Top 100 highest-paying jobs in Southern Texas nonmetropolitan area

Table 1 compares the top 100 highest-paying jobs in Southern Texas 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 Southern Texas nonmetropolitan area are those of pharmacists, with an average annual salary of $142,010. The second highest-paying jobs are those of industrial production manager, with an average salary of $121,700.

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

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

Rank	Job Description	Average Salary i	Entry Level Salary i	No. of Empl i
1	Pharmacists	$142,010	$111,370	90
2	Industrial Production Managers	$121,700	$74,500	60
3	Nurse Practitioners	$116,160	$86,580	80
4	All Other Managers	$110,090	$97,510	440
5	Computer and Information Systems Managers	$109,490	$70,270	40
6	Financial Managers	$104,460	$58,840	140
7	Administrative Services Managers	$102,500	$57,500	30
8	Physical Therapists	$102,400	$73,230	60
9	Human Resources Managers	$100,880	$68,000	30
10	Lawyers	$97,950	$69,640	160
11	Elementary and Secondary School Education Administrators	$96,140	$68,490	200
12	Medical and Health Services Managers	$95,060	$60,020	210
13	Petroleum Engineers	$92,960	$61,130	50
14	Detectives and Criminal Investigators	$89,940	$50,690	1,550
15	Construction Managers	$85,450	$48,150	70
16	Sales Managers	$84,320	$44,500	100
17	Speech-Language Pathologists	$83,500	$56,130	60
18	Educational, Guidance, School, and Vocational Counselors	$81,660	$45,420	180
19	Transportation, Storage, and Distribution Managers	$80,620	$49,750	70
20	Compliance Officers	$79,350	$44,720	540
21	Electrical Power-Line Installers and Repairers	$78,290	$46,630	70
22	Facilities Managers	$77,230	$60,540	30
23	Dental Hygienists	$76,700	$74,920	40
24	Network and Computer Systems Administrators	$76,460	$31,570	70
25	Industrial Engineers	$76,270	$49,150	40
26	Computer Occupations, All Other	$76,190	$41,240	50
27	Instructional Coordinators	$75,700	$49,610	120
28	Physical Therapist Assistants	$74,610	$53,790	40
29	Project Management Specialists	$71,830	$44,480	140
30	General and Operations Managers	$71,310	$28,080	1,430
31	Registered Nurses	$69,820	$52,360	820
32	Occupational Health and Safety Specialists	$68,370	$43,890	60
33	Civil Engineers	$67,790	$53,830	40
34	Transportation Inspectors	$67,080	$23,510	50
35	Electrical and Electronics Repairers, Commercial and Industrial Equipment	$66,350	$44,780	90
36	Wellhead Pumpers	$65,720	$51,280	180
37	Other Business Operations Specialists	$65,670	$31,050	250
38	Career/Technical Education Teachers, Secondary School	$65,430	$48,080	140
39	First-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers	$64,610	$38,490	330
40	First-Line Supervisors of Mechanics, Installers, and Repairers	$64,460	$36,430	290
41	Other Engineering Technicians	$64,210	$34,960	40
42	Buyers and Purchasing Agents	$63,370	$38,450	80
43	Aircraft Mechanics and Service Technicians	$63,360	$50,860	400
44	Construction and Building Inspectors	$62,800	$37,140	30
45	Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education	$62,310	$47,530	1,080
46	Middle School Special Education Teachers	$62,160	$46,980	40
47	Middle School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education	$61,900	$47,650	390
48	Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education	$61,610	$48,370	670
49	Social and Community Service Managers	$61,380	$43,470	90
50	First-Line Supervisors of Police and Detectives	$61,360	$42,120	70
51	Kindergarten Teachers, Except Special Education	$61,340	$48,560	140
52	Kindergarten and Elementary School Special Education Teachers	$61,160	$46,190	90
53	Respiratory Therapists	$60,930	$49,860	30
54	Radiologic Technologists	$60,460	$43,720	100
55	Accountants and Auditors	$60,350	$38,050	270
56	Secondary School Special Education Teachers	$60,110	$46,190	80
57	Healthcare Social Workers	$58,860	$36,120	60
58	Loan Officers	$58,600	$37,020	80
59	Other Teachers and Instructors	$58,290	$16,500	30
60	Judges, Magistrate Judges, and Magistrates	$58,190	$30,260	40
61	Food Service Managers	$58,040	$27,160	30
62	First-Line Supervisors of Transportation Workers, Except Aircraft Cargo Handling Supervisors	$57,740	$34,990	250
63	Human Resources Specialists	$57,340	$36,370	180
64	Sales Representatives of Services, Except Advertising, Insurance, Financial Services, and Travel	$57,330	$24,280	200
65	Postal Service Clerks	$57,220	$39,770	50
66	First-Line Supervisors of Non-Retail Sales Workers	$56,400	$37,390	50
67	Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists	$56,310	$29,240	80
68	Postal Service Mail Carriers	$55,640	$39,640	100
69	Wholesale and Manufacturing (Except Technical and Scientific Products) Sales Representatives	$54,260	$23,310	240
70	Property, Real Estate Managers	$53,150	$32,240	50
71	Librarians and Media Collections Specialists	$52,430	$22,600	40
72	Training and Development Specialists	$51,540	$27,110	50
73	Electricians	$51,320	$30,510	120
74	Executive Secretaries and Executive Administrative Assistants	$51,200	$33,280	80
75	Industrial Machinery Mechanics	$51,150	$38,940	170
76	Earth Drillers, Except Oil and Gas	$50,910	$45,470	50
77	Public Relations Specialists	$50,070	$26,230	80
78	Telecommunications Line Installers and Repairers	$49,910	$37,810	90
79	First-Line Supervisors of Office and Administrative Support Workers	$49,840	$32,060	600
80	Meeting, Convention, and Event Planners	$49,620	$28,890	40
81	First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers	$49,580	$31,820	160
82	Other Transportation Workers	$49,320	$43,910	60
83	First-Line Supervisors of Personal Service Workers	$48,920	$19,280	90
84	Telecommunications Equipment Installers and Repairers, Except Line Installers	$48,300	$33,010	50
85	Painters, Construction and Maintenance	$48,290	$33,180	40
86	Roustabouts, Oil and Gas	$48,010	$36,220	340
87	Other Financial Specialists	$47,990	$28,170	40
88	Control and Valve Installers and Repairers, Except Mechanical Door	$47,650	$37,740	170
89	Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses	$47,360	$38,450	500
90	First-Line Supervisors of Correctional Officers	$47,250	$36,510	40
91	Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers	$46,780	$35,680	600
92	Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers	$46,630	$30,320	110
93	Legislators	$46,480	$26,440	60
94	Clinical Laboratory Technologists and Technicians	$46,380	$26,250	80
95	Computer User Support Specialists	$46,330	$31,200	150
96	Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers	$46,310	$29,440	1,120
97	Lodging Managers	$46,260	$36,510	40
98	Firefighters	$46,210	$30,150	50
99	Heating, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Mechanics and Installers	$46,160	$28,030	70
100	Machinists	$46,140	$34,840	40

