Average salary in New York City: $86,310 a year
The mean annual wage across every job BLS counts in the New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ metro area, with the median, the pay spread and the jobs behind it.
BLS reports occupational wages for the New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ metropolitan statistical area (CBSA 35620), which includes New York City, Newark and Jersey City and surrounding communities. Figures describe that whole area, not New York City city limits. It spans New York and New Jersey.
The average salary in the New York City metro area is $86,310 a year ($41.50 an hour): that is the mean annual wage across 9,492,000 jobs in the BLS May 2025 survey. The median is $61,430 ($29.53 an hour), so half of those jobs paid less and half paid more. The mean sits above the median because a smaller number of very high wages pulls it up.
How New York City compares with New York and the U.S.
The metro area's mean salary is $3,850 (4.7%) above the New York statewide figure of $82,460 and $16,540 (23.7%) above the U.S. figure of $69,770.
| Measure | New York City metro | New York | United States |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mean (average) salary | $86,310 | $82,460 | $69,770 |
| Median salary | $61,430 | $59,670 | $50,980 |
| Mean hourly wage | $41.50 | $39.65 | $33.54 |
| Median hourly wage | $29.53 | $28.69 | $24.51 |
| Jobs counted | 9,492,000 | 9,688,000 | 155,495,730 |
Prices matter as much as pay. BEA's regional price parity for the New York City metro area in 2024 is 112.6, where the United States = 100: overall prices there were about 12.6% above the national price level. A salary goes further where the index is lower.
What jobs in the New York City area pay, from low to high
One job in ten in the metro area paid less than $36,130 a year, and one in ten paid more than $166,080. A quarter paid less than $42,560; a quarter paid more than $103,500.
| Area | 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York City metro | $36,130 | $42,560 | $61,430 | $103,500 | $166,080 |
| New York | $35,760 | $41,160 | $59,670 | $98,810 | $157,500 |
| United States | $31,200 | $37,590 | $50,980 | $80,520 | $128,560 |
Pay by job group in the New York City area
The largest group in the New York City area is office and administrative support, with 1,109,360 jobs (12% of the total, calculated). The best-paid group by median is management ($171,990); the lowest-paid is food preparation and serving related ($38,160). Where BLS does not release a figure, the table says so.
| Job group | Jobs | Median salary | Mean (average) salary |
|---|---|---|---|
| Office and Administrative Support | 1,109,360 | $55,080 | $59,750 |
| Healthcare Support | 843,730 | $40,100 | $43,500 |
| Sales and Related | 751,110 | $47,540 | $74,940 |
| Business and Financial Operations | 725,700 | $103,790 | $119,290 |
| Management | 713,690 | $171,990 | $196,850 |
| Transportation and Material Moving | 699,160 | $46,730 | $58,070 |
| Food Preparation and Serving Related | 697,700 | $38,160 | $46,220 |
| Educational Instruction and Library | 659,680 | $75,900 | $82,600 |
| Healthcare Practitioners and Technical | 603,870 | $108,820 | $129,450 |
| Computer and Mathematical | 328,950 | $133,110 | $139,450 |
| Protective Service | 321,560 | $54,000 | $67,010 |
| Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance | 300,120 | $44,670 | $47,890 |
| Installation, Maintenance, and Repair | 293,830 | $64,870 | $71,760 |
| Construction and Extraction | 285,220 | $76,050 | $82,140 |
| Production | 249,060 | $46,970 | $54,130 |
| Personal Care and Service | 230,370 | $38,310 | $46,710 |
| Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media | 192,960 | $86,000 | $109,230 |
| Community and Social Service | 181,890 | $63,840 | $71,330 |
| Legal | 135,520 | $150,990 | $182,690 |
| Architecture and Engineering | 85,360 | $102,050 | $112,870 |
| Life, Physical, and Social Science | 79,800 | $91,370 | $103,600 |
| Farming, Fishing, and Forestry | 3,370 | $45,620 | $48,530 |
The occupations with the most jobs in the New York City area
10 of the 12 largest occupations in the New York City area with a published annual median paid a median below the all-jobs median of $61,430 (calculated from the BLS figures).
| Occupation | Jobs | Median salary |
|---|---|---|
| Home Health and Personal Care Aides | 644,700 | $39,680 |
| Retail Salespersons | 202,080 | $38,280 |
| Registered Nurses | 197,740 | $119,720 |
| Janitors and Cleaners, Except Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners | 183,030 | $42,840 |
| General and Operations Managers | 177,850 | $157,000 |
| Cashiers | 173,830 | $35,950 |
| Fast Food and Counter Workers | 166,040 | $35,420 |
| Security Guards | 142,760 | $43,980 |
| Waiters and Waitresses | 138,720 | $47,610 |
| Office Clerks, General | 136,580 | $47,670 |
| Stockers and Order Fillers | 131,080 | $38,600 |
| Teaching Assistants, Except Postsecondary | 126,920 | $38,890 |
Go deeper
Pay for every occupation in the area.
Open →PricesCost of living in New York CityWhat a salary buys there.
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How this page is built
Every pay figure is a BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2025 estimate for all occupations in the New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ metropolitan statistical area (occupation code 00-0000), copied from BLS's data file; the job-group and occupation rows come from the same file. The average is BLS's mean wage (total wages divided by jobs); the median is the wage in the middle. OEWS wages are straight-time gross pay: they include commissions, tips, production bonuses and cost-of-living allowances, and leave out overtime premiums, shift differentials, nonproduction bonuses and benefits. BLS turns hourly wages into annual ones at 2,080 hours (40 hours for 52 weeks). Ranks, differences and shares are TryHired calculations from the BLS figures. Price levels are BEA Regional Price Parities.
- Household income: this page reports pay per job, not household or family income, which the Census Bureau measures differently.
- Starting pay: the figures include experienced workers. Entry-level pay is usually lower.
- Take-home pay: every figure is before taxes and deductions.
- Self-employment and farm work: not covered by OEWS (see the FAQ).
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 estimates: national, state and metropolitan-area data files (public domain).
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS technical notes: what the survey counts as wages and jobs.
- U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024 (released Feb 19, 2026).