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Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics

Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2022

29-1051 Pharmacists

Dispense drugs prescribed by physicians and other health practitioners and provide information to patients about medications and their use. May advise physicians and other health practitioners on the selection, dosage, interactions, and side effects of medications.


National estimates for Pharmacists
Industry profile for Pharmacists
Geographic profile for Pharmacists

National estimates for Pharmacists:

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Pharmacists:

Employment (1) Employment
RSE (3)
Mean hourly
wage
Mean annual
wage (2)
Wage RSE (3)
325,480 0.8 % $ 62.22 $ 129,410 0.5 %

Percentile wage estimates for Pharmacists:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median)
75% 90%
Hourly Wage $ 38.44 $ 59.14 $ 63.82 $ 71.04 $ 78.96
Annual Wage (2) $ 79,950 $ 123,020 $ 132,750 $ 147,750 $ 164,230


Industry profile for Pharmacists:

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

Industries with the highest levels of employment in Pharmacists:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Health and Personal Care Retailers 139,030 12.69 $ 59.04 $ 122,790
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals 82,970 1.48 $ 66.67 $ 138,670
Food and Beverage Retailers (4451 and 4452 only) 23,600 0.79 $ 57.37 $ 119,340
General Merchandise Retailers 19,950 0.62 $ 65.10 $ 135,420
Outpatient Care Centers 7,570 0.74 $ 74.89 $ 155,770

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Pharmacists:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Health and Personal Care Retailers 139,030 12.69 $ 59.04 $ 122,790
Merchant Wholesalers, Nondurable Goods (4242 and 4246 only) 6,950 1.79 $ 63.71 $ 132,520
Specialty (except Psychiatric and Substance Abuse) Hospitals 4,270 1.58 $ 64.75 $ 134,680
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals 82,970 1.48 $ 66.67 $ 138,670
Food and Beverage Retailers (4451 and 4452 only) 23,600 0.79 $ 57.37 $ 119,340

Top paying industries for Pharmacists:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers (8) (8) $ 75.84 $ 157,750
Outpatient Care Centers 7,570 0.74 $ 74.89 $ 155,770
Scientific Research and Development Services 420 0.05 $ 74.29 $ 154,510
Warehousing and Storage 90 (7) $ 71.49 $ 148,710
Management of Companies and Enterprises 2,670 0.10 $ 70.00 $ 145,590


Geographic profile for Pharmacists:

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



Map of employment of pharmacists by state, May 2022


States with the highest employment level in Pharmacists:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
California 34,100 1.93 0.88 $ 72.73 $ 151,280
Texas 23,600 1.82 0.83 $ 62.64 $ 130,280
Florida 22,420 2.43 1.11 $ 58.44 $ 121,560
New York 19,930 2.19 0.99 $ 62.84 $ 130,700
Pennsylvania 15,190 2.62 1.19 $ 60.48 $ 125,790


Map of location quotient of pharmacists by state, May 2022


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

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
West Virginia 2,360 3.48 1.58 $ 57.21 $ 119,000
Mississippi 3,220 2.85 1.29 $ 58.59 $ 121,860
Alabama 5,650 2.82 1.28 $ 60.49 $ 125,820
Kentucky 5,320 2.80 1.27 $ 61.26 $ 127,410
South Dakota 1,220 2.80 1.27 $ 61.73 $ 128,390


Map of annual mean wages of pharmacists by state, May 2022


Top paying states for Pharmacists:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
California 34,100 1.93 0.88 $ 72.73 $ 151,280
Alaska 520 1.68 0.76 $ 70.39 $ 146,400
Oregon 3,660 1.93 0.88 $ 68.00 $ 141,440
Washington 7,150 2.10 0.95 $ 66.63 $ 138,580
Minnesota 6,630 2.35 1.07 $ 65.84 $ 136,950



Map of employment of pharmacists by area, May 2022


Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Pharmacists:

