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Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics

Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2020

29-2081 Opticians, Dispensing

Design, measure, fit, and adapt lenses and frames for client according to written optical prescription or specification. Assist client with inserting, removing, and caring for contact lenses. Assist client with selecting frames. Measure customer for size of eyeglasses and coordinate frames with facial and eye measurements and optical prescription. Prepare work order for optical laboratory containing instructions for grinding and mounting lenses in frames. Verify exactness of finished lens spectacles. Adjust frame and lens position to fit client. May shape or reshape frames. Includes contact lens opticians.


National estimates for Opticians, Dispensing
Industry profile for Opticians, Dispensing
Geographic profile for Opticians, Dispensing

National estimates for Opticians, Dispensing:

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Opticians, Dispensing:

Employment (1) Employment
RSE (3)
Mean hourly
wage
Mean annual
wage (2)
Wage RSE (3)
68,180 2.6 % $ 19.89 $ 41,380 0.9 %

Percentile wage estimates for Opticians, Dispensing:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median)
75% 90%
Hourly Wage $ 12.54 $ 14.68 $ 18.53 $ 24.11 $ 29.90
Annual Wage (2) $ 26,080 $ 30,540 $ 38,530 $ 50,150 $ 62,180


Industry profile for Opticians, Dispensing:

Industries with the highest published employment and wages for Opticians, Dispensing are provided. For a list of all industries with employment in Opticians, Dispensing, see the Create Customized Tables function.

Industries with the highest levels of employment in Opticians, Dispensing:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Offices of Other Health Practitioners 27,670 3.06 $ 18.54 $ 38,560
Health and Personal Care Stores 19,470 2.02 $ 19.54 $ 40,640
Offices of Physicians 8,440 0.33 $ 20.82 $ 43,300
Outpatient Care Centers 1,840 0.19 (8) (8)
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals 250 0.00 $ 22.08 $ 45,920

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Opticians, Dispensing:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Offices of Other Health Practitioners 27,670 3.06 $ 18.54 $ 38,560
Health and Personal Care Stores 19,470 2.02 $ 19.54 $ 40,640
Offices of Physicians 8,440 0.33 $ 20.82 $ 43,300
Outpatient Care Centers 1,840 0.19 (8) (8)
Medical Equipment and Supplies Manufacturing 110 0.04 $ 23.27 $ 48,410

Top paying industries for Opticians, Dispensing:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Professional and Commercial Equipment and Supplies Merchant Wholesalers (8) (8) $ 29.94 $ 62,260
Employment Services (8) (8) $ 27.47 $ 57,130
Commercial and Service Industry Machinery Manufacturing (8) (8) $ 24.58 $ 51,130
Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools 250 0.01 $ 24.32 $ 50,590
Management of Companies and Enterprises 150 0.01 $ 23.79 $ 49,480


Geographic profile for Opticians, Dispensing:

States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for Opticians, Dispensing are provided. For a list of all areas with employment in Opticians, Dispensing, see the Create Customized Tables function.





States with the highest employment level in Opticians, Dispensing:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
California 8,230 0.50 1.02 $ 23.66 $ 49,220
Texas 6,720 0.56 1.13 $ 17.32 $ 36,020
Florida 3,490 0.41 0.84 $ 20.38 $ 42,400
Ohio 3,110 0.60 1.23 $ 21.13 $ 43,960
New York 3,100 0.36 0.73 $ 25.54 $ 53,130




States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Opticians, Dispensing:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
South Dakota 500 1.22 2.49 $ 16.21 $ 33,710
North Dakota 360 0.90 1.84 $ 18.68 $ 38,860
Montana 380 0.84 1.71 $ 17.98 $ 37,390
Delaware 360 0.83 1.70 $ 18.50 $ 38,490
Louisiana 1,230 0.69 1.40 $ 15.23 $ 31,670




Top paying states for Opticians, Dispensing:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
New Jersey 1,320 0.35 0.71 $ 30.43 $ 63,300
Connecticut 430 0.28 0.56 $ 29.89 $ 62,170
Alaska 90 0.31 0.63 $ 27.64 $ 57,480
New York 3,100 0.36 0.73 $ 25.54 $ 53,130
District of Columbia 60 0.09 0.18 $ 25.10 $ 52,210





Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Opticians, Dispensing:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA 3,010 0.52 1.05 $ 25.12 $ 52,260
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA 2,940 0.33 0.68 $ 27.80 $ 57,830
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX 2,260 0.63 1.29 $ 18.20 $ 37,860
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI 2,220 0.51 1.04 $ 17.08 $ 35,530
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX 1,750 0.59 1.20 $ 17.77 $ 36,970
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV 1,350 0.45 0.91 $ 23.09 $ 48,030
Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI 1,250 0.70 1.44 $ 17.89 $ 37,210
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA 1,080 0.46 0.95 $ 26.08 $ 54,240
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL 1,080 0.43 0.88 $ 17.61 $ 36,620
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI 980 0.53 1.08 $ 20.14 $ 41,890




Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Opticians, Dispensing:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Danville, IL 50 1.81 3.69 $ 16.98 $ 35,320
Muncie, IN 80 1.80 3.67 $ 15.81 $ 32,890
Flint, MI 220 1.77 3.61 $ 16.62 $ 34,580
Walla Walla, WA 40 1.71 3.49 $ 20.76 $ 43,190
Sioux Falls, SD 240 1.53 3.13 $ 17.01 $ 35,380
Houma-Thibodaux, LA 120 1.43 2.91 $ 15.06 $ 31,320
Bloomington, IL 110 1.33 2.72 $ 17.05 $ 35,460
Sebastian-Vero Beach, FL 70 1.32 2.69 $ 18.06 $ 37,570
Bowling Green, KY 90 1.31 2.67 $ 19.94 $ 41,480
Daphne-Fairhope-Foley, AL 90 1.22 2.50 $ 15.83 $ 32,920




Top paying metropolitan areas for Opticians, Dispensing:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Utica-Rome, NY 60 0.53 1.09 $ 34.24 $ 71,220
Danbury, CT (8) (8) (8) $ 32.98 $ 68,590
Norwich-New London-Westerly, CT-RI (8) (8) (8) $ 32.16 $ 66,900
New Haven, CT 40 0.13 0.27 $ 32.14 $ 66,850
Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT 80 0.22 0.45 $ 30.08 $ 62,560
Anchorage, AK 70 0.42 0.85 $ 28.81 $ 59,920
Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT (8) (8) (8) $ 28.44 $ 59,160
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA 2,940 0.33 0.68 $ 27.80 $ 57,830
Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY 140 0.33 0.67 $ 26.12 $ 54,330
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA 1,080 0.46 0.95 $ 26.08 $ 54,240

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in Opticians, Dispensing:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
North Northeastern Ohio nonmetropolitan area (noncontiguous) 240 0.77 1.56 $ 18.94 $ 39,400
Kansas nonmetropolitan area 200 0.54 1.10 $ 15.37 $ 31,960
North Texas Region of Texas nonmetropolitan area 190 0.71 1.44 $ 17.21 $ 35,800
Northwest Minnesota nonmetropolitan area 170 0.97 1.97 $ 19.81 $ 41,200
Southwest Maine nonmetropolitan area 170 0.95 1.95 $ 20.71 $ 43,080

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Opticians, Dispensing:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Upper Peninsula of Michigan nonmetropolitan area 130 1.29 2.64 $ 15.69 $ 32,640
Southwest Oklahoma nonmetropolitan area 60 1.08 2.21 $ 15.20 $ 31,610
Northeast Lower Peninsula of Michigan nonmetropolitan area 70 1.00 2.04 $ 13.83 $ 28,760
Northeast Minnesota nonmetropolitan area 40 0.98 2.01 $ 19.24 $ 40,030
Northwest Minnesota nonmetropolitan area 170 0.97 1.97 $ 19.81 $ 41,200

Top paying nonmetropolitan areas for Opticians, Dispensing:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Capital/Northern New York nonmetropolitan area (8) (8) (8) $ 26.16 $ 54,400
Central East New York nonmetropolitan area 80 0.55 1.12 $ 23.87 $ 49,650
Nevada nonmetropolitan area 50 0.56 1.15 $ 23.22 $ 48,290
Southwest Virginia nonmetropolitan area 50 0.44 0.91 $ 21.18 $ 44,060
Southern Ohio nonmetropolitan area 80 0.54 1.10 $ 21.05 $ 43,780


About May 2020 National, State, Metropolitan, and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

These estimates are calculated with data collected from employers in all industry sectors, all metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas, and all states and the District of Columbia. The top employment and wage figures are provided above. The complete list is available in the downloadable XLS files.

The percentile wage estimate is the value of a wage below which a certain percent of workers fall. The median wage is the 50th percentile wage estimate—50 percent of workers earn less than the median and 50 percent of workers earn more than the median. More about percentile wages.


(1) Estimates for detailed occupations do not sum to the totals because the totals include occupations not shown separately. Estimates do not include self-employed workers.

(2) Annual wages have been calculated by multiplying the hourly mean wage by a "year-round, full-time" hours figure of 2,080 hours; for those occupations where there is not an hourly wage published, the annual wage has been directly calculated from the reported survey data.

(3) The relative standard error (RSE) is a measure of the reliability of a survey statistic. The smaller the relative standard error, the more precise the estimate.

(8) Estimate not released.

(9) The location quotient is the ratio of the area concentration of occupational employment to the national average concentration. A location quotient greater than one indicates the occupation has a higher share of employment than average, and a location quotient less than one indicates the occupation is less prevalent in the area than average.


Other OEWS estimates and related information:

May 2020 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2020 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2020 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2020 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2020 Occupation Profiles

Technical Notes

 

Last Modified Date: March 31, 2021