Mississippi
Across all occupations in Mississippi, the median wage is $40,120 a year ($19.29 an hour) and the mean $50,810, May 2025. That median is −21% against the US median of $50,980. BLS counts 1,163,030 jobs in the state. The highest-paying occupation is orthopedic surgeons, except pediatric; the largest is retail salespersons.
All occupations: Mississippi vs the United States
| Area | Basis | Percentile wage | Mean | Employment | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th | ||||
| Mississippi | Hourly | $11.05 | $14.31 | $19.29 | $28.93 | $40.62 | $24.43 | 1,163,030 |
| Annual | $22,970 | $29,760 | $40,120 | $60,180 | $84,500 | $50,810 | ||
| United States | Hourly | $15.00 | $18.07 | $24.51 | $38.71 | $61.81 | $33.54 | 155,495,730 |
| Annual | $31,200 | $37,590 | $50,980 | $80,520 | $128,560 | $69,770 | ||
Minimum wage in Mississippi
The wage floor is a separate question from these survey figures. See the Mississippi minimum wage page for the current rate, scheduled increases and tipped rules, verified against the U.S. Department of Labor.
20 highest-paying occupations in Mississippi
| Rank | Occupation | Median annual | Median hourly | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Orthopedic Surgeons, Except Pediatric | $544,130 | $261.60 | ** |
| 2 | General Internal Medicine Physicians | $325,610 | $156.55 | 390 |
| 3 | Physicians, Pathologists | $261,570 | $125.76 | 50 |
| 4 | Emergency Medicine Physicians | $252,960 | $121.62 | 450 |
| 5 | Family Medicine Physicians | $235,630 | $113.29 | 570 |
| 6 | Physicians, All Other | $228,130 | $109.68 | ** |
| 7 | Psychiatrists | $213,680 | $102.73 | 110 |
| 8 | Nurse Anesthetists | $198,410 | $95.39 | 480 |
| 9 | Pediatricians, General | $183,650 | $88.29 | 40 |
| 10 | Surgeons, All Other | $180,420 | $86.74 | 120 |
| 11 | Podiatrists | $164,410 | $79.05 | 30 |
| 12 | Dentists, General | $143,660 | $69.07 | 740 |
| 13 | Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers | $143,580 | * | 360 |
| 14 | Architectural and Engineering Managers | $142,790 | $68.65 | 860 |
| 15 | Chief Executives | $139,250 | $66.95 | 310 |
| 16 | Health Specialties Teachers, Postsecondary | $137,220 | * | 1,890 |
| 17 | Pharmacists | $133,230 | $64.05 | 3,050 |
| 18 | Physicists | $129,970 | $62.49 | 80 |
| 19 | Nurse Practitioners | $124,730 | $59.96 | 4,690 |
| 20 | Computer and Information Systems Managers | $124,280 | $59.75 | 1,710 |
Ranked by median; an occupation whose median BLS withholds or top-codes cannot appear here, however well it pays.
20 largest occupations in Mississippi
Occupation groups in Mississippi
Metropolitan areas in Mississippi
4 metropolitan areas touch Mississippi, plus 4 nonmetropolitan areas, with the all-occupations median of each. A linked metropolitan area has its own profile; nonmetropolitan areas appear here only.
| Area | Type | Median annual | Median hourly | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gulfport-Biloxi, MS | Metropolitan | $43,470 | $20.90 | 158,310 |
| Hattiesburg, MS | Metropolitan | $37,750 | $18.15 | 62,230 |
| Jackson, MS | Metropolitan | $42,850 | $20.60 | 270,730 |
| Memphis, TN-MS-AR | Metropolitan | $46,890 | $22.54 | 611,670 |
| West Delta Mississippi nonmetropolitan area | Nonmetropolitan | $36,840 | $17.71 | 92,300 |
| Upper East Mississippi nonmetropolitan area | Nonmetropolitan | $39,350 | $18.92 | 214,300 |
| Lower West Mississippi nonmetropolitan area | Nonmetropolitan | $38,400 | $18.46 | 79,940 |
| Lower East Mississippi nonmetropolitan area | Nonmetropolitan | $38,000 | $18.27 | 123,590 |
Occupation pages for Mississippi
60 occupations have a dedicated Mississippi page with the state's percentiles, its metro table and a comparison with neighbouring states.
- Accountants and Auditors $68,100
- Automotive Service Technicians and Mechanics $37,820
- Bartenders $28,320
- Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks $42,840
- Business Operations Specialists, All Other $76,980
- Carpenters $48,650
- Cashiers $26,390
- Computer and Information Systems Managers $124,280
- Computer User Support Specialists $52,230
- Construction Laborers $37,710
- Cooks, Fast Food $22,670
- Cooks, Restaurant $29,560
- Customer Service Representatives $36,380
- Electricians $60,860
- Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education $49,790
- Fast Food and Counter Workers $22,610
- Financial Managers $111,390
- First-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers $66,910
- First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers $36,530
- First-Line Supervisors of Office and Administrative Support Workers $58,380
- First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers $68,720
- First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers $45,760
- First-Line Supervisors of Transportation and Material Moving Workers, Except Aircraft Cargo Handling Supervisors $59,290
- Food Preparation Workers $26,240
- General and Operations Managers $106,680
- Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers $51,820
- Home Health and Personal Care Aides $23,860
- Human Resources Specialists $60,300
- Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators $43,420
- Janitors and Cleaners, Except Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners $28,380
- Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand $36,400
- Landscaping and Groundskeeping Workers $31,630
- Lawyers $91,690
- Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses $50,220
- Light Truck Drivers $38,140
- Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners $25,360
- Maintenance and Repair Workers, General $44,350
- Management Analysts $69,390
- Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists $56,640
- Medical Assistants $35,360
- Middle School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education $50,790
- Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators $39,070
- Nursing Assistants $31,520
- Office Clerks, General $34,900
- Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers $46,140
- Project Management Specialists $78,870
- Receptionists and Information Clerks $31,160
- Registered Nurses $77,090
- Retail Salespersons $28,640
- Sales Managers $108,750
- Sales Representatives of Services, Except Advertising, Insurance, Financial Services, and Travel $48,440
- Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products $59,320
- Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education $50,980
- Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive $37,340
- Security Guards $29,180
- Shipping, Receiving, and Inventory Clerks $38,620
- Software Developers $95,330
- Stockers and Order Fillers $34,270
- Teaching Assistants, Except Postsecondary $25,840
- Waiters and Waitresses $21,370
Take-home pay and benefits calculators for Mississippi
FastCalc, a sister site, has these calculators for Mississippi. Each takes your own figures; this site computes nothing.
Source and notes
Data: BLS OEWS May 2025, released 2026-05-15. Cross-industry estimates, all ownerships. BLS page: OEWS Mississippi estimates.
*- Wage estimate not available.
**- Employment estimate not available.
- Annual wages assume 2,080 hours a year at the hourly rate; occupations BLS publishes on one basis only show an en dash (–) on the other.
- Employment is rounded to the nearest 10 by BLS. Where BLS withholds a cell, nothing is estimated in its place.
- Jobs per 1,000 is the occupation's employment per 1,000 jobs in Mississippi.