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Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics

Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2022

29-2043 Paramedics

Administer basic or advanced emergency medical care and assess injuries and illnesses. May administer medication intravenously, use equipment such as EKGs, or administer advanced life support to sick or injured individuals. Excludes “Emergency Medical Technicians” (29-2042) and “Ambulance Drivers and Attendants, Except Emergency Medical Technicians” (53-3011).


National estimates for Paramedics
Industry profile for Paramedics
Geographic profile for Paramedics

National estimates for Paramedics:

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Paramedics:

Employment (1) Employment
RSE (3)
Mean hourly
wage
Mean annual
wage (2)
Wage RSE (3)
95,440 1.3 % $ 25.75 $ 53,560 0.6 %

Percentile wage estimates for Paramedics:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median)
75% 90%
Hourly Wage $ 17.54 $ 19.55 $ 23.60 $ 29.22 $ 36.84
Annual Wage (2) $ 36,490 $ 40,660 $ 49,090 $ 60,780 $ 76,630


Industry profile for Paramedics:

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

Industries with the highest levels of employment in Paramedics:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Other Ambulatory Health Care Services 38,240 11.93 $ 24.51 $ 50,970
Local Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OEWS Designation) 34,780 0.65 $ 27.18 $ 56,540
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals 17,190 0.31 $ 25.58 $ 53,210
Offices of Physicians 1,330 0.05 $ 26.06 $ 54,200
Outpatient Care Centers 800 0.08 $ 24.14 $ 50,210

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Paramedics:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Other Ambulatory Health Care Services 38,240 11.93 $ 24.51 $ 50,970
Local Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OEWS Designation) 34,780 0.65 $ 27.18 $ 56,540
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals 17,190 0.31 $ 25.58 $ 53,210
Other Support Services 780 0.25 $ 20.22 $ 42,060
Amusement Parks and Arcades 300 0.15 $ 23.08 $ 48,000

Top paying industries for Paramedics:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Nonscheduled Air Transportation (8) (8) $ 39.80 $ 82,770
State Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OEWS Designation) 50 (7) $ 31.88 $ 66,300
Offices of Other Health Practitioners (8) (8) $ 31.19 $ 64,870
Community Food and Housing, and Emergency and Other Relief Services 60 0.03 $ 30.06 $ 62,520
Management of Companies and Enterprises 90 (7) $ 29.44 $ 61,220


Geographic profile for Paramedics:

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



Map of employment of paramedics by state, May 2022


States with the highest employment level in Paramedics:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Texas 8,390 0.65 1.00 $ 24.39 $ 50,730
New York 6,160 0.68 1.05 $ 29.58 $ 61,530
California 5,220 0.30 0.46 $ 34.36 $ 71,470
Illinois 4,840 0.82 1.28 $ 27.61 $ 57,420
Florida 4,720 0.51 0.79 $ 24.77 $ 51,520


Map of location quotient of paramedics by state, May 2022


States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Paramedics:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
West Virginia 1,000 1.47 2.28 $ 21.29 $ 44,290
Missouri 3,600 1.28 1.98 $ 22.44 $ 46,670
Tennessee 3,890 1.25 1.93 $ 23.85 $ 49,610
Maine 670 1.10 1.70 $ 24.10 $ 50,130
Kentucky 1,900 1.00 1.55 $ 20.60 $ 42,850


Map of annual mean wages of paramedics by state, May 2022


Top paying states for Paramedics:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Washington 2,030 0.60 0.93 $ 43.74 $ 90,980
New Jersey 810 0.20 0.30 $ 36.78 $ 76,500
California 5,220 0.30 0.46 $ 34.36 $ 71,470
Connecticut 1,110 0.68 1.05 $ 31.05 $ 64,590
District of Columbia 150 0.22 0.35 $ 30.89 $ 64,260



Map of employment of paramedics by area, May 2022


Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Paramedics:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA 4,230 0.46 0.71 $ 33.27 $ 69,200
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI 3,140 0.71 1.10 $ 32.23 $ 67,050
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX 1,930 0.51 0.79 $ 26.22 $ 54,530
St. Louis, MO-IL 1,830 1.40 2.17 $ 22.97 $ 47,780
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA 1,830 0.67 1.04 $ 24.22 $ 50,380
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX 1,680 0.55 0.85 $ 23.62 $ 49,120
Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH 1,630 0.60 0.93 $ 31.35 $ 65,200
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD 1,570 0.57 0.88 $ 30.67 $ 63,790
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA 1,310 0.22 0.33 $ 34.10 $ 70,930
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ 1,160 0.52 0.81 $ 23.77 $ 49,450


