Butchers and Meat Cutters
Median $40,140
Occupation · SOC 51-3011
Bakers: pay and where the jobs are
What bakers earn in the U.S., how pay varies across workers and states, and tools to plan around it.
National pay, May 2025
$37,160 median annual wage
- Mean (average) annual wage
- $38,480
- Median hourly wage
- $17.86
- Mean hourly wage
- $18.50
- Employment
- 236,200
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 51-3011.
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See where your pay falls among bakers nationally and in your state. Nothing you type leaves your browser.
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Use these numbers
How much do bakers make?
The median annual wage for bakers was $37,160 in May 2025, so half of workers earned more and half earned less. The lowest-paid 10% earned less than $28,120 and the highest-paid 10% more than $49,020. As an hourly rate, the median is $17.86. About 236,200 people work in this occupation nationwide. The highest state medians are in Hawaii ($46,710), Washington ($46,140) and District of Columbia ($44,040). After taxes and local prices, though, a median paycheck goes furthest in South Dakota.
Pay ladder
What each step of the pay range for bakers looks like per month. Take-home here includes federal tax, Social Security and Medicare for a single filer; add your state in the paycheck calculator.
| Step | Annual | Hourly | Monthly gross | Monthly after federal tax & FICA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $28,120 | $13.52 | $2,343 | $2,064 |
| 25th percentile | $32,660 | $15.70 | $2,722 | $2,369 |
| Median | $37,160 | $17.86 | $3,097 | $2,670 |
| 75th percentile | $44,360 | $21.33 | $3,697 | $3,152 |
| 90th percentile | $49,020 | $23.57 | $4,085 | $3,464 |
Bakers: pay by state
54 states and territories have a published median, sorted from highest to lowest. The last two columns are our estimates: the median after 2026 federal and state taxes, and that take-home restated in national-average prices.
1
$37,236 take-home in national prices
2
$37,026 take-home in national prices
3
$36,083 take-home in national prices
Where a median baker paycheck goes furthest after 2026 taxes and BEA price levels.
| State | Employment | Median | 10th pct. | 90th pct. | Median after tax* | In national prices† |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hawaii | 1,580 | $46,710 | $32,220 | $66,080 | $37,690 | $34,279 |
| Washington | 6,270 | $46,140 | $36,390 | $60,670 | $38,613 | $36,083 |
| District of Columbia | 1,270 | $44,040 | $38,720 | $51,430 | $36,090 | $32,838 |
| California | 30,020 | $43,120 | $36,510 | $54,960 | $35,559 | $32,116 |
| Colorado | 4,680 | $40,650 | $32,820 | $56,570 | $33,583 | $32,589 |
| Minnesota | 2,660 | $40,210 | $31,110 | $52,970 | $32,979 | $33,440 |
| Wyoming | 240 | $40,000 | $30,620 | $48,040 | $34,320 | $37,026 |
| Vermont | 580 | $39,980 | $33,260 | $55,430 | $33,398 | $34,095 |
| Alaska | 430 | $39,710 | $34,550 | $64,110 | $33,888 | $33,107 |
| Nevada | 2,040 | $39,540 | $28,540 | $56,060 | $33,950 | $33,958 |
| New Hampshire | 880 | $39,500 | $31,760 | $49,230 | $33,918 | $32,562 |
| Oregon | 4,160 | $39,500 | $33,120 | $51,870 | $31,286 | $30,268 |
| New York | 15,130 | $38,660 | $34,670 | $53,960 | $31,554 | $29,238 |
