Highest-paying Cities for Power Plant Operators

The top 100 highest paying cities for power plant operators (ranked by average annual salary) are listed in Table 1. The entry level salary (as measured by the salary of the lowest 10% paid earners) and the number of employment of power plant operators in those cities are also shown in the table. As shown in the table, with a annual salary of $138,420, Sacramento-Arden-Arcade-Roseville, California is the highest paying city for power plant operators. It is followed by Fresno, California (average annual salary $134,610). The salary and employment information is computed from data published by U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) in April 2023 [1]. For more salary information of power plant operators in a specific city, use the links in the table.

Table 1. 100 Highest-paying cities/areas for Power Plant Operators

Rank	City/Area	Average Salary i	Entry Level Salary i	# of Empl. i
1	Sacramento-Arden-Arcade-Roseville, California	$138,420	$76,290	190
2	Fresno, California	$134,610	$73,320	140
3	Wenatchee-East Wenatchee, Washington	$128,140	$100,710	70
4	Redding, California	$127,910	$61,210	60
5	Boise City-Nampa, Idaho	$122,300	$86,620	170
6	New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, New York	$120,630	$76,170	1,150
7	North Coast Region of California nonmetropolitan area, California	$119,340	$103,780	150
8	Kahului-Wailuku-Lahaina, Hawaii	$115,970	$86,270	50
9	Merced, California	$112,570	$60,170	40
10	Bakersfield-Delano, California	$112,570	$62,270	90
11	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, Washington	$112,420	$82,340	120
12	North Valley-Northern Mountains Region of California nonmetropolitan area, California	$111,880	$75,170	50
13	Montgomery, Alabama	$111,840	$69,150	50
14	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, Washington	$111,710	$60,400	80
15	Southwest Alabama nonmetropolitan area, Alabama	$111,630	$55,110	70
16	Atlantic City-Hammonton, New Jersey	$109,800	$78,550	30
17	San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City, California	$109,680	$73,100	90
18	Northwestern Idaho nonmetropolitan area, Idaho	$109,160	$72,080	60
19	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, California	$109,100	$59,990	450
20	Memphis, Tennessee	$108,990	$38,030	70
21	Western Tennessee nonmetropolitan area, Tennessee	$108,990	$68,930	80
22	San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, California	$108,120	$70,270	290
23	Oakland-Fremont-Hayward, California	$106,360	$78,040	210
24	Kansas City, Missouri	$106,120	$62,340	280
25	Chicago-Joliet-Naperville (IL-IN-WI Area), Illinois	$106,090	$77,600	680
26	Denver-Aurora-Broomfield, Colorado	$105,640	$62,730	120
27	Topeka, Kansas	$105,540	$37,370	60
28	Springfield, Illinois	$105,270	$67,160	80
29	Urban Honolulu, Hawaii	$104,740	$75,390	340
30	Greeley, Colorado	$104,690	$62,800	50
31	Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, Wisconsin	$104,620	$59,750	180
32	San Antonio-New Braunfels, Texas	$104,360	$53,610	220
33	Albany-Schenectady-Troy, New York	$104,190	$53,560	120
34	Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, Texas	$103,710	$50,910	290
35	Hawaii-Maui-Kauai nonmetropolitan area, Hawaii	$103,680	$61,200	100
36	Grand Island, Nebraska	$103,600	$87,950	60
37	Eastern Washington nonmetropolitan area, Washington	$103,550	$88,600	60
38	North Georgia nonmetropolitan area, Georgia	$103,170	$57,240	50
39	Southeast-Central Idaho nonmetropolitan area, Idaho	$103,140	$59,390	50
40	Minneapolis-St Paul-Bloomington, Wisconsin	$103,030	$59,880	270
41	Western Montana nonmetropolitan area, Montana	$102,920	$49,190	30
