Top 100 highest-paying jobs in Alaska nonmetropolitan area

Table 1 compares the top 100 highest-paying jobs in Alaska nonmetropolitan area, ranked by annual average salary. For each job, the table displays the number of employees with that job, as well as the job's entry-level salary. (The entry-level salary is calculated based on the 10% of paid workers with the lowest salaries.)

Based on the table, we see that the highest-paying jobs in Alaska nonmetropolitan area are those of architectural and engineering manager, with an average annual salary of $176,130. The second highest-paying jobs are those of petroleum engineer, with an average salary of $165,440.

All of the shown salary and employment information for Alaska nonmetropolitan area has been computed using data published by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics in April 2023. Notably, the highest-paying occupations change from year to year. Tables 2, 3, and 4 show the top 10 highest-paying occupations in Alaska nonmetropolitan area in 2021, 2020, and 2019.

Table 1. Top 100 highest-paying jobs in Alaska nonmetropolitan area (2022 survey)

Rank	Job Description	Average Salary i	Entry Level Salary i	No. of Empl i
1	Architectural and Engineering Managers	$176,130	$108,650	140
2	Petroleum Engineers	$165,440	$121,110	120
3	Pharmacists	$148,870	$66,000	160
4	Chief Executives	$136,470	$70,620	320
5	Construction Managers	$134,930	$75,640	340
6	Software Developers	$133,930	$93,870	50
7	Industrial Production Managers	$133,720	$80,000	90
8	Physician Assistants	$131,560	$127,690	110
9	Massage Therapists	$128,840	$48,660	60
10	Computer Network Architects	$128,580	$75,360	30
11	Geoscientists (Except Hydrologists and Geographers)	$127,820	$85,510	110
12	Environmental Engineers	$126,470	$81,540	60
13	Engineers, All Other	$125,670	$78,870	110
14	Computer and Information Systems Managers	$123,750	$83,630	160
15	Human Resources Managers	$122,160	$84,320	110
16	Medical and Health Services Managers	$121,510	$75,020	400
17	Public Relations Managers	$117,410	$67,520	60
18	Purchasing Managers	$116,190	$64,580	40
19	Financial Managers	$114,650	$78,460	550
20	Lawyers	$111,760	$68,640	220
21	Mechanical Engineers	$110,320	$84,550	40
22	Physical Therapists	$107,610	$94,880	120
23	Elementary and Secondary School Education Administrators	$107,260	$80,970	370
24	Natural Sciences Managers	$106,890	$52,000	180
25	All Other Managers	$106,680	$71,300	390
26	Dental Hygienists	$106,650	$98,590	150
27	Transportation, Storage, and Distribution Managers	$103,790	$61,770	290
28	Commercial Pilots	$103,710	$40,960	370
29	Economists	$102,960	$59,870	50
30	Registered Nurses	$102,770	$77,520	1,470
31	Occupational Therapists	$102,360	$66,810	70
32	Electrical Engineers	$101,250	$78,270	60
33	Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists	$101,240	$78,110	40
34	Facilities Managers	$101,170	$60,710	260
35	Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers	$100,370	$74,630	180
36	Diagnostic Medical Sonographers	$100,230	$51,500	40
37	Veterinarians	$100,070	$60,900	30
38	Data Scientists	$99,830	$66,530	50
39	Mining and Geological Engineers	$98,810	$81,270	290
40	Computer Occupations, All Other	$97,970	$44,550	100
41	Nurse Practitioners	$97,900	$51,170	310
42	Civil Engineers	$97,740	$71,870	240
43	Project Management Specialists	$97,610	$60,050	310
44	First-Line Supervisors of Police and Detectives	$97,440	$60,850	150
45	Management Analysts	$96,740	$70,800	60
46	First-Line Supervisors of Correctional Officers	$96,280	$55,250	30
47	General and Operations Managers	$95,990	$47,050	2,050
48	Other Education Administrators	$95,680	$61,100	70
49	Other Postsecondary Teachers	$95,540	$34,930	100
50	Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers	$95,010	$45,340	110
51	Budget Analysts	$94,680	$67,720	100
52	Electrical Power-Line Installers and Repairers	$94,380	$57,920	140
53	Computer Programmers	$94,220	$65,350	140
54	Postsecondary Nursing Instructors and Teachers	$94,100	$85,270	30
55	Network and Computer Systems Administrators	$93,430	$63,230	200
56	Electrical and Electronics Repairers, Commercial and Industrial Equipment	$93,200	$54,910	70
57	Computer Systems Analysts	$92,650	$67,450	70
58	Captains, Mates, and Pilots of Water Vessels	$91,420	$61,710	400
59	Radiologic Technologists	$90,870	$68,830	100
60	Judges, Magistrate Judges, and Magistrates	$90,490	$34,340	110
61	Other Legal Support Workers	$89,730	$66,170	40
62	Airfield Operations Specialists	$89,660	$52,180	50
63	First-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers	$89,440	$58,550	1,000
64	Occupational Health and Safety Specialists	$89,170	$63,050	80
65	Compliance Officers	$89,070	$58,570	210
66	Construction and Building Inspectors	$88,860	$63,490	70
67	Air Traffic Controllers	$88,340	$75,110	100
68	Speech-Language Pathologists	$87,730	$62,480	90
69	Administrative Services Managers	$87,600	$64,210	290
70	Anthropologists and Archeologists	$86,990	$61,420	70
71	Other Biological Scientists	$86,690	$61,420	140
72	Ship Engineers	$86,610	$50,380	300
73	Fundraising Managers	$86,360	$58,100	50
74	Respiratory Therapists	$85,580	$79,470	40
75	Electrical and Electronics Engineering Technicians	$85,510	$60,990	90
76	Service Unit Operators, Oil, Gas, and Mining	$84,850	$51,470	950
77	Social and Community Service Managers	$83,700	$47,250	370
78	Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters	$82,720	$55,020	250
79	Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors	$82,560	$53,890	70
80	Pump Operators, Except Wellhead Pumpers	$82,490	$23,090	100
81	Maintenance Workers, Machinery	$82,310	$43,630	50
82	Other Business Operations Specialists	$81,740	$54,520	360
83	Loading and Moving Machine Operators, Underground Mining	$81,700	$63,920	180
84	First-Line Supervisors of Fire Fighting and Prevention Workers	$81,160	$62,800	100
85	Foresters	$81,000	$65,500	30
86	Electricians	$80,860	$48,400	640
87	Accountants and Auditors	$80,820	$57,470	880
88	First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers	$80,470	$38,930	490
89	Financial Analysts	$80,160	$52,060	110
90	Control and Valve Installers and Repairers, Except Mechanical Door	$80,030	$68,750	90
91	Social Scientists and Related Workers	$79,670	$67,560	30
92	Surgical Assistants	$79,640	$74,200	30
93	Technical Writers	$79,620	$43,980	70
94	Postsecondary Vocational Education Teachers	$79,400	$47,150	60
95	Zoologists and Wildlife Biologists	$79,270	$57,100	460
96	Mobile Heavy Equipment Mechanics, Except Engines	$78,900	$56,020	500
97	Urban and Regional Planners	$78,520	$48,210	80
98	Career/Technical Education Teachers, Secondary School	$78,430	$43,580	60
99	Electrical and Electronics Repairers, Powerhouse, Substation, and Relay	$78,430	$34,370	50
100	Materials Engineers	$78,420	$69,090	50

