Real Estate Sales Agents Salary - BLS OEWS Wage Benchmarks
SOC 41-9022 · National · May 2025 OEWS Data
Median Annual Salary
$52,832
$25.40/hr
Verified BLS OEWS data · Updated May 18, 2026
Source: BLS OEWS · Published May 15, 2026
Next refresh: May 2027
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The national median salary for Real Estate Sales Agents is $52,832 per year ($25.40/hr) according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2025. The middle 50% of earners make between $40,040 and $82,014 annually. Top earners at the 90th percentile reach $123,594 per year. There are approximately 193,370 real estate sales agents employed in the United States.
About This Role
BLS Standard Occupational Classification 2018
Rent, buy, or sell property for clients. Perform duties such as study property listings, interview prospective clients, accompany clients to property site, discuss conditions of sale, and draw up real estate contracts. Includes agents who represent buyer.
Career Outlook
BLS Employment Projections · 2024-2034
10-year growth
+3.1%
About as fast as average
Annual openings
37K
per year, on avg
Workforce today
421K
as of 2024
Why those openings exist
3% from new growth97% from people leaving the role
Most openings come from replacement, not growth. Retention matters more than recruiting here.
Typical entry requirements
Education
High school diploma or equivalent
Experience
None
On-the-job training
Moderate-term on-the-job training
Industry Wage Breakdown
Top 5 industries by employment · median annual wage, sector-specific
Industry
Workforce
Median Pay
Real Estate
NAICS 531000
158K
$49,850
Residential Building Construction
NAICS 236100
12K
$52,900
Federal Executive Branch (OEWS Designation)
NAICS 999100
3K
$97,470
Management of Companies and Enterprises
NAICS 551100
2K
$81,970
State Government, excluding Schools and Hospitals (OEWS Designation)
NAICS 999200
2K
$77,870
Wage range across top 5 industries: $49,850 to $97,470 (96% spread)
Wage Percentiles
Hourly & annualized (2,080 hours)
Percentile
Hourly Rate
Annual Salary
P10
$15.85
$32,968
P25
$19.25
$40,040
P50MEDIAN
$25.40
$52,832
P75
$39.43
$82,014
P90
$59.42
$123,594
Market Context Signal
JOLTS · retail sector
Active
Openings Rate
4.6%
Quits Rate
3.1%
Retail openings rose to 737K (+52K) in March, rate up to 4.6%. Hires increased to 684K (+73K). Frontline turnover persists with quit rate at 3.1%.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the average real estate sales agents salary?
The national median salary for Real Estate Sales Agents is $52,832 per year ($25.40/hr) according to BLS OEWS May 2025 data. The middle 50% earn between $40,040 and $82,014 annually.
How much do top-earning real estate sales agents make?
The 90th percentile salary for Real Estate Sales Agents is $123,594 per year ($59.42/hr). The 75th percentile is $82,014 per year.
What is the entry-level salary for real estate sales agents?
Entry-level Real Estate Sales Agents (10th percentile) earn approximately $32,968 per year ($15.85/hr). The 25th percentile is $40,040 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.
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