Top 100 highest-paying jobs in East Kentucky nonmetropolitan area

Table 1 compares the top 100 highest-paying jobs in East Kentucky 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 East Kentucky nonmetropolitan area are those of family medicine physician, with an average annual salary of $215,210. The second highest-paying jobs are those of general pediatrician, with an average salary of $210,000.

All of the shown salary and employment information for East Kentucky 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 East Kentucky nonmetropolitan area in 2021, 2020, and 2019.

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

Rank	Job Description	Average Salary i	Entry Level Salary i	No. of Empl i
1	Family Medicine Physicians	$215,210	$122,920	200
2	General Pediatricians	$210,000	$132,960	50
3	Judges, Magistrate Judges, and Magistrates	$139,650	$126,260	30
4	General Dentists	$133,940	$48,960	60
5	Pharmacists	$123,770	$100,170	530
6	Chief Executives	$118,460	$77,030	170
7	Physician Assistants	$106,340	$82,340	60
8	Mining and Geological Engineers	$104,020	$62,420	100
9	Nurse Practitioners	$99,380	$65,260	350
10	Human Resources Managers	$96,410	$54,850	50
11	Occupational Health and Safety Specialists	$95,220	$43,780	130
12	Financial Managers	$93,150	$53,830	220
13	Credit Analysts	$89,980	$49,470	30
14	Physical Therapists	$83,220	$64,840	160
15	Postmasters and Mail Superintendents	$82,760	$74,900	50
16	All Other Managers	$82,370	$39,390	130
17	Software Developers	$82,070	$55,740	60
18	Veterinarians	$81,690	$48,900	30
19	Social Scientists and Related Workers	$81,660	$55,370	40
20	Occupational Therapists	$81,190	$64,540	100
21	Electrical Engineers	$80,400	$47,120	30
22	Elementary and Secondary School Education Administrators	$80,170	$62,540	460
23	Civil Engineers	$80,060	$49,280	100
24	Claims Adjusters, Examiners, and Investigators	$79,350	$44,720	110
25	Computer and Information Systems Managers	$79,130	$52,850	40
26	Sales Managers	$79,040	$49,270	200
27	Postsecondary Education Administrators	$77,310	$47,200	80
28	Lawyers	$77,280	$51,690	270
29	Industrial Production Managers	$77,110	$48,230	50
30	Transportation, Storage, and Distribution Managers	$77,050	$36,860	60
31	Medical and Health Services Managers	$76,750	$55,570	900
32	Electrical Power-Line Installers and Repairers	$76,620	$48,370	210
33	Clinical and Counseling Psychologists	$74,860	$50,970	40
34	Computer Occupations, All Other	$74,390	$36,220	60
35	First-Line Supervisors of Non-Retail Sales Workers	$72,710	$42,720	50
36	Other Education Administrators	$71,040	$51,250	30
37	Speech-Language Pathologists	$68,600	$52,970	200
38	Other Therapists	$66,530	$50,710	110
39	Fundraisers	$66,500	$31,380	50
40	Administrative Services Managers	$65,400	$47,220	80
41	Registered Nurses	$64,570	$50,930	3,090
42	Instructional Coordinators	$63,940	$41,970	150
43	Food Service Managers	$63,710	$41,790	70
44	Postsecondary Art, Drama, and Music Teachers	$63,390	$37,300	30
45	Diagnostic Medical Sonographers	$63,330	$54,140	40
46	Dental Hygienists	$63,320	$36,540	100
47	Postsecondary Nursing Instructors and Teachers	$62,860	$43,390	70
48	Management Analysts	$62,630	$30,850	50
49	Project Management Specialists	$62,260	$43,800	140
50	Surveyors	$62,030	$36,590	40
51	General and Operations Managers	$61,800	$32,220	2,500
52	Computer Systems Analysts	$61,010	$37,110	50
53	Postsecondary Business Teachers	$60,990	$40,120	40
54	Librarians and Media Collections Specialists	$60,670	$31,670	180
55	Personal Financial Advisors	$60,660	$37,220	30
56	Radiologic Technologists	$60,470	$41,980	300
57	First-Line Supervisors of Mechanics, Installers, and Repairers	$60,110	$36,630	420
58	Loan Officers	$58,970	$37,910	160
59	Accountants and Auditors	$58,560	$34,990	440
60	Facilities Managers	$58,390	$40,960	40
61	Computer Network Support Specialists	$58,120	$36,820	60
62	Postal Service Clerks	$57,640	$39,770	280
63	Compliance Officers	$57,530	$31,850	310
64	Postsecondary Biological Science Teachers	$56,870	$37,360	80
65	Network and Computer Systems Administrators	$56,860	$39,480	90
66	Secondary School Special Education Teachers	$56,840	$39,600	270
67	First-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers	$56,520	$44,620	510
68	Social and Community Service Managers	$56,160	$33,990	120
69	Maintenance Workers, Machinery	$55,680	$31,200	120
70	Respiratory Therapists	$55,360	$39,010	240
71	Dietitians and Nutritionists	$55,280	$39,290	70
72	Wholesale and Manufacturing, Technical and Scientific Products Sales Representatives	$54,940	$32,740	80
73	Cost Estimators	$54,220	$40,000	40
74	Electricians	$54,080	$35,650	340
75	Other Business Operations Specialists	$53,770	$39,580	160
76	Physical Therapist Assistants	$53,110	$41,270	150
77	Postsecondary Mathematical Science Teachers	$53,010	$41,600	40
78	Middle School Special Education Teachers	$52,520	$39,440	100
79	Roof Bolters, Mining	$52,490	$51,390	170
80	First-Line Supervisors of Police and Detectives	$52,400	$39,400	80
81	Surveying and Mapping Technicians	$52,000	$30,550	40
82	Sales Representatives of Services, Except Advertising, Insurance, Financial Services, and Travel	$51,690	$30,730	300
83	Career/Technical Education Teachers, Secondary School	$51,680	$42,240	40
84	Postal Service Mail Carriers	$51,590	$39,640	230
85	Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education	$51,560	$39,620	1,140
86	Loading and Moving Machine Operators, Underground Mining	$51,240	$49,300	150
87	Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education	$51,090	$38,940	1,930
88	Middle School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education	$50,780	$39,010	550
89	Wholesale and Manufacturing (Except Technical and Scientific Products) Sales Representatives	$50,710	$23,580	400
90	Telecommunications Equipment Installers and Repairers, Except Line Installers	$50,330	$28,220	260
91	Other Postsecondary Teachers	$50,210	$33,960	110
92	Telecommunications Line Installers and Repairers	$49,920	$27,410	90
93	Kindergarten Teachers, Except Special Education	$49,890	$38,570	250
94	Continuous Mining Machine Operators	$49,670	$40,590	370
95	Industrial Machinery Mechanics	$49,660	$35,900	270
96	Kindergarten and Elementary School Special Education Teachers	$49,620	$38,920	470
97	Educational, Guidance, School, and Vocational Counselors	$49,400	$32,120	310
98	Clinical Laboratory Technologists and Technicians	$49,220	$29,760	370
99	Public Relations Specialists	$48,840	$35,310	70
100	Mobile Heavy Equipment Mechanics, Except Engines	$48,500	$35,920	140

