Workers in the Boulder, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area had an average (mean) hourly wage of $44.12 in May 2025, compared to the nationwide average of $33.54, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Acting Regional Commissioner Jerome Watters noted that higher paying major occupational groups included management ($87.86), computer and mathematical ($70.18), and architecture and engineering ($61.01). Lower paying occupations included food preparation and serving related ($21.76), building and grounds cleaning and maintenance ($23.00), and personal care and service ($24.08). (See table A.)

Occupational groups with the highest employment shares in the Boulder area included business and financial operations (10.3 percent), sales and related (10.1 percent), and office and administrative support (9.1 percent). Major occupational groups on the lower end of local employment included legal (0.9 percent), protective service (1.4 percent), and community and social service (1.7 percent).

One occupational group—computer and mathematical—was chosen to illustrate the diversity of data available for any of the 22 major occupational categories. Boulder had 16,610 jobs in computer and mathematical, accounting for 8.6 percent of local area employment, compared to the 3.4-percent share nationally. The average hourly wage for this occupational group locally was $70.18, compared to the national wage of $57.73.

Some of the larger detailed occupations within the computer and mathematical group included software developers (7,130), computer network architects (2,000), and computer user support specialists (1,710). Among the higher paying jobs in this group were computer and information research scientists ($85.71) and software developers ($80.04). At the lower end of the wage scale were computer user support specialists ($37.74) and computer network support specialists ($42.80). (Detailed data for the computer and mathematical occupations are presented in table 1; for a complete listing of detailed occupations available go to data.bls.gov/oes/#/area/0014500/2025.)

Location quotients allow us to explore the occupational make-up of a metropolitan area by comparing the composition of jobs in an area relative to the national average. (See table 1.) For example, a location quotient of 2.00 indicates that an occupation accounts for twice the share of employment in the area than it does nationally. In the Boulder area, above-average concentrations of employment were found in many of the occupations within the computer and mathematical group. For instance, computer network architects were employed at 9.00 times the national rate in Boulder, and software developers, at 3.41 times the U.S. average.

The statistics in this release are from the Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, a cooperative effort between BLS and the State Workforce Agencies (SWAs). BLS funds the survey and provides the procedures and technical support. State Workforce Agencies collect most of the data: in this case, the Colorado Department of Labor & Employment.

The Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey is a semiannual survey measuring occupational employment and wage rates for wage and salary workers in nonfarm establishments in the United States. The OEWS data available from BLS include cross-industry occupational employment and wage estimates for the nation; over 530 areas, including states and the District of Columbia, metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs), nonmetropolitan areas, and territories; national industry-specific estimates at the NAICS sector, 3-digit, most 4-digit, and selected 5- and 6-digit industry levels; and national estimates by ownership across all industries and for schools and hospitals. Full OEWS data tables are available online.

Additional information about the OEWS estimates and methodology is available in the national Technical Notes. The overall national response rate for the six panels, based on the 50 states and the District of Columbia, is 66.2 percent based on establishments and 67.2 percent based on weighted sampled employment. Sample sizes and response rates by metropolitan and nonmetropolitan area are available on the Additional OEWS data sets page. 

Metropolitan area definitions

The substate area data published in this release reflect the standards and definitions established by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget.

The Boulder, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area includes Boulder County.

For more information

Answers to frequently asked questions about the OEWS data, as well as general program documentation, are available on the OEWS website.

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