How much should I pay a office clerks, general in 2026?

A competitive 2026 offer for Office Clerks, General is $45,011 to $54,309 (market median to the 75th percentile). BLS ECI shows private industry wages growing about 3.1% a year, so budget a similar annual increase to stay at market.

Is a salary competitive for a office clerks, general?

Compare it to the BLS OEWS range: below $36,358 is below market, $45,011 to $54,309 is competitive, and above $54,309 is above market for Office Clerks, General.

Office Clerks, General Salary - BLS OEWS Wage Benchmarks

SOC 43-9061 · National · May 2025 OEWS Data

Median Annual Salary

$45,011

$21.64/hr

Verified BLS OEWS data · Updated May 18, 2026

Is this a competitive Office Clerks salary in 2026?

Based on BLS OEWS wage percentiles, JOLTS June 2026 demand signals, and ECI Q2 2026 wage growth.

Check a salary or offer:$Competitive · ~P50

P10$30K

P25$36K

P50$45K

P75$54K

P90$65K

Drag the dot or type an amount above.

⚡

Demand: ACTIVE. Demand is active -- the broader market openings are at 4.4% (JOLTS, June 2026). A balanced market where the median is a solid, competitive anchor.

📈

Merit budget: Wages in private industry are rising about 3.1% a year (BLS ECI, Q2 2026). Budget a 2.7-3.2% merit increase to hold this role at market.

Our read

For a competitive 2026 offer, target $45,011 to $54,309 (market median to the 75th percentile). The median-to-P75 range keeps offers competitive.

Figures are market benchmarks from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics; apply professional judgment before making pay decisions.

How Office Clerks pay is moving in 2026

Trend, demand, and spread context from BLS OEWS, JOLTS, and ECI

Pay trend

Median pay for this role rose 3.2% between the May 2024 and May 2025 BLS surveys, roughly in line with the 3.1% wage growth of the broader market (BLS ECI).

Hiring demand · MODERATE

the broader market is running a 4.4% job-openings rate with quits at 2.0% (BLS JOLTS).

Pay spread

Top earners (P90) make about 2.1 times what entry-level (P10) workers make in this role. That spread is in the typical range for U.S. occupations; standard 80% to 120% pay bands around the median work well.

What changed recently

Aug 4, 2026JOLTS June 2026: national job openings little changed at 7.4M (4.4% rate), hires flat at 5.3M, quits steady at 2.0%.
Jul 31, 2026ECI Q2 2026: national wages rose 3.2% over the year while CPI reached 3.5%, the first negative real-wage reading since 2022. Benefit costs accelerated to 3.8%.

Commentary is generated from published BLS figures (OEWS May 2025 vs May 2024, JOLTS June 2026, ECI Q2 2026) and refreshed each release. It is interpretation, not a BLS product.

Source: BLS OEWS · Published May 15, 2026

Next refresh: May 2027

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The national median salary for Office Clerks, General is $45,011 per year ($21.64/hr) according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2025. The middle 50% of earners make between $36,358 and $54,309 annually. Top earners at the 90th percentile reach $64,688 per year. There are approximately 2,464,940 office clerks, general employed in the United States.

About This Role

BLS Standard Occupational Classification 2018

Perform duties too varied and diverse to be classified in any specific office clerical occupation, requiring knowledge of office systems and procedures. Clerical duties may be assigned in accordance with the office procedures of individual establishments and may include a combination of answering telephones, bookkeeping, typing or word processing, office machine operation, and filing.

Career Outlook

BLS Employment Projections · 2024-2034

10-year growth

-6.7%

Much slower than average

Annual openings

282K

per year, on avg

Workforce today

2.6M

as of 2024

Why those openings exist

0% from new growth100% 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

Short-term on-the-job training

Industry Wage Breakdown

Top 5 industries by employment · median annual wage, sector-specific

Industry	Workforce	Median Pay
Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools NAICS 611300	143K	$39,880
Local Government, excluding Schools and Hospitals (OEWS Designation) NAICS 999300	140K	$47,830
Elementary and Secondary Schools NAICS 611100	127K	$43,010
Building Equipment Contractors NAICS 238200	89K	$47,300
Real Estate NAICS 531000	86K	$43,970

Wage range across top 5 industries: $39,880 to $47,830 (20% spread)

Wage Percentiles

Hourly & annualized (2,080 hours)

Percentile	Hourly Rate	Annual Salary
P10	$14.57	$30,306
P25	$17.48	$36,358
P50MEDIAN	$21.64	$45,011
P75	$26.11	$54,309
P90	$31.10	$64,688

Market Context Signal

JOLTS · other sector

Active

Openings Rate

4.4%

Quits Rate

2.0%

The labor market stayed steady in June: job openings were little changed at 7.4M (rate 4.4%), hires held at 5.3M, and total separations changed little at 5.4M. Quits were 3.2M (rate 2.0%). Openings rose in transportation, warehousing & utilities (+97K) and fell in wholesale trade (-74K).

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the average office clerks, general salary?

The national median salary for Office Clerks, General is $45,011 per year ($21.64/hr) according to BLS OEWS May 2025 data. The middle 50% earn between $36,358 and $54,309 annually.

How much do top-earning office clerks, general make?

The 90th percentile salary for Office Clerks, General is $64,688 per year ($31.10/hr). The 75th percentile is $54,309 per year.

What is the entry-level salary for office clerks, general?

Entry-level Office Clerks, General (10th percentile) earn approximately $30,306 per year ($14.57/hr). The 25th percentile is $36,358 per year.

Related Salary Data

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Office Clerks, General Salary by State

Top 5 states by employment

California311,490 workers Texas218,470 workers Florida189,700 workers New York134,280 workers Pennsylvania107,500 workers

About This Data

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.

Next OEWS release: May 2027Verify on BLS.gov →

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