Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
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Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2021
29-1131 Veterinarians
Diagnose, treat, or research diseases and injuries of animals. Includes veterinarians who conduct research and development, inspect livestock, or care for pets and companion animals.
National estimates for Veterinarians
Industry profile for Veterinarians
Geographic profile for Veterinarians
National estimates for Veterinarians:
Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Veterinarians:
| Employment (1) |
Employment
RSE (3) |
Mean hourly
wage |
Mean annual
wage (2) |
Wage RSE (3) |
| 77,260 |
1.0 % |
$ 52.84 |
$ 109,920 |
0.7 % |
Percentile wage estimates for Veterinarians:
| Percentile |
10% |
25% |
50%
(Median) |
75% |
90% |
| Hourly Wage |
$ 29.21 |
$ 37.94 |
$ 48.26 |
$ 61.74 |
$ 79.62 |
| Annual Wage (2) |
$ 60,760 |
$ 78,920 |
$ 100,370 |
$ 128,410 |
$ 165,600 |
Industry profile for Veterinarians:
Industries with the highest published employment and wages for Veterinarians are provided.
For a list of all industries with employment in Veterinarians, see the Create Customized Tables function.
Industries with the highest levels of employment in Veterinarians:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Other Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services |
71,300 |
9.35 |
$ 53.16 |
$ 110,580 |
| Federal Executive Branch (OEWS Designation) |
1,180 |
0.06 |
$ 47.12 |
$ 98,000 |
| Social Advocacy Organizations |
900 |
0.40 |
$ 48.38 |
$ 100,630 |
| State Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OEWS Designation) |
670 |
0.03 |
$ 46.07 |
$ 95,830 |
| Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools |
660 |
0.02 |
$ 43.39 |
$ 90,250 |
Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Veterinarians:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Other Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services |
71,300 |
9.35 |
$ 53.16 |
$ 110,580 |
| Social Advocacy Organizations |
900 |
0.40 |
$ 48.38 |
$ 100,630 |
| Support Activities for Animal Production |
80 |
0.27 |
$ 55.82 |
$ 116,100 |
| Other Personal Services |
660 |
0.22 |
$ 47.34 |
$ 98,460 |
| Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions |
180 |
0.14 |
$ 42.45 |
$ 88,290 |
Top paying industries for Veterinarians:
Geographic profile for Veterinarians:
States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for Veterinarians are provided.
For a list of all areas with employment in Veterinarians, see the Create Customized Tables function.
States with the highest employment level in Veterinarians:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| California |
7,620 |
0.46 |
0.84 |
$ 60.91 |
$ 126,690 |
| Texas |
5,400 |
0.44 |
0.81 |
$ 54.67 |
$ 113,720 |
| Florida |
4,790 |
0.56 |
1.02 |
$ 52.08 |
$ 108,320 |
| New York |
3,640 |
0.42 |
0.77 |
$ 62.12 |
$ 129,210 |
| Ohio |
3,330 |
0.64 |
1.17 |
$ 47.12 |
$ 98,010 |
States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Veterinarians:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Vermont |
400 |
1.40 |
2.54 |
$ 48.43 |
$ 100,730 |
| Montana |
550 |
1.17 |
2.14 |
$ 39.46 |
$ 82,070 |
| New Hampshire |
570 |
0.89 |
1.63 |
$ 54.76 |
$ 113,910 |
| Colorado |
2,320 |
0.89 |
1.61 |
$ 47.45 |
$ 98,690 |
| Maine |
510 |
0.87 |
1.58 |
$ 51.73 |
$ 107,600 |
Top paying states for Veterinarians:
Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Veterinarians:
| 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 |
3,190 |
0.37 |
0.67 |
$ 65.55 |
$ 136,340 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA |
2,100 |
0.37 |
0.67 |
$ 58.53 |
$ 121,750 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI |
1,860 |
0.44 |
0.80 |
$ 51.42 |
$ 106,960 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV |
1,690 |
0.58 |
1.05 |
$ 63.19 |
$ 131,430 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX |
1,530 |
0.43 |
0.78 |
$ 55.67 |
$ 115,790 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA |
1,410 |
0.54 |
0.99 |
$ 52.63 |
$ 109,460 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH |
1,380 |
0.53 |
0.97 |
$ 56.78 |
$ 118,100 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD |
1,360 |
0.51 |
0.93 |
$ 60.62 |
$ 126,090 |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX |
1,220 |
0.42 |
0.77 |
$ 56.72 |
$ 117,980 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL |
1,220 |
0.50 |
0.90 |
$ 51.70 |
$ 107,530 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Veterinarians:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Ames, IA |
90 |
2.13 |
3.88 |
$ 32.31 |
$ 67,210 |
| Corvallis, OR |
60 |
1.68 |
3.06 |
$ 49.38 |
$ 102,710 |
| Burlington-South Burlington, VT |
180 |
1.57 |
2.86 |
$ 48.69 |
$ 101,280 |
| Fort Collins, CO |
250 |
1.54 |
2.81 |
$ 44.79 |
$ 93,160 |
| Dover-Durham, NH-ME |
70 |
1.32 |
2.41 |
$ 53.35 |
$ 110,970 |
| Mount Vernon-Anacortes, WA |
60 |
1.26 |
2.30 |
$ 52.67 |
$ 109,540 |
| Santa Rosa, CA |
240 |
1.24 |
2.26 |
$ 67.47 |
$ 140,340 |
| Auburn-Opelika, AL |
70 |
1.22 |
2.22 |
$ 48.07 |
$ 99,990 |
| Lexington-Fayette, KY |
310 |
1.21 |
2.21 |
$ 53.26 |
$ 110,790 |
| Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA |
110 |
1.21 |
2.21 |
$ 62.56 |
$ 130,130 |
Top paying metropolitan areas for Veterinarians:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA |
1,000 |
0.45 |
0.81 |
$ 69.44 |
$ 144,440 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA |
360 |
0.33 |
0.61 |
$ 68.11 |
$ 141,670 |
| Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT |
250 |
0.67 |
1.23 |
$ 67.50 |
$ 140,390 |
| Santa Rosa, CA |
240 |
1.24 |
2.26 |
$ 67.47 |
$ 140,340 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA |
3,190 |
0.37 |
0.67 |
$ 65.55 |
$ 136,340 |
| Vallejo-Fairfield, CA |
100 |
0.77 |
1.40 |
$ 65.12 |
$ 135,450 |
| Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT |
320 |
0.60 |
1.09 |
$ 64.73 |
$ 134,640 |
| New Haven, CT |
140 |
0.51 |
0.93 |
$ 63.87 |
$ 132,850 |
| Waterbury, CT |
40 |
0.59 |
1.07 |
$ 63.55 |
$ 132,190 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV |
1,690 |
0.58 |
1.05 |
$ 63.19 |
$ 131,430 |
Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in Veterinarians:
Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Veterinarians:
Top paying nonmetropolitan areas for Veterinarians:
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.
(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 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
United States Department of Labor
