HighestPaidProfession

Highest-paying jobs in District of Columbia

The highest published median in District of Columbia is for neurologists, at $332,000 a year. For one more occupation, BLS reports the median only as “$239,200 or more”; they are listed below the table. The median for all occupations in the state is $91,540, against $50,980 nationally.

District of Columbia · all occupationsMay 2025
Median / yr
$91,540
Mean / yr
$111,010
Price level (U.S.=100)
109.9
Median, price-adjusted
$83,293
Adjusted rank
1 of 51
Jobs
701,920

Price-adjusted = median ÷ (BEA 2024 regional price parity ÷ 100). Compare all states.

The 50 best-paid occupations in District of Columbia

DC · Src BLS-OEWS · May 2025Top 50 of 464
Top 50 occupations in District of Columbia by median annual wage
No.OccupationMedian in DCU.S. medianEmployed in DC
1Neurologists$332,000$248,56050
2Emergency Medicine Physicians$318,200$335,550120
3Podiatrists$265,740$160,300—
4Family Medicine Physicians$233,390$244,180150
5General Internal Medicine Physicians$223,250$256,560490
6Anesthesiologists$202,570$391,490100
7Financial Examiners$198,720$94,160470
8Public Relations Managers$197,600$146,9107,410
9Computer and Information Systems Managers$195,190$175,1405,690
10Lawyers$195,190$159,67033,070
11Nuclear Engineers$195,190$133,970230
12Financial Managers$188,880$166,5708,930
13Architectural and Engineering Managers$185,220$171,2701,290
14Human Resources Managers$184,350$149,2802,250
15Emergency Management Directors$184,350$93,330150
16Psychiatrists$183,080$281,870310
17Radiologists$182,450$420,86080
18Administrative Law Judges, Adjudicators, and Hearing Officers$181,060$117,860300
19Marketing Managers$177,170$166,7903,470
20Purchasing Managers$175,720$148,0801,110
21Managers, All Other$175,720$141,90018,570
22Marine Engineers and Naval Architects$172,330$112,230490
23General and Operations Managers$168,000$105,77036,150
24Life Scientists, All Other$167,640$93,75050
25Economists$167,590$124,7203,000
26Health Specialties Teachers, Postsecondary$167,520$107,3101,460
27Actuaries$166,230$130,000160
28Computer Hardware Engineers$163,360$161,740210
29Economics Teachers, Postsecondary$161,860$123,920220
30Compensation and Benefits Managers$160,990$149,230130
31Detectives and Criminal Investigators$160,760$93,7902,980
32Aerospace Engineers$157,600$134,960290
33Physicists$157,040$172,250480
34Electronics Engineers, Except Computer$157,040$130,220400
35Natural Sciences Managers$156,730$167,2201,540
36Physical Scientists, All Other$156,730$122,570790
37Computer Occupations, All Other$156,590$116,58017,200
38Medical and Health Services Managers$155,140$123,8602,010
39Pharmacists$153,400$140,910850
40Political Scientists$152,530$142,0803,070
41Healthcare Diagnosing or Treating Practitioners, All Other$151,990$115,210490
42Engineers, All Other$151,920$122,9303,560
43Database Architects$150,010$139,500790
44Chemists$149,860$91,240280
45Computer and Information Research Scientists$144,190$140,300330
46Advertising and Promotions Managers$143,040$133,66080
47Electrical Engineers$143,000$120,630330
48Sales Managers$141,800$148,2701,930
49Fundraising Managers$141,720$125,470800
50Training and Development Managers$141,710$133,000210

Median reported only as “$239,200 or more” in District of Columbia: Obstetricians and Gynecologists. The exact figures are not published, so these are not ranked.

Dashes mean the employment estimate was not published.

Best-paid occupations with at least 1,000 jobs in District of Columbia

  1. Public Relations Managers — $197,600 (7,410 jobs)
  2. Computer and Information Systems Managers — $195,190 (5,690 jobs)
  3. Lawyers — $195,190 (33,070 jobs)
  4. Financial Managers — $188,880 (8,930 jobs)
  5. Architectural and Engineering Managers — $185,220 (1,290 jobs)
  6. Human Resources Managers — $184,350 (2,250 jobs)
  7. Marketing Managers — $177,170 (3,470 jobs)
  8. Purchasing Managers — $175,720 (1,110 jobs)
  9. Managers, All Other — $175,720 (18,570 jobs)
  10. General and Operations Managers — $168,000 (36,150 jobs)

Sources