Map of location quotient of paramedics by area, May 2022


Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Paramedics:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Jackson, TN 180 2.67 4.14 $ 21.18 $ 44,050
Johnstown, PA 110 2.24 3.47 $ 19.70 $ 40,970
Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH 280 2.23 3.46 $ 18.77 $ 39,040
Florence-Muscle Shoals, AL 120 2.17 3.37 $ 17.37 $ 36,130
Watertown-Fort Drum, NY 80 2.01 3.11 $ 21.94 $ 45,630
Dothan, AL 110 1.96 3.04 $ 17.04 $ 35,440
Lake Havasu City-Kingman, AZ 100 1.84 2.85 $ 22.27 $ 46,320
Glens Falls, NY 90 1.80 2.79 $ 23.52 $ 48,920
New Bern, NC 80 1.79 2.77 $ 19.92 $ 41,440
Terre Haute, IN 110 1.68 2.60 $ 22.82 $ 47,470


Map of annual mean wages of paramedics by area, May 2022


Top paying metropolitan areas for Paramedics:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA 790 0.39 0.60 $ 51.34 $ 106,790
Bremerton-Silverdale, WA 80 0.88 1.36 $ 50.23 $ 104,490
Bellingham, WA 70 0.83 1.28 $ 48.23 $ 100,320
Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA 60 0.60 0.92 $ 45.97 $ 95,620
Olympia-Tumwater, WA 80 0.69 1.07 $ 45.18 $ 93,980
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA 530 0.22 0.34 $ 43.24 $ 89,950
Kennewick-Richland, WA 100 0.83 1.28 $ 42.54 $ 88,490
Naples-Immokalee-Marco Island, FL 150 0.94 1.46 $ 39.28 $ 81,700
Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA 480 0.40 0.62 $ 38.46 $ 79,990
Salinas, CA 80 0.45 0.70 $ 38.21 $ 79,480

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in Paramedics:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Southeast Coastal North Carolina nonmetropolitan area 470 1.91 2.96 $ 19.05 $ 39,620
Mountain North Carolina nonmetropolitan area 390 3.01 4.67 $ 19.40 $ 40,350
Piedmont North Carolina nonmetropolitan area 390 1.55 2.41 $ 20.87 $ 43,410
West Central Illinois nonmetropolitan area 380 2.39 3.70 $ 19.67 $ 40,920
Kansas nonmetropolitan area 330 0.86 1.34 $ 19.51 $ 40,570

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Paramedics:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Northeast Lower Peninsula of Michigan nonmetropolitan area 230 3.08 4.78 $ 21.61 $ 44,940
Mountain North Carolina nonmetropolitan area 390 3.01 4.67 $ 19.40 $ 40,350
South Illinois nonmetropolitan area 230 2.64 4.09 $ 18.37 $ 38,200
West Central Illinois nonmetropolitan area 380 2.39 3.70 $ 19.67 $ 40,920
West Tennessee nonmetropolitan area 300 2.34 3.63 $ 20.78 $ 43,230

Top paying nonmetropolitan areas for Paramedics:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
North Valley-Northern Mountains Region of California nonmetropolitan area 110 1.10 1.71 $ 37.78 $ 78,580
Northwestern Idaho nonmetropolitan area 60 0.86 1.33 $ 37.35 $ 77,690
Alaska nonmetropolitan area 60 0.58 0.89 $ 33.92 $ 70,550
Western Washington nonmetropolitan area 170 1.33 2.06 $ 33.07 $ 68,790
Eastern Washington nonmetropolitan area 170 1.68 2.60 $ 31.14 $ 64,770


About May 2022 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.

(7) The value is less than .005 percent of industry employment.

(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 2022 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2022 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2022 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2022 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2022 Occupation Profiles

Technical Notes

 

Last Modified Date: April 25, 2023