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Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics

Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2021

43-5052 Postal Service Mail Carriers

Sort and deliver mail for the United States Postal Service (USPS). Deliver mail on established route by vehicle or on foot. Includes postal service mail carriers employed by USPS contractors.


National estimates for Postal Service Mail Carriers
Industry profile for Postal Service Mail Carriers
Geographic profile for Postal Service Mail Carriers

National estimates for Postal Service Mail Carriers:

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Postal Service Mail Carriers:

Employment (1) Employment
RSE (3)
Mean hourly
wage
Mean annual
wage (2)
Wage RSE (3)
335,540 0.0 % $ 26.14 $ 54,370 0.0 %

Percentile wage estimates for Postal Service Mail Carriers:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median)
75% 90%
Hourly Wage $ 19.06 $ 19.06 $ 25.21 $ 32.32 $ 33.00
Annual Wage (2) $ 39,640 $ 39,640 $ 52,440 $ 67,230 $ 68,640


Industry profile for Postal Service Mail Carriers:

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

Industries with the highest levels of employment in Postal Service Mail Carriers:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Postal Service (federal government) 335,540 53.28 $ 26.14 $ 54,370

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Postal Service Mail Carriers:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Postal Service (federal government) 335,540 53.28 $ 26.14 $ 54,370

Top paying industries for Postal Service Mail Carriers:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Postal Service (federal government) 335,540 53.28 $ 26.14 $ 54,370


Geographic profile for Postal Service Mail Carriers:

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



Map of employment of postal service mail carriers by state, May 2021


States with the highest employment level in Postal Service Mail Carriers:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
California 33,190 2.01 0.84 $ 26.87 $ 55,900
Texas 26,400 2.16 0.91 $ 26.15 $ 54,400
New York 21,600 2.49 1.05 $ 26.29 $ 54,690
Florida 20,850 2.42 1.02 $ 26.15 $ 54,390
Illinois 15,330 2.73 1.15 $ 26.27 $ 54,640


Map of location quotient of postal service mail carriers by state, May 2021


States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Postal Service Mail Carriers:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Connecticut 4,780 3.04 1.27 $ 26.02 $ 54,120
Mississippi 3,330 3.02 1.27 $ 25.63 $ 53,320
Alabama 5,770 2.99 1.26 $ 25.82 $ 53,700
Michigan 11,930 2.94 1.23 $ 26.01 $ 54,100
Missouri 7,760 2.85 1.19 $ 25.72 $ 53,490


Map of annual mean wages of postal service mail carriers by state, May 2021


Top paying states for Postal Service Mail Carriers:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
California 33,190 2.01 0.84 $ 26.87 $ 55,900
District of Columbia 970 1.46 0.61 $ 26.69 $ 55,520
Massachusetts 7,810 2.30 0.97 $ 26.57 $ 55,270
Arizona 5,360 1.86 0.78 $ 26.51 $ 55,150
New Jersey 10,180 2.64 1.11 $ 26.38 $ 54,880



Map of employment of postal service mail carriers by area, May 2021


Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Postal Service Mail Carriers:

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 22,060 2.54 1.07 $ 26.46 $ 55,030
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA 11,310 1.98 0.83 $ 27.29 $ 56,760
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI 10,820 2.56 1.07 $ 26.53 $ 55,190
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX 7,120 1.98 0.83 $ 26.53 $ 55,180
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV 6,880 2.35 0.99 $ 26.30 $ 54,710
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX 6,870 2.37 1.00 $ 26.04 $ 54,150
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD 6,720 2.53 1.06 $ 26.26 $ 54,620
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL 6,000 2.45 1.03 $ 26.15 $ 54,390
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA 5,950 2.30 0.97 $ 25.92 $ 53,920
Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH 5,600 2.17 0.91 $ 26.97 $ 56,100


Map of location quotient of postal service mail carriers by area, May 2021


Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Postal Service Mail Carriers:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Sebring, FL 120 4.57 1.92 $ 25.88 $ 53,840
Jacksonville, NC 220 4.49 1.89 $ 25.65 $ 53,360
Monroe, MI 160 4.28 1.80 $ 26.22 $ 54,550
Danbury, CT 310 4.27 1.79 $ 26.16 $ 54,420
Sebastian-Vero Beach, FL 210 4.15 1.74 $ 25.96 $ 54,010
Bay City, MI 130 4.11 1.73 $ 26.00 $ 54,070
Waterbury, CT 260 4.08 1.71 $ 26.38 $ 54,860
Gadsden, AL 130 4.07 1.71 $ 26.24 $ 54,580
Weirton-Steubenville, WV-OH 140 3.98 1.67 $ 25.21 $ 52,430
Flint, MI 490 3.97 1.67 $ 26.22 $ 54,540


Map of annual mean wages of postal service mail carriers by area, May 2021


Top paying metropolitan areas for Postal Service Mail Carriers:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Modesto, CA 390 2.15 0.90 $ 27.48 $ 57,160
Bismarck, ND 120 1.77 0.74 $ 27.45 $ 57,090
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA 4,900 2.19 0.92 $ 27.32 $ 56,820
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA 11,310 1.98 0.83 $ 27.29 $ 56,760
Burlington, NC 170 2.80 1.18 $ 27.26 $ 56,700
Sacramento--Roseville--Arden-Arcade, CA 2,000 2.04 0.86 $ 27.18 $ 56,540
Trenton, NJ 450 1.98 0.83 $ 27.15 $ 56,460
Redding, CA 130 2.06 0.86 $ 27.14 $ 56,440
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA 1,670 1.56 0.65 $ 27.07 $ 56,310
Lima, OH 120 2.47 1.04 $ 27.02 $ 56,210

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in Postal Service Mail Carriers:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Kansas nonmetropolitan area 1,350 3.58 1.50 $ 25.34 $ 52,700
Balance of Lower Peninsula of Michigan nonmetropolitan area 1,070 4.23 1.78 $ 25.22 $ 52,460
North Northeastern Ohio nonmetropolitan area (noncontiguous) 1,030 3.29 1.38 $ 25.81 $ 53,690
North Texas Region of Texas nonmetropolitan area 1,010 3.81 1.60 $ 26.01 $ 54,100
Piedmont North Carolina nonmetropolitan area 900 3.66 1.54 $ 25.69 $ 53,440

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Postal Service Mail Carriers:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
North Missouri nonmetropolitan area 610 5.87 2.46 $ 25.25 $ 52,520
South Illinois nonmetropolitan area 420 4.94 2.07 $ 25.27 $ 52,570
Northeast Lower Peninsula of Michigan nonmetropolitan area 350 4.90 2.06 $ 25.61 $ 53,280
Northeast Louisiana nonmetropolitan area 300 4.81 2.02 $ 25.89 $ 53,860
Connecticut nonmetropolitan area 150 4.69 1.97 $ 25.12 $ 52,250

Top paying nonmetropolitan areas for Postal Service Mail Carriers:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
East South Dakota nonmetropolitan area 380 3.00 1.26 $ 26.46 $ 55,040
Northwest Minnesota nonmetropolitan area 560 3.07 1.29 $ 26.32 $ 54,750
Northeast Oklahoma nonmetropolitan area 330 2.88 1.21 $ 26.27 $ 54,630
East Kentucky nonmetropolitan area 230 2.45 1.03 $ 26.21 $ 54,510
North Florida nonmetropolitan area 460 3.84 1.61 $ 26.20 $ 54,500


About May 2021 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.

(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 2021 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2021 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2021 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2021 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2021 Occupation Profiles

Technical Notes

 

Last Modified Date: March 31, 2022