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

Rank	Job Description	Average Salary i
1	Pharmacists	$128,010
2	Nurse Practitioners	$119,360
3	All Other Managers	$110,550
4	Industrial Production Managers	$105,480
5	Computer and Information Systems Managers	$103,490
6	Sales Managers	$102,370
7	Lawyers	$100,730
8	Marketing Managers	$99,510
9	Financial Managers	$98,910
10	Elementary and Secondary School Education Administrators	$97,340

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

Rank	Job Description	Average Salary i
1	Pharmacists	$149,390
2	Industrial Production Managers	$122,450
3	Nurse Practitioners	$119,710
4	Electrical Engineers	$115,510
5	All Other Personal Service Managers, Entertainment Managers, Except Gambling; and Managers	$109,470
6	Sales Managers	$108,720
7	Lawyers	$103,140
8	Financial Managers	$95,630
9	Elementary and Secondary School Education Administrators	$91,710
10	Detectives and Criminal Investigators	$89,510

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

Rank	Job Description	Average Salary i
1	Pharmacists	$150,870
2	Industrial Production Managers	$130,680
3	Physician Assistants	$113,400
4	Sales Managers	$111,040
5	Nurse Practitioners	$110,680
6	Financial Managers	$104,910
7	All Other Personal Service Managers, Entertainment Managers, Except Gambling; and Managers	$101,780
8	Lawyers	$92,410
9	Elementary and Secondary School Education Administrators	$90,580
10	Medical and Health Services Managers	$89,070

Also see The most popular jobs in Southern Texas nonmetropolitan area.

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