Top 100 highest-paying jobs in Montana

Table 1 compares the top 100 highest-paying jobs in Montana, 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 Montana are those of nurse anesthetists, with an average annual salary of $216,910. The second highest-paying jobs are those of family medicine physician, with an average salary of $207,990.

All of the shown salary and employment information for Montana 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 Montana in 2021, 2020, and 2019.

Table 1. Top 100 highest-paying jobs in Montana (2022 survey)

Rank	Job Description	Average Salary i	Entry Level Salary i	No. of Empl i
1	Nurse Anesthetists	$216,910	$82,360	60
2	Family Medicine Physicians	$207,990	$98,270	610
3	General Internal Medicine Physicians	$196,150	$141,950	260
4	General Pediatricians	$195,440	$120,000	100
5	Cardiologists	$175,900	$64,290	70
6	Psychiatrists	$171,960	$75,910	40
7	Other Specialists Dentists	$168,050	$85,540	60
8	General Dentists	$141,950	$69,140	450
9	Chief Executives	$131,210	$62,620	390
10	Pharmacists	$129,120	$104,850	1,300
11	Physician Assistants	$128,120	$102,470	700
12	Industrial Production Managers	$127,720	$89,430	180
13	Nurse Practitioners	$127,350	$94,210	730
14	Marketing Managers	$117,500	$74,060	180
15	Purchasing Managers	$115,930	$60,850	90
16	Architectural and Engineering Managers	$115,330	$81,640	410
17	Power Distributors and Dispatchers	$115,110	$84,320	30
18	All Other Healthcare Diagnosing or Treating Practitioners	$110,090	$63,910	130
19	Financial Managers	$108,160	$63,930	890
20	Database Architects	$106,810	$84,670	30
21	Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators	$105,940	$46,660	100
22	Economists	$105,510	$65,230	90
23	Postsecondary Forestry and Conservation Science Teachers	$105,040	$45,870	70
24	Postsecondary Atmospheric, Earth, Marine, and Space Sciences Teachers	$103,810	$57,730	60
25	Natural Sciences Managers	$103,790	$61,230	360
26	Environmental Science Teachers	$103,400	$57,580	80
27	Computer and Information Systems Managers	$103,340	$78,990	870
28	Sales Managers	$103,110	$60,850	300
29	Training and Development Managers	$103,010	$65,820	50
30	Postsecondary Engineering Teachers	$103,010	$76,940	160
31	Computer Network Architects	$102,410	$66,010	490
32	Administrative Services Managers	$101,850	$64,760	300
33	Chemical Engineers	$101,420	$53,870	50
34	Human Resources Managers	$101,140	$60,920	330
35	Postsecondary Political Science Teachers	$101,100	$59,330	40
36	Electrical Power-Line Installers and Repairers	$101,040	$64,510	640
37	Postsecondary Agricultural Sciences Teachers	$100,950	$63,350	100
38	Construction Managers	$100,830	$63,020	1,010
39	Optometrists	$100,230	$64,160	160
40	Postsecondary Physics Teachers	$100,170	$59,350	50
41	Electronics Engineers (Non Computer)	$98,920	$73,670	120
42	Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers	$98,500	$76,000	420
43	Electrical and Electronics Repairers, Powerhouse, Substation, and Relay	$96,720	$78,520	100
44	Medical and Health Services Managers	$96,700	$61,370	2,110
45	Transportation, Storage, and Distribution Managers	$96,010	$51,230	240
46	Personal Financial Advisors	$95,600	$46,510	740
47	Commercial Pilots	$94,650	$61,640	440
48	Power Plant Operators	$93,060	$49,200	190
49	Public Relations Managers	$92,200	$40,450	60
50	Atmospheric and Space Scientists	$89,940	$50,360	80
51	Detectives and Criminal Investigators	$89,940	$57,700	440
52	Fundraising Managers	$87,700	$58,030	80
53	Elementary and Secondary School Education Administrators	$87,400	$61,080	880
54	Lawyers	$86,030	$58,630	2,230
55	Radiation Therapists	$86,000	$72,420	60
56	All Other Managers	$85,340	$49,090	1,250
57	Postsecondary Health Specialties Teachers	$85,230	$48,370	450
58	Postsecondary History Teachers	$84,830	$55,120	70
59	Nuclear Medicine Technologists	$84,570	$67,450	40
60	Mining and Geological Engineers	$84,560	$60,810	160
61	Facilities Managers	$84,390	$56,530	150
62	Microbiologists	$84,000	$49,280	90
63	Aerospace Engineers	$83,990	$62,540	80
64	Occupational Therapists	$83,660	$64,260	470
65	Dental Hygienists	$83,180	$79,110	970
66	Diagnostic Medical Sonographers	$83,150	$66,210	170
67	Training and Development Specialists	$82,670	$43,790	1,490
68	Labor Relations Specialists	$82,620	$20,610	130
69	Postsecondary Biological Science Teachers	$82,470	$52,210	200
70	Computer Systems Analysts	$82,450	$52,190	530
71	Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists	$82,300	$47,840	280
72	General and Operations Managers	$82,230	$43,250	9,320
73	Physical Therapists	$82,170	$68,670	1,190
74	Gas Compressor and Gas Pumping Station Operators	$82,090	$63,520	40
75	Hydrologists	$81,990	$61,440	170
76	Electrical Engineers	$81,770	$63,060	650
77	Postsecondary Computer Science Teachers	$81,710	$39,530	60
78	Computer Programmers	$81,650	$54,500	380
79	Postsecondary Education Administrators	$81,360	$53,570	380
80	Clinical and Counseling Psychologists	$81,200	$56,340	220
81	Information Security Analysts	$81,080	$51,990	170
82	Financial Examiners	$81,070	$58,050	120
83	Engineers, All Other	$80,990	$29,990	360
84	Maintenance Workers, Machinery	$80,720	$30,050	160
85	Software Developers	$80,610	$62,330	2,120
86	Petroleum Engineers	$80,310	$38,130	230
87	Computer Hardware Engineers	$80,000	$58,040	90
88	Art Directors	$79,910	$57,080	0
89	Gas Plant Operators	$79,760	$60,640	50
90	Postsecondary Nursing Instructors and Teachers	$79,650	$61,690	220
91	Electrical and Electronics Installers and Repairers, Transportation Equipment	$79,570	$79,520	30
92	Audiologists	$79,550	$69,100	100
93	Environmental Scientists and Health Specialists	$79,510	$50,770	420
94	Veterinarians	$79,420	$60,360	540
95	Air Traffic Controllers	$79,410	$66,230	70
96	Mechanical Engineers	$79,390	$59,520	570
97	Industrial Engineers	$79,360	$54,710	320
98	Other Psychologists	$79,350	$26,290	40
99	Speech-Language Pathologists	$79,350	$54,770	410
100	Boilermakers	$79,020	$50,200	90