| South Dakota | 330 | $38,340 | $28,880 | $50,360 | $32,986 | $37,236 |
| Rhode Island | 560 | $38,140 | $32,470 | $58,360 | $31,593 | $30,888 |
| Massachusetts | 6,070 | $38,130 | $35,080 | $47,750 | $30,956 | $29,270 |
| Arizona | 4,000 | $37,700 | $34,700 | $48,040 | $31,923 | $31,709 |
| Maine | 1,380 | $37,390 | $32,210 | $46,490 | $31,085 | $32,030 |
| Wisconsin | 4,930 | $37,310 | $29,640 | $48,030 | $31,207 | $33,166 |
| Iowa | 2,150 | $37,210 | $22,920 | $49,610 | $31,316 | $35,683 |
| Montana | 990 | $37,200 | $26,080 | $50,670 | $31,079 | $32,837 |
| Maryland | 2,740 | $37,040 | $32,220 | $51,150 | $30,548 | $29,105 |
| Illinois | 12,420 | $37,030 | $31,200 | $47,290 | $30,245 | $30,258 |
| New Jersey | 8,110 | $36,960 | $32,220 | $55,280 | $30,989 | $28,481 |
| North Dakota | 830 | $36,900 | $29,640 | $46,500 | $31,829 | $35,780 |
| Delaware | 290 | $36,730 | $31,200 | $60,320 | $30,184 | $30,242 |
| Utah | 3,190 | $36,670 | $26,070 | $47,000 | $30,739 | $31,092 |
| Connecticut | 3,670 | $36,460 | $34,010 | $47,930 | $30,263 | $29,208 |
| Pennsylvania | 10,380 | $36,360 | $25,430 | $50,470 | $30,254 | $31,006 |
| Indiana | 3,600 | $36,150 | $22,880 | $47,360 | $30,190 | $32,348 |
| Florida | 12,320 | $35,870 | $28,780 | $45,330 | $31,002 | $29,978 |
| Michigan | 7,290 | $35,830 | $28,860 | $47,130 | $29,697 | $30,865 |
| South Carolina | 2,940 | $35,460 | $25,340 | $45,330 | $30,265 | $32,283 |
| Nebraska | 1,030 | $35,280 | $28,970 | $47,930 | $29,802 | $33,075 |
| Missouri | 4,190 | $35,130 | $29,060 | $46,470 | $29,693 | $32,696 |
| Georgia | 7,350 | $35,010 | $22,550 | $46,380 | $29,312 | $30,440 |
| New Mexico | 1,540 | $34,850 | $29,630 | $44,560 | $29,651 | $32,155 |
| Ohio | 8,890 | $34,560 | $24,160 | $46,320 | $29,449 | $31,743 |
| North Carolina | 9,320 | $34,510 | $19,690 | $45,800 | $29,041 | $30,787 |
| Tennessee | 5,200 | $34,440 | $22,380 | $46,400 | $29,853 | $32,494 |
| Virginia | 7,820 | $34,430 | $28,140 | $46,620 | $28,679 | $28,366 |
| Kansas | 1,370 | $34,300 | $27,410 | $45,740 | $28,620 | $31,776 |
| Idaho | 2,230 | $34,060 | $21,100 | $46,110 | $28,850 | $30,212 |
| Alabama | 1,880 | $34,030 | $20,940 | $44,600 | $28,161 | $31,704 |
| Kentucky | 1,630 | $33,890 | $24,440 | $47,810 | $28,342 | $31,436 |
| Texas | 16,710 | $33,790 | $24,430 | $44,020 | $29,330 | $30,220 |
| Oklahoma | 1,980 | $31,460 | $22,570 | $37,700 | $26,588 | $30,268 |
| Arkansas | 2,400 | $30,380 | $24,670 | $37,810 | $25,954 | $29,854 |
| Virgin Islands | 100 | $29,660 | $29,650 | $33,790 | — | — |
| Mississippi | 1,300 | $28,920 | $20,910 | $40,390 | $24,992 | $28,742 |
| West Virginia | 750 | $28,480 | $22,170 | $44,720 | $24,384 | $27,246 |
| Louisiana | 2,450 | $28,020 | $21,930 | $40,780 | $24,230 | $27,470 |
| Guam | 160 | $24,320 | $19,860 | $32,990 | — | — |
| Puerto Rico | 2,530 | $22,170 | $21,840 | $27,550 | — | — |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 51-3011. *Our estimate for a single filer paid biweekly with no pre-tax deductions or local tax, 2026 federal and state rules. †Take-home ÷ BEA Regional Price Parity × 100 (2024 price levels).
Sources
- OEWS May 2025 (oesm25nat.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.
- OEWS May 2025 (oesm25st.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.