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 20,410 2.22 1.01 $ 63.79 $ 132,690
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA 12,740 2.09 0.95 $ 69.55 $ 144,660
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI 9,690 2.19 1.00 $ 60.81 $ 126,480
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD 7,050 2.55 1.16 $ 62.13 $ 129,230
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX 6,620 1.74 0.79 $ 62.35 $ 129,690
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX 6,230 2.04 0.93 $ 64.07 $ 133,260
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL 6,190 2.36 1.07 $ 60.19 $ 125,190
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA 5,880 2.16 0.98 $ 61.26 $ 127,410
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ 5,740 2.58 1.17 $ 61.57 $ 128,070
Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH 5,530 2.04 0.93 $ 60.83 $ 126,520


Map of location quotient of pharmacists by area, May 2022


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

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Morgantown, WV 430 6.73 3.06 $ 51.88 $ 107,910
Bloomsburg-Berwick, PA 230 5.71 2.60 $ 58.67 $ 122,040
Rochester, MN 630 5.37 2.44 $ 70.75 $ 147,150
Iowa City, IA 370 4.12 1.87 $ 58.40 $ 121,460
Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH 490 3.86 1.75 $ 56.59 $ 117,710
Beckley, WV 150 3.79 1.72 $ 55.26 $ 114,940
Springfield, IL 380 3.78 1.72 $ 59.69 $ 124,140
Lexington-Fayette, KY 1,010 3.76 1.71 $ 58.23 $ 121,110
Fargo, ND-MN 520 3.74 1.70 $ 58.24 $ 121,150
Charleston, WV 370 3.70 1.68 $ 55.08 $ 114,570


Map of annual mean wages of pharmacists by area, May 2022


Top paying metropolitan areas for Pharmacists:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA 1,670 1.49 0.67 $ 83.98 $ 174,670
Vallejo-Fairfield, CA 460 3.36 1.52 $ 80.80 $ 168,070
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA 4,370 1.83 0.83 $ 80.66 $ 167,770
Napa, CA 130 1.77 0.81 $ 79.64 $ 165,640
Santa Rosa, CA 340 1.67 0.76 $ 78.13 $ 162,500
Fairbanks, AK 40 1.23 0.56 $ 76.66 $ 159,440
Madera, CA 110 2.19 0.99 $ 74.34 $ 154,640
Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA 200 2.07 0.94 $ 73.87 $ 153,650
Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA 330 1.61 0.73 $ 73.27 $ 152,400
Chico, CA 200 2.61 1.19 $ 72.77 $ 151,370

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in Pharmacists:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Kansas nonmetropolitan area 810 2.10 0.96 $ 61.02 $ 126,920
Balance of Lower Peninsula of Michigan nonmetropolitan area 610 2.34 1.06 $ 59.80 $ 124,390
North Northeastern Ohio nonmetropolitan area (noncontiguous) 600 1.87 0.85 $ 58.20 $ 121,060
Southeast Coastal North Carolina nonmetropolitan area 580 2.37 1.08 $ 59.08 $ 122,890
Northeast Mississippi nonmetropolitan area 570 2.53 1.15 $ 57.11 $ 118,780

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

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
East Kentucky nonmetropolitan area 530 5.45 2.48 $ 61.72 $ 128,370
West Montana nonmetropolitan area 270 3.38 1.53 $ 60.09 $ 124,990
Southwest Louisiana nonmetropolitan area 220 3.31 1.50 $ 55.92 $ 116,310
South Central Kentucky nonmetropolitan area 540 3.24 1.47 $ 59.67 $ 124,110
North Central Tennessee nonmetropolitan area 350 3.14 1.43 $ 57.39 $ 119,360

Top paying nonmetropolitan areas for Pharmacists:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
North Valley-Northern Mountains Region of California nonmetropolitan area 210 2.09 0.95 $ 73.58 $ 153,050
Eastern Sierra-Mother Lode Region of California nonmetropolitan area 110 1.83 0.83 $ 71.77 $ 149,290
Alaska nonmetropolitan area 160 1.61 0.73 $ 71.44 $ 148,590
North Coast Region of California nonmetropolitan area 230 2.23 1.02 $ 69.95 $ 145,500
Border Region of Texas nonmetropolitan area 90 1.55 0.71 $ 69.23 $ 144,000


About May 2022 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.

(7) The value is less than .005 percent of industry employment.

(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 2022 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2022 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2022 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2022 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2022 Occupation Profiles

Technical Notes

 

Last Modified Date: April 25, 2023