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Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics

Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2017

13-1051 Cost Estimators

Prepare cost estimates for product manufacturing, construction projects, or services to aid management in bidding on or determining price of product or service. May specialize according to particular service performed or type of product manufactured.


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)
210,900 0.8 % $32.90 $68,420 0.3 %

Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median)
75% 90%
Hourly Wage $17.79 $23.42 $30.34 $39.58 $50.97
Annual Wage (2) $37,000 $48,710 $63,110 $82,330 $106,010


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)
Building Equipment Contractors 31,940 1.55 $34.08 $70,880
Nonresidential Building Construction 22,470 2.88 $37.21 $77,390
Foundation, Structure, and Building Exterior Contractors 18,120 2.06 $32.03 $66,630
Building Finishing Contractors 16,570 2.10 $32.52 $67,640
Residential Building Construction 15,310 2.07 $31.49 $65,500

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Nonresidential Building Construction 22,470 2.88 $37.21 $77,390
Building Finishing Contractors 16,570 2.10 $32.52 $67,640
Residential Building Construction 15,310 2.07 $31.49 $65,500
Foundation, Structure, and Building Exterior Contractors 18,120 2.06 $32.03 $66,630
Other Specialty Trade Contractors 11,280 1.71 $31.18 $64,860

Top paying industries for this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
State Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OES Designation) 130 0.01 $44.81 $93,200
Aerospace Product and Parts Manufacturing 1,820 0.38 $41.99 $87,340
Telecommunications 430 0.06 $41.00 $85,290
Securities, Commodity Contracts, and Other Financial Investments and Related Activities 40 (7) $40.03 $83,260
Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services 4,430 0.31 $39.92 $83,040


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 27,550 1.65 1.12 $36.33 $75,570
Texas 17,330 1.46 0.99 $35.06 $72,920
Florida 12,680 1.51 1.02 $29.70 $61,770
Ohio 10,700 1.99 1.35 $30.46 $63,350
New York 10,140 1.10 0.74 $35.74 $74,340




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)
Virginia 9,050 2.39 1.61 $34.18 $71,090
Montana 1,040 2.26 1.53 $28.33 $58,920
Delaware 900 2.03 1.37 $33.37 $69,420
Ohio 10,700 1.99 1.35 $30.46 $63,350
South Dakota 830 1.97 1.33 $25.45 $52,940




Top paying States for this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
District of Columbia 470 0.66 0.45 $43.06 $89,570
Alaska 320 0.99 0.67 $40.42 $84,080
Washington 5,580 1.75 1.18 $37.21 $77,390
Hawaii 1,150 1.81 1.22 $36.85 $76,650
Massachusetts 5,670 1.61 1.09 $36.65 $76,240



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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 6,550 0.98 0.66 $38.57 $80,230
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, CA Metropolitan Division 5,610 1.27 0.86 $32.52 $67,650
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX 5,280 1.80 1.22 $37.41 $77,820
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Metropolitan Division 4,740 1.88 1.27 $37.55 $78,110
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ 3,700 1.87 1.26 $33.31 $69,280
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA 3,690 1.41 0.95 $32.55 $67,710
Dallas-Plano-Irving, TX Metropolitan Division 3,580 1.44 0.97 $34.99 $72,790
Anaheim-Santa Ana-Irvine, CA Metropolitan Division 3,220 1.99 1.35 $35.54 $73,920
Seattle-Bellevue-Everett, WA Metropolitan Division 3,160 1.92 1.30 $39.46 $82,080
Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO 3,130 2.17 1.47 $36.46 $75,840


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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)
Kingsport-Bristol-Bristol, TN-VA 410 3.55 2.40 $27.77 $57,760
Brockton-Bridgewater-Easton, MA NECTA Division 260 3.21 2.17 $32.99 $68,620
Naples-Immokalee-Marco Island, FL 420 2.93 1.98 $33.37 $69,410
Kennewick-Richland, WA 320 2.92 1.97 $37.36 $77,720
Lowell-Billerica-Chelmsford, MA-NH NECTA Division 450 2.91 1.97 $36.21 $75,310
Manhattan, KS 110 2.91 1.97 $27.66 $57,540
Fond du Lac, WI 130 2.84 1.92 $28.35 $58,970
Youngstown-Warren-Boardman, OH-PA 590 2.75 1.86 $27.13 $56,420
Winchester, VA-WV 160 2.71 1.83 $33.39 $69,440
York-Hanover, PA 480 2.66 1.80 $32.19 $66,950


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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)
Peabody-Salem-Beverly, MA NECTA Division (8) (8) (8) $53.07 $110,380
San Rafael, CA Metropolitan Division 240 2.05 1.38 $46.40 $96,510
San Francisco-Redwood City-South San Francisco, CA Metropolitan Division 1,600 1.43 0.97 $46.14 $95,970
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA 1,870 1.71 1.16 $44.18 $91,890
Carbondale-Marion, IL 60 1.18 0.80 $43.74 $90,980
Oakland-Hayward-Berkeley, CA Metropolitan Division 2,630 2.31 1.56 $42.66 $88,740
Sherman-Denison, TX 50 1.15 0.78 $41.95 $87,250
Anchorage, AK 190 1.12 0.76 $41.26 $85,810
California-Lexington Park, MD 80 1.67 1.13 $41.08 $85,440
West Palm Beach-Boca Raton-Delray Beach, FL Metropolitan Division 980 1.63 1.10 $40.34 $83,900

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)
North Northeastern Ohio non-metropolitan area (non-contiguous) 670 2.01 1.36 $28.86 $60,030
West Northwestern Ohio nonmetropolitan area 470 1.86 1.26 $26.90 $55,950
Balance of Lower Peninsula of Michigan nonmetropolitan area 410 1.47 0.99 $26.89 $55,940
Northeastern Wisconsin nonmetropolitan area 350 1.75 1.19 $25.17 $52,350
South Central Wisconsin nonmetropolitan area 350 1.69 1.15 $26.31 $54,730

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)
West Montana nonmetropolitan area 250 3.33 2.25 $26.42 $54,960
Northwest Virginia nonmetropolitan area 190 3.02 2.04 $25.75 $53,550
Southwest Montana nonmetropolitan area 290 2.17 1.47 $28.86 $60,030
North Northeastern Ohio non-metropolitan area (non-contiguous) 670 2.01 1.36 $28.86 $60,030
Los Alamos County, New Mexico nonmetropolitan area 30 1.99 1.34 $40.00 $83,200

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)
Balance of Alaska nonmetropolitan area 40 0.54 0.36 $42.33 $88,050
Los Alamos County, New Mexico nonmetropolitan area 30 1.99 1.34 $40.00 $83,200
Big Thicket Region of Texas nonmetropolitan area 150 1.41 0.95 $39.67 $82,520
Southwest Wyoming nonmetropolitan area 40 0.62 0.42 $39.66 $82,500
Coastal Plains Region of Texas nonmetropolitan area 100 0.67 0.45 $35.65 $74,160


About May 2017 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 OES estimates and related information:

May 2017 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2017 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2017 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2017 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2017 Occupation Profiles

Technical Notes

 

Last Modified Date: March 30, 2018