Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
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Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2021
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 Cost Estimators
Industry profile for Cost Estimators
Geographic profile for Cost Estimators
National estimates for Cost Estimators:
Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Cost Estimators:
| Employment (1) |
Employment
RSE (3) |
Mean hourly
wage |
Mean annual
wage (2) |
Wage RSE (3) |
| 208,950 |
1.1 % |
$ 35.45 |
$ 73,740 |
0.5 % |
Percentile wage estimates for Cost Estimators:
| Percentile |
10% |
25% |
50%
(Median) |
75% |
90% |
| Hourly Wage |
$ 18.69 |
$ 23.85 |
$ 31.33 |
$ 42.89 |
$ 55.62 |
| Annual Wage (2) |
$ 38,880 |
$ 49,600 |
$ 65,170 |
$ 89,210 |
$ 115,690 |
Industry profile for Cost Estimators:
Industries with the highest published employment and wages for Cost Estimators are provided.
For a list of all industries with employment in Cost Estimators, see the Create Customized Tables function.
Industries with the highest levels of employment in Cost Estimators:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Building Equipment Contractors |
30,870 |
1.38 |
$ 37.50 |
$ 78,010 |
| Nonresidential Building Construction |
19,290 |
2.48 |
$ 41.47 |
$ 86,250 |
| Foundation, Structure, and Building Exterior Contractors |
17,960 |
1.92 |
$ 34.85 |
$ 72,490 |
| Residential Building Construction |
15,970 |
1.90 |
$ 34.75 |
$ 72,290 |
| Building Finishing Contractors |
15,860 |
1.96 |
$ 33.27 |
$ 69,200 |
Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Cost Estimators:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Nonresidential Building Construction |
19,290 |
2.48 |
$ 41.47 |
$ 86,250 |
| Building Finishing Contractors |
15,860 |
1.96 |
$ 33.27 |
$ 69,200 |
| Foundation, Structure, and Building Exterior Contractors |
17,960 |
1.92 |
$ 34.85 |
$ 72,490 |
| Residential Building Construction |
15,970 |
1.90 |
$ 34.75 |
$ 72,290 |
| Automotive Repair and Maintenance |
15,200 |
1.66 |
$ 30.03 |
$ 62,470 |
Top paying industries for Cost Estimators:
Geographic profile for Cost Estimators:
States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for Cost Estimators are provided.
For a list of all areas with employment in Cost Estimators, see the Create Customized Tables function.
States with the highest employment level in Cost Estimators:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| California |
26,900 |
1.63 |
1.10 |
$ 39.19 |
$ 81,510 |
| Texas |
17,140 |
1.40 |
0.95 |
$ 33.62 |
$ 69,930 |
| Florida |
13,030 |
1.51 |
1.02 |
$ 31.18 |
$ 64,860 |
| New York |
10,340 |
1.19 |
0.80 |
$ 40.17 |
$ 83,550 |
| Pennsylvania |
9,810 |
1.76 |
1.19 |
$ 35.50 |
$ 73,840 |
States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Cost Estimators:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Delaware |
1,220 |
2.80 |
1.89 |
$ 33.64 |
$ 69,980 |
| South Dakota |
940 |
2.23 |
1.51 |
$ 30.42 |
$ 63,280 |
| Missouri |
5,890 |
2.16 |
1.46 |
$ 34.87 |
$ 72,530 |
| Virginia |
8,020 |
2.14 |
1.44 |
$ 34.36 |
$ 71,470 |
| Colorado |
5,440 |
2.08 |
1.40 |
$ 36.75 |
$ 76,440 |
Top paying states for Cost Estimators:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Massachusetts |
5,140 |
1.51 |
1.02 |
$ 48.92 |
$ 101,750 |
| District of Columbia |
360 |
0.55 |
0.37 |
$ 45.99 |
$ 95,670 |
| Hawaii |
1,000 |
1.82 |
1.23 |
$ 41.66 |
$ 86,650 |
| Alaska |
200 |
0.67 |
0.45 |
$ 40.82 |
$ 84,910 |
| New York |
10,340 |
1.19 |
0.80 |
$ 40.17 |
$ 83,550 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Cost Estimators:
| 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 |
10,430 |
1.20 |
0.81 |
$ 42.21 |
$ 87,790 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA |
9,200 |
1.61 |
1.08 |
$ 35.87 |
$ 74,610 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX |
5,470 |
1.52 |
1.03 |
$ 34.01 |
$ 70,750 |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX |
4,640 |
1.60 |
1.08 |
$ 36.08 |
$ 75,050 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD |
4,610 |
1.74 |
1.17 |
$ 38.14 |
$ 79,330 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI |
4,350 |
1.03 |
0.69 |
$ 39.26 |
$ 81,660 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV |
4,280 |
1.46 |
0.98 |
$ 40.10 |
$ 83,400 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH |
4,050 |
1.57 |
1.06 |
$ 50.32 |
$ 104,660 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA |
3,580 |
1.60 |
1.08 |
$ 47.38 |
$ 98,550 |
| Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ |
3,530 |
1.67 |
1.13 |
$ 34.59 |
$ 71,960 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Cost Estimators:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Lancaster, PA |
810 |
3.45 |
2.32 |
$ 31.91 |
$ 66,360 |
| Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, VA-NC |
2,360 |
3.32 |
2.24 |
$ 32.84 |
$ 68,300 |
| Sheboygan, WI |
170 |
2.88 |
1.94 |
$ 32.56 |
$ 67,730 |
| Greeley, CO |
290 |
2.86 |
1.93 |
$ 35.41 |
$ 73,660 |
| Rapid City, SD |
190 |
2.82 |
1.90 |
$ 29.94 |
$ 62,280 |
| Harrisonburg, VA |
170 |
2.80 |
1.89 |
$ 30.86 |
$ 64,180 |
| Missoula, MT |
160 |
2.71 |
1.83 |
$ 26.80 |
$ 55,730 |
| Asheville, NC |
510 |
2.70 |
1.82 |
$ 34.85 |
$ 72,480 |
| Santa Rosa, CA |
510 |
2.67 |
1.80 |
$ 41.98 |
$ 87,310 |
| Manhattan, KS |
100 |
2.64 |
1.78 |
$ 32.95 |
$ 68,530 |
United States Department of Labor
