0.45 $38.24 $79,540
West Montana nonmetropolitan area 100 1.39 0.66 $37.48 $77,960

About May 2015 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 OES estimates and related information:

May 2015 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2015 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2015 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2015 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2015 Occupation Profiles

Technical Notes

 

Last Modified Date: March 30, 2016