- Various medical specializations are the highest-paying job in various states and DC as of May 2020.
- We found the highest-paying job, excluding doctors and dentists, in each state and DC using BLS data.
- Chief executives are at the top in 19 states and DC for jobs with at least 1,000 employees.
- See more stories on Insider’s business page.
Doctors earn a lot of money across the board, but other professions can also pay well.
Medical doctors of various specializations are the highest-paying job in many US states, including Washington, Colorado, and Maine. Insider took a look at the highest-paying job in each state and DC outside of the medical field.
For our analysis, we looked at occupations for which the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported at least 1,000 employees in the state with the highest average salary in 2020, the most recent year that data is available. The data comes from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program (previously the Occupational Employment Statistics program) and excludes several professions for medical doctors and dentists.
To get a sense of what occupations, other than doctors, are well paid across the US, we excluded family medicine physicians, surgeons, dentists, anesthesiologists, general internal medicine physicians, obstetricians and gynecologists, psychiatrists, and all other general physicians.
Chief executives dominate the non-medical occupations; this occupation is the highest-paying job in 19 states and Washington DC. Airline pilots, co-pilots, and flight engineers are the top-paying jobs other than doctors in six states.
Below we included the 11 different high-paying jobs across the US, apart from doctors, in alphabetical order. We also included their mean annual salary in each state and Washington DC.
Roman Becker / EyeEm/Getty Images
What they do, according to O*NET: Pilot and navigate aircrafts.
Alaska: $180,100
California: $229,110
Colorado: $200,040
Florida: $229,730
Michigan: $248,770
Nevada: $236,260
Architectural and engineering managers
YP_photographer/Shutterstock
What they do, according to O*NET: Plan, direct, or coordinate activities in such fields as architecture and engineering or research and development in these fields.
Hawaii: $154,070
Idaho: $151,950
Louisiana: $157,800
New Hampshire: $158,100
New Mexico: $172,910
Chief executives
Misha Friedman/Getty Images
What they do, according to O*NET: Develop policies and provide overall direction of companies or other organizations.
Alabama: $174,910
Arizona: $178,890
District of Columbia: $253,820
Illinois: $225,710
Indiana: $166,390
Kansas: $162,510
Kentucky: $162,670
Maine: $152,620
Massachusetts: $231,260
Missouri: $176,430
Nebraska: $197,850
New York: $218,720
North Carolina: $220,940
Ohio: $195,200
Pennsylvania: $227,250
Texas: $239,060
Utah: $158,730
Virginia: $236,820
Washington: $243,150
Wisconsin: $185,450
Computer and information systems managers
Maskot/Getty Images
What they do, according to O*NET: Plan, direct, or coordinate activities in such fields as electronic data processing, information systems, systems analysis, and computer programming.
Georgia: $148,760
Iowa: $126,740
Maryland: $158,630
New Jersey: $191,120
Financial managers
Getty Images
What they do, according to O*NET: Plan, direct, or coordinate financial activities.
Connecticut: $170,500
Delaware: $176,630
North Dakota: $140,740
Rhode Island: $169,070
Vermont: $112,700
General and operations managers
What they do, according to O*NET: Plan, direct, or coordinate the activities of public or private organizations.
South Dakota: $131,890
Wyoming: $101,060
Health specialties teachers, postsecondary
Rogelio V. Solis/AP
What they do, according to O*NET: Teach courses in health specialties, in fields such as dentistry and public health.
Mississippi: $162,670
Oregon: $169,060
Nurse anesthetists
andresr/Getty Images
What they do, according to O*NET: Administer anesthesia, monitor patient’s vital signs, and oversee patient recovery from anesthesia.
Minnesota: $216,050
South Carolina: $185,850
Tennessee: $171,020
Petroleum engineers
Larisa Rudenko/Shutterstock
What they do, according to O*NET: Devise methods to improve oil and gas extraction and production.
Oklahoma: $156,390
Pharmacists
LaylaBird/Getty Images
What they do, according to O*NET: Dispense drugs prescribed by physicians and other health practitioners and provide information to patients about medications and their use.
Montana: $116,710
West Virginia: $129,440
Sales managers
Getty Images
What they do, according to O*NET: Plan, direct, or coordinate the actual distribution or movement of a product or service to the customer.
Arkansas: $138,030