Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2020

19-3092 Geographers

Study the nature and use of areas of the Earth's surface, relating and interpreting interactions of physical and cultural phenomena. Conduct research on physical aspects of a region, including land forms, climates, soils, plants, and animals, and conduct research on the spatial implications of human activities within a given area, including social characteristics, economic activities, and political organization, as well as researching interdependence between regions at scales ranging from local to global.

National estimates for Geographers
Industry profile for Geographers
Geographic profile for Geographers

National estimates for Geographers:

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Geographers:

Employment (1)	Employment RSE (3)	Mean hourly wage	Mean annual wage (2)	Wage RSE (3)
1,450	2.5 %	$ 41.16	$ 85,620	1.4 %

Percentile wage estimates for Geographers:

Percentile	10%	25%	50% (Median)	75%	90%
Hourly Wage	$ 25.78	$ 31.79	$ 41.07	$ 49.36	$ 56.30
Annual Wage (2)	$ 53,630	$ 66,130	$ 85,430	$ 102,660	$ 117,100

Industry profile for Geographers:

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

Industries with the highest levels of employment in Geographers:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Federal Executive Branch (OEWS Designation)	910	0.04	$ 44.42	$ 92,390
Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools	200	0.01	$ 33.23	$ 69,110
State Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OEWS Designation)	120	0.01	$ 30.05	$ 62,510
Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services	50	0.00	$ 42.90	$ 89,230
Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services	50	0.00	$ 43.22	$ 89,900

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Geographers:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Federal Executive Branch (OEWS Designation)	910	0.04	$ 44.42	$ 92,390
Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools	200	0.01	$ 33.23	$ 69,110
State Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OEWS Designation)	120	0.01	$ 30.05	$ 62,510
Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services	50	0.00	$ 43.22	$ 89,900
Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services	50	0.00	$ 42.90	$ 89,230

Top paying industries for Geographers:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Federal Executive Branch (OEWS Designation)	910	0.04	$ 44.42	$ 92,390
Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services	50	(7)	$ 43.22	$ 89,900
Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services	50	(7)	$ 42.90	$ 89,230
Local Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OEWS Designation)	30	(7)	$ 36.62	$ 76,160
Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools	200	0.01	$ 33.23	$ 69,110

Geographic profile for Geographers:

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

States with the highest employment level in Geographers:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Maryland	280	0.11	10.66	$ 44.33	$ 92,200
Texas	150	0.01	1.19	$ 30.75	$ 63,970
California	100	0.01	0.60	$ 46.54	$ 96,810
Virginia	80	0.02	2.00	(8)	(8)
Colorado	70	0.03	2.66	$ 44.63	$ 92,840

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

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Maryland	280	0.11	10.66	$ 44.33	$ 92,200
Colorado	70	0.03	2.66	$ 44.63	$ 92,840
Minnesota	60	0.02	2.05	$ 34.31	$ 71,360
Virginia	80	0.02	2.00	(8)	(8)
Arizona	60	0.02	2.00	$ 34.97	$ 72,750

Top paying states for Geographers:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
California	100	0.01	0.60	$ 46.54	$ 96,810
Colorado	70	0.03	2.66	$ 44.63	$ 92,840
Maryland	280	0.11	10.66	$ 44.33	$ 92,200
Massachusetts	50	0.02	1.56	$ 41.51	$ 86,330
Louisiana	30	0.02	1.72	$ 41.49	$ 86,310

Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Geographers:

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	310	0.10	9.91	$ 46.71	$ 97,160
Austin-Round Rock, TX	100	0.09	9.00	$ 29.43	$ 61,210
Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO	60	0.04	3.68	$ 44.39	$ 92,330
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI	50	0.03	2.70	$ 34.24	$ 71,230
Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD	50	0.04	3.73	$ 46.00	$ 95,680
Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH	50	0.02	1.72	$ 42.38	$ 88,140
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ	30	0.02	1.54	$ 33.87	$ 70,450
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA	30	0.02	1.58	$ 37.69	$ 78,400

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

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	310	0.10	9.91	$ 46.71	$ 97,160
Austin-Round Rock, TX	100	0.09	9.00	$ 29.43	$ 61,210
Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD	50	0.04	3.73	$ 46.00	$ 95,680
Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO	60	0.04	3.68	$ 44.39	$ 92,330
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI	50	0.03	2.70	$ 34.24	$ 71,230
Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH	50	0.02	1.72	$ 42.38	$ 88,140
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA	30	0.02	1.58	$ 37.69	$ 78,400
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ	30	0.02	1.54	$ 33.87	$ 70,450

Top paying metropolitan areas for Geographers:

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	310	0.10	9.91	$ 46.71	$ 97,160
Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD	50	0.04	3.73	$ 46.00	$ 95,680
Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO	60	0.04	3.68	$ 44.39	$ 92,330
Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH	50	0.02	1.72	$ 42.38	$ 88,140
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA	30	0.02	1.58	$ 37.69	$ 78,400
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI	50	0.03	2.70	$ 34.24	$ 71,230
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ	30	0.02	1.54	$ 33.87	$ 70,450
Austin-Round Rock, TX	100	0.09	9.00	$ 29.43	$ 61,210

About May 2020 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 2020 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2020 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2020 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2020 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2020 Occupation Profiles

Technical Notes

Last Modified Date: March 31, 2021