What is the average wage in the US?
Data updated January 22, 2025
About $1.22K per week in December 2024, 0.7% higher than a year before. The average weekly wage, the typical earnings that employees bring home for one week of work, is a valuable indicator to assess economic conditions, labor market health, and wage trends.
Showing data for
$1.22K
average weekly earnings, December 2024
0.7%
higher than a year before (adjusted for inflation)
The Bureau of Labor Statistics releases monthly statistics tracking the wages of all non-government employees. In December 2024, the average weekly wage was $1,224. That represents the average wages of 136.0 million workers in different industries (excluding the government) and parts of the country.
Wage levels are dependent on several factors, including labor demand and supply, inflation, and changes in workforce composition. Since the Great Recession, which ended in July 2009, the average weekly wage has generally increased, with a spike in 2020 at the start of the pandemic when a large number of low-wage workers lost their jobs. Higher-wage workers were less likely to be laid off in that period, causing the average weekly wage to jump.
In December 2024, the average weekly wage was $1,224.
Average weekly wage, adjusted for inflation
As with other averages, most people earn more or less than the average weekly wage. Pay varies based on industry and occupation.
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In December 2024, workers in the Information sector had the highest average weekly earnings at $1,888 per week. Leisure and hospitality workers had the lowest at $574 per week.
In December 2024, the information sector had the highest average wage among various industries.
Average weekly wage by economic sector, December 2024
Wages also vary by state. In November 2024, the latest month for which state-level data is available, Washington state had the highest average weekly wage at $1,428 per week and Mississippi’s was the lowest at $944.
In November 2024, Washington state, Massachusetts, and California had the highest average weekly wages.
Average weekly wage, November 2024
Cost of living, which also varies based on location, impacts how far a person’s wages go. Someone earning the weekly average would have more purchasing power — the amount their money can actually buy — in states with lower costs of living like Arkansas, Mississippi, and South Dakota instead of those with the highest, such as California, New Jersey, and Hawaii.
Adjusting for regional cost of living differences, North Dakota has the highest average weekly wage at $1,338. Delaware has the lowest at $1,044 per month.
Accounting for cost of living differences, North Dakota, Washington state, and Massachusetts had the highest average weekly wages.
Average weekly wage, November 2024, adjusted with regional price parity (2023)
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Methodology
USAFacts standardizes data, in areas such as time and demographics, to make it easier to understand and compare.
The analysis was generated with the help of AI and reviewed by USAFacts for accuracy.
Page sources
USAFacts endeavors to share the most up-to-date information available. We sourced the data on this page directly from government agencies; however, the intervals at which agencies publish updated data vary.
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis
Regional Data
US Bureau of Labor Statistics
Labor Force Statistics from the Current Population Survey
