Workers in the Fort Collins, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area had an average (mean) hourly wage of $32.18 in May 2023, compared to the nationwide average of $31.48, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Assistant Commissioner for Regional Operations Michael Hirniak noted that higher paying major occupational groups included legal ($70.71), management ($69.90), and computer and mathematical ($52.30). Lower paying occupations included food preparation and serving related ($18.71), building and grounds cleaning and maintenance ($19.76), and personal care and service ($20.75). (See table A.)

Occupational groups with the highest employment in the Fort Collins area included office and administrative support (11.0 percent), sales and related (11.0 percent), and food preparation and serving related (10.3 percent). Major occupational groups on the lower end of local employment included legal (0.6 percent); arts, design, entertainment, sports, and media (1.4 percent); and protective service (1.7 percent).

Technical Note

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 580 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 are 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 65.8 percent based on establishments and 64.3 percent based on weighted sampled employment. The sample in the Fort Collins, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area included 1,976 establishments with a response rate of 83 percent.

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 Fort Collins, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area includes Larimer 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.

Information in this release will be made available to individuals with sensory impairments upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Telecommunications Relay Service: 7-1-1.

Table 1. Employment and wage data for sales and related occupations, Fort Collins metropolitan area, May 2023

Occupation (1)	Employment		Mean wages ($)
	Level (2)	Location quotient (3)	Hourly	Annual (4)
Sales and related occupations	19,060	1.3	27.08	56,330
First-line supervisors of retail sales workers	1,630	1.3	27.01	56,170
First-line supervisors of non-retail sales workers	340	1.3	50.11	104,220
Cashiers	3,890	1.0	16.61	34,550
Counter and rental clerks	880	2.0	22.88	47,600
Parts salespersons	340	1.1	23.50	48,870
Retail salespersons	5,770	1.4	18.87	39,240
Advertising sales agents	100	0.8	27.26	56,690
Insurance sales agents	420	0.8	29.26	60,870
Securities, commodities, and financial services sales agents	650	1.2	45.00	93,590
Travel agents	50	0.8	28.22	58,700
Sales representatives of services, except advertising, insurance, financial services, and travel	1,770	1.4	44.94	93,470
Sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing, technical and scientific products	300	0.9	52.65	109,510
Sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing, except technical and scientific products	1,760	1.2	41.04	85,360
Real estate brokers	(5)	(5)	35.82	74,510
Real estate sales agents	(5)	(5)	32.17	66,920
Sales engineers	130	1.9	73.51	152,900
Sales and related workers, all other	350	2.7	25.28	52,590
(1) For a complete listing of all detailed occupations in the Fort Collins, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area, see www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_22660.htm. (2) Estimates for detailed occupations may not sum to the totals due to rounding, and because the totals may include occupations that are not shown separately. Estimates do not include self-employed workers. (3) 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. (4) 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 mean wage published, the annual wage has been directly calculated from the reported survey data. (5) Estimate not released.