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The national median salary for Judges, Magistrate Judges, and Magistrates is $153,982 per year ($74.03/hr) according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2025. The middle 50% of earners make between $85,717 and $194,958 annually. Top earners at the 90th percentile reach $221,707 per year. There are approximately 24,030 judges, magistrate judges, and magistrates employed in the United States.
About This Role
BLS Standard Occupational Classification 2018
Arbitrate, advise, adjudicate, or administer justice in a court of law. May sentence defendant in criminal cases according to government statutes or sentencing guidelines. May determine liability of defendant in civil cases. May perform wedding ceremonies.
Career Outlook
BLS Employment Projections · 2024-2034
10-year growth
+2.5%
About as fast as average
Annual openings
900
per year, on avg
Workforce today
27K
as of 2024
Why those openings exist
8% from new growth92% 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
5 years or more
On-the-job training
Short-term on-the-job training
Industry Wage Breakdown
Top 2 industries by employment · median annual wage, sector-specific
Industry
Workforce
Median Pay
State Government, excluding Schools and Hospitals (OEWS Designation)
NAICS 999200
13K
$176,500
Local Government, excluding Schools and Hospitals (OEWS Designation)
NAICS 999300
11K
$102,460
Wage range across top 5 industries: $102,460 to $176,500 (72% spread)
Wage Percentiles
Hourly & annualized (2,080 hours)
Percentile
Hourly Rate
Annual Salary
P10
$22.57
$46,946
P25
$41.21
$85,717
P50MEDIAN
$74.03
$153,982
P75
$93.73
$194,958
P90
$106.59
$221,707
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 judges, magistrate judges, and magistrates salary?
The national median salary for Judges, Magistrate Judges, and Magistrates is $153,982 per year ($74.03/hr) according to BLS OEWS May 2025 data. The middle 50% earn between $85,717 and $194,958 annually.
How much do top-earning judges, magistrate judges, and magistrates make?
The 90th percentile salary for Judges, Magistrate Judges, and Magistrates is $221,707 per year ($106.59/hr). The 75th percentile is $194,958 per year.
What is the entry-level salary for judges, magistrate judges, and magistrates?
Entry-level Judges, Magistrate Judges, and Magistrates (10th percentile) earn approximately $46,946 per year ($22.57/hr). The 25th percentile is $85,717 per year.
Wage figures on this page come from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2025 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.