42	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, District of Columbia	$102,870	$62,870	180
43	West North Dakota nonmetropolitan area, North Dakota	$102,660	$61,620	150
44	Kingsport-Bristol-Bristol, Virginia	$101,930	$55,550	50
45	Lakeland-Winter Haven, Florida	$101,510	$52,730	110
46	Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, Connecticut	$101,430	$74,740	60
47	Chico, California	$101,290	$86,030	40
48	Southeast Minnesota nonmetropolitan area, Minnesota	$100,640	$59,910	50
49	Florence-Muscle Shoals, Alabama	$100,530	$91,370	30
50	Chattanooga, Tennessee	$100,530	$37,020	50
51	Durham-Chapel Hill, North Carolina	$100,490	$49,810	40
52	Omaha-Council Bluffs, Nebraska	$100,020	$64,890	70
53	Bismarck, North Dakota	$99,600	$77,030	130
54	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, Pennsylvania	$99,220	$68,010	360
55	Salt Lake City, Utah	$98,750	$71,810	60
56	Northcentral Colorado nonmetropolitan area, Colorado	$98,680	$77,450	120
57	Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, Pennsylvania	$98,670	$64,740	90
58	Eastern Wyoming nonmetropolitan area, Wyoming	$98,540	$65,910	160
59	Cedar Rapids, Iowa	$98,530	$49,160	50
60	Las Vegas-Paradise, Nevada	$98,460	$52,830	110
61	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, Georgia	$98,280	$58,010	330
62	Maryland nonmetropolitan area, Maryland	$98,130	$43,010	30
63	Detroit-Warren-Livonia, Michigan	$97,570	$77,570	640
64	Spokane, Washington	$97,520	$77,290	50
65	Worcester, Massachusetts	$97,490	$60,190	70
66	Eastern Oregon nonmetropolitan area, Oregon	$97,470	$61,320	50
67	Southern Indiana nonmetropolitan area, Indiana	$97,430	$78,190	410
68	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, California	$96,740	$75,030	650
69	Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, Connecticut	$96,710	$60,140	100
70	Kalamazoo-Portage, Michigan	$96,680	$86,960	70
71	Ann Arbor, Michigan	$96,580	$69,090	40
72	Jacksonville, Florida	$96,500	$35,960	90
73	New Haven, Connecticut	$96,490	$72,260	40
74	Lansing-East Lansing, Michigan	$96,470	$75,560	120
75	Anchorage, Alaska	$96,140	$44,100	140
76	South Illinois nonmetropolitan area, Illinois	$96,020	$60,390	60
77	Syracuse, New York	$95,650	$49,860	170
78	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, California	$95,390	$54,760	50
79	Eastern Utah nonmetropolitan area, Utah	$95,310	$69,820	150
80	Northwest Minnesota nonmetropolitan area, Minnesota	$95,140	$72,000	70
81	Southeast Iowa nonmetropolitan area, Iowa	$95,120	$62,150	80
82	Jackson, Michigan	$94,810	$61,700	n/a
83	Eastern Sierra-Mother Lode Region of California nonmetropolitan area, California	$94,720	$60,010	110
84	Monroe, Michigan	$94,570	$76,910	200
85	Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, California	$94,550	$68,640	30
86	Albuquerque, New Mexico	$94,190	$84,570	40
87	Gulf Coast Texas nonmetropolitan area, Texas	$94,150	$61,600	50
88	North Central Texas nonmetropolitan area, Texas	$94,100	$56,050	210
89	Seattle-Bellevue-Everett, Washington	$93,580	$69,910	100
90	Amarillo, Texas	$93,220	$60,830	90
91	Nassau-Suffolk, New York	$93,070	$80,080	150
92	East-Central Montana nonmetropolitan area, Montana	$93,060	$62,260	100
93	Providence-Fall River-Warwick, Rhode Island	$93,000	$53,350	80
94	Baltimore-Towson, Maryland	$92,980	$62,630	220
95	Salisbury, Maryland	$92,310	$40,450	70
96	Tacoma, Washington	$91,750	$82,350	50
97	Beaumont-Port Arthur, Texas	$91,620	$61,990	90
98	Southern Vermont nonmetropolitan area, Vermont	$91,600	$49,870	30
99	North Central Tennessee nonmetropolitan area, Tennessee	$91,370	$91,370	60
100	Knoxville, Tennessee	$91,370	$58,160	120

See also: 💰 Highest paying industries for power plant operators.