Table 2. Top 10 highest-paying jobs in Alaska nonmetropolitan area – 2021 survey

Rank	Job Description	Average Salary i
1	Petroleum Engineers	$165,440
2	Architectural and Engineering Managers	$164,870
3	Pharmacists	$153,920
4	Judges, Magistrate Judges, and Magistrates	$133,630
5	Physician Assistants	$131,560
6	Computer and Information Systems Managers	$127,890
7	Computer Network Architects	$127,690
8	Engineers, All Other	$127,550
9	Dental Hygienists	$126,800
10	Environmental Engineers	$126,500

Table 3. Top 10 highest-paying jobs in Alaska nonmetropolitan area – 2020 survey

Rank	Job Description	Average Salary i
1	Pharmacists	$158,290
2	Physician Assistants	$150,970
3	Judges, Magistrate Judges, and Magistrates	$146,280
4	Petroleum Engineers	$138,500
5	Architectural and Engineering Managers	$131,200
6	Chief Executives	$125,990
7	Dental Hygienists	$122,650
8	First-Line Supervisors of Police and Detectives	$119,100
9	Engineers, All Other	$118,620
10	Human Resources Managers	$117,100

Table 4. Top 10 highest-paying jobs in Alaska nonmetropolitan area – 2019 survey

Rank	Job Description	Average Salary i
1	Pharmacists	$151,410
2	Chief Executives	$140,810
3	Architectural and Engineering Managers	$137,830
4	Petroleum Engineers	$136,670
5	Physician Assistants	$133,200
6	Dental Hygienists	$127,450
7	Engineers, All Other	$126,120
8	Electrical Engineers	$120,550
9	Human Resources Managers	$119,890
10	Lawyers	$116,700

Also see The most popular jobs in Alaska nonmetropolitan area.

Also see The most popular jobs in Alaska, The top paying jobs in Alaska.