U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Department of Labor Logo United States Department of Labor
Dot gov

The .gov means it's official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you're on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
PRINT:Print
OEWS OEWS Program Links

Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2020

23-1011 Lawyers

Represent clients in criminal and civil litigation and other legal proceedings, draw up legal documents, or manage or advise clients on legal transactions. May specialize in a single area or may practice broadly in many areas of law.

National estimates for Lawyers
Industry profile for Lawyers
Geographic profile for Lawyers

National estimates for Lawyers:

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Lawyers:

Employment (1) Employment
RSE (3) 		Mean hourly
wage		 Mean annual
wage (2) 		Wage RSE (3)
658,120 0.7 % $ 71.59 $ 148,910 0.7 %

Percentile wage estimates for Lawyers:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median) 		75% 90%
Hourly Wage $ 29.56 $ 40.60 $ 61.03 $ 91.11 (5)
Annual Wage (2) $ 61,490 $ 84,450 $ 126,930 $ 189,520 (5)

Industry profile for Lawyers:

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

Industries with the highest levels of employment in Lawyers:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Legal Services 401,340 35.28 $ 73.86 $ 153,630
Local Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OEWS Designation) 56,790 1.05 $ 53.51 $ 111,300
State Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OEWS Designation) 45,250 2.06 $ 46.85 $ 97,440
Federal Executive Branch (OEWS Designation) 38,970 1.87 $ 70.46 $ 146,560
Management of Companies and Enterprises 20,810 0.86 $ 88.77 $ 184,640

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Lawyers:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Legal Services 401,340 35.28 $ 73.86 $ 153,630
Lessors of Nonfinancial Intangible Assets (except Copyrighted Works) 520 2.47 $ 74.40 $ 154,740
State Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OEWS Designation) 45,250 2.06 $ 46.85 $ 97,440
Federal Executive Branch (OEWS Designation) 38,970 1.87 $ 70.46 $ 146,560
Social Advocacy Organizations 3,110 1.42 $ 55.46 $ 115,360

Top paying industries for Lawyers:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Specialized Design Services 80 0.06 $ 112.21 $ 233,400
Computer and Peripheral Equipment Manufacturing 450 0.28 $ 106.25 $ 221,000
Motion Picture and Video Industries 300 0.09 $ 104.98 $ 218,360
Cable and Other Subscription Programming 270 0.53 $ 104.26 $ 216,860
Navigational, Measuring, Electromedical, and Control Instruments Manufacturing 550 0.13 $ 100.22 $ 208,460

Geographic profile for Lawyers:

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





States with the highest employment level in Lawyers:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
California 84,160 5.12 1.08 $ 86.28 $ 179,470
New York 76,660 8.82 1.86 $ 83.68 $ 174,060
Florida 47,010 5.57 1.18 $ 66.91 $ 139,160
Texas 46,340 3.83 0.81 $ 68.62 $ 142,730
District of Columbia 31,050 45.19 9.55 $ 94.76 $ 197,100




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

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
District of Columbia 31,050 45.19 9.55 $ 94.76 $ 197,100
New York 76,660 8.82 1.86 $ 83.68 $ 174,060
Delaware 2,630 6.17 1.30 (8) (8)
Colorado 14,680 5.69 1.20 $ 71.31 $ 148,330
Massachusetts 18,880 5.64 1.19 $ 81.31 $ 169,120




Top paying states for Lawyers:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
District of Columbia 31,050 45.19 9.55 $ 94.76 $ 197,100
California 84,160 5.12 1.08 $ 86.28 $ 179,470
New York 76,660 8.82 1.86 $ 83.68 $ 174,060
Massachusetts 18,880 5.64 1.19 $ 81.31 $ 169,120
Connecticut 7,710 5.00 1.06 $ 76.05 $ 158,190





Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Lawyers:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA 81,650 9.24 1.95 $ 86.62 $ 180,160
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV 43,990 14.55 3.08 $ 89.46 $ 186,070
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA 38,390 6.59 1.39 $ 86.64 $ 180,220
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI 27,320 6.26 1.32 $ 76.45 $ 159,010
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD 18,880 7.00 1.48 $ 73.14 $ 152,130
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL 18,790 7.49 1.58 $ 81.48 $ 169,480
Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH 16,770 6.45 1.36 $ 84.41 $ 175,570
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA 16,740 7.18 1.52 $ 97.08 $ 201,920
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA 15,570 5.91 1.25 $ 71.75 $ 149,240
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX 15,510 4.32 0.91 $ 72.23 $ 150,230




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

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV 43,990 14.55 3.08 $ 89.46 $ 186,070
Tallahassee, FL 2,150 12.67 2.68 $ 48.96 $ 101,840
Charleston, WV 1,070 10.38 2.19 $ 52.72 $ 109,660
Santa Fe, NM 550 9.60 2.03 $ 45.55 $ 94,740
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA 81,650 9.24 1.95 $ 86.62 $ 180,160
Trenton, NJ 1,860 8.06 1.70 (8) (8)
New Orleans-Metairie, LA 4,120 8.00 1.69 $ 59.17 $ 123,070
Montgomery, AL 1,210 7.82 1.65 $ 51.35 $ 106,810
Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY 3,210 7.63 1.61 $ 54.89 $ 114,170
Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO 11,020 7.56 1.60 $ 73.11 $ 152,060