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The national median salary for Lawyers is $151,154 per year ($72.67/hr) according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2024. The middle 50% of earners make between $99,757 and $215,426 annually. Top earners at the 90th percentile reach $241,846 per year. There are approximately 747,750 lawyers employed in the United States.
About This Role
BLS Standard Occupational Classification 2018
Represent clients in criminal and civil litigation and other legal proceedings, draw up legal documents, or manage or advise clients on legal transactions. May specialize in a single area or may practice broadly in many areas of law.
Career Outlook
BLS Employment Projections · 2024-2034
10-year growth
+4.1%
Faster than average
Annual openings
32K
per year, on avg
Workforce today
865K
as of 2024
Why those openings exist
11% from new growth89% from people leaving the role
Most openings come from replacement, not growth. Retention matters more than recruiting here.
Typical entry requirements
Education
Doctoral or professional degree
Experience
None
On-the-job training
None
Industry Wage Breakdown
Top 5 industries by employment · median annual wage, sector-specific
Industry
Workforce
Median Pay
Legal Services
NAICS 541100
446K
$143,470
Local Government, excluding Schools and Hospitals (OEWS Designation)
NAICS 999300
64K
$125,130
State Government, excluding Schools and Hospitals (OEWS Designation)
NAICS 999200
50K
$111,280
Federal Executive Branch (OEWS Designation)
NAICS 999100
43K
$174,600
Management of Companies and Enterprises
NAICS 551100
23K
$216,440
Wage range across top 5 industries: $111,280 to $216,440 (95% spread)
Wage Percentiles
Hourly & annualized (2,080 hours)
Percentile
Hourly Rate
Annual Salary
P10
$34.99
$72,779
P25
$47.96
$99,757
P50MEDIAN
$72.67
$151,154
P75
$103.57
$215,426
P90
$116.27
$241,846
Market Context Signal
JOLTS · professional sector
Cooling
Openings Rate
4.2%
Quits Rate
2.0%
Professional & Business Services openings tumbled 318K in March -- the largest single-sector drop in this release. Openings rate fell from 5.5% to 4.2%. Layoffs jumped to 527K (+99K). White-collar demand has cooled abruptly.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the average lawyers salary?
The national median salary for Lawyers is $151,154 per year ($72.67/hr) according to BLS OEWS May 2024 data. The middle 50% earn between $99,757 and $215,426 annually.
How much do top-earning lawyers make?
The 90th percentile salary for Lawyers is $241,846 per year ($116.27/hr). The 75th percentile is $215,426 per year.
What is the entry-level salary for lawyers?
Entry-level Lawyers (10th percentile) earn approximately $72,779 per year ($34.99/hr). The 25th percentile is $99,757 per year.
Wage figures on this page come from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2024 release. OEWS surveys roughly 1.1 million establishments annually. It is the most comprehensive employer-reported wage dataset in the United States.
P10 through P90 percentiles represent the wage distribution across all surveyed employers (not self-reported by workers). Geographic adjustments use BLS-derived cost multipliers calibrated from regional wage variation.
Wages are estimates. Individual compensation depends on experience, education, employer size, industry, and negotiation. Use this as benchmark context, not absolute ground truth.
CompSignal is a free labor market intelligence tool built for HR, compensation, and talent acquisition teams. We make BLS data, the same primary source Mercer and Radford cross-reference in their paid surveys, searchable and actionable without an enterprise subscription.
Built and maintained by Falcon Incentives, a compensation strategy and incentive design consultancy.