Table 2. Top 10 highest-paying jobs in Montana – 2021 survey

Rank	Job Description	Average Salary i
1	Other Specialists Dentists	$176,400
2	General Dentists	$141,860
3	Chief Executives	$131,210
4	Sales Engineers	$129,190
5	Physician Assistants	$128,190
6	Pharmacists	$127,870
7	Industrial Production Managers	$125,340
8	Postsecondary Engineering Teachers	$124,440
9	Podiatrists	$123,570
10	Chemical Engineers	$122,920

Table 3. Top 10 highest-paying jobs in Montana – 2020 survey

Rank	Job Description	Average Salary i
1	Nurse Anesthetists	$205,890
2	Psychiatrists	$171,960
3	General Dentists	$165,330
4	Podiatrists	$139,270
5	Pharmacists	$122,160
6	Chemical Engineers	$121,370
7	Chief Executives	$121,250
8	Petroleum Engineers	$120,900
9	Physician Assistants	$118,760
10	Nurse Practitioners	$114,970

Table 4. Top 10 highest-paying jobs in Montana – 2019 survey

Rank	Job Description	Average Salary i
1	General Internal Medicine Physicians	$196,150
2	General Dentists	$150,830
3	Psychiatrists	$139,830
4	Podiatrists	$130,280
5	Petroleum Engineers	$126,760
6	Pharmacists	$119,780
7	Chief Executives	$119,510
8	Physician Assistants	$114,480
9	Architectural and Engineering Managers	$112,680
10	Industrial Production Managers	$110,840

Also see The most popular jobs in Montana.