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

Rank	Job Description	Average Salary i
1	Judges, Magistrate Judges, and Magistrates	$139,650
2	Pharmacists	$124,850
3	General Dentists	$122,280
4	Chief Executives	$119,440
5	Mining and Geological Engineers	$98,850
6	Nurse Practitioners	$96,760
7	Construction Managers	$95,190
8	Occupational Health and Safety Specialists	$92,980
9	Software Developers	$91,220
10	Computer and Information Systems Managers	$89,000

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

Rank	Job Description	Average Salary i
1	Family Medicine Physicians	$203,650
2	Pharmacists	$127,110
3	Sales Managers	$118,140
4	Chief Executives	$115,400
5	Other Therapists	$96,220
6	Nurse Practitioners	$94,910
7	Occupational Health and Safety Specialists	$92,060
8	Veterinarians	$86,770
9	Industrial Engineers	$83,810
10	Physician Assistants	$82,000

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

Rank	Job Description	Average Salary i
1	Judges, Magistrate Judges, and Magistrates	$127,310
2	Pharmacists	$125,500
3	General Dentists	$118,080
4	Chief Executives	$105,460
5	Physician Assistants	$95,310
6	Other Therapists	$93,020
7	Nurse Practitioners	$91,000
8	Human Resources Managers	$90,980
9	Occupational Health and Safety Specialists	$85,610
10	Physical Therapists	$80,170

Also see The most popular jobs in East Kentucky nonmetropolitan area.

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