State medians come from the same OEWS release as the national figures. The cost-of-living column divides each state median by that state's BEA Regional Price Parity, restating pay in national-average dollars so a high-cost state and a low-cost one can be compared directly.
Lawyer Salary (2026): Data, Outlook & How to Become One
Lawyers earn a median of $159,670 per year ($76.76/hr) (BLS OEWS, May 2025). Employment is projected to grow 4.1% through 2034, with about 31,500 openings a year (BLS EP, 2024–2034). Typical entry-level education: Doctoral or professional degree.
SOC 23-1011LegalLast updated August 15, 2026
- Median pay
- $159,670
- Projected growth
- +4.1%
- Openings a year
- 31,500
- Typical education
- Doctorate
BLS OEWS, May 2025
BLS EP, 2024–2034
BLS EP, 2024–2034
BLS EP, 2024–2034
Also advertised as: Attorney, Attorney at Law, Attorney General, Counsel, County Attorney, District Attorney.
How much do Lawyers make?
10th percentile$78,360
Entry / lowest-paid tenth
25th percentile$102,990
Lower quartile
Median (50th)$159,670
Half earn more, half earn less
75th percentile$221,370
Upper quartile
90th percentile$351,600
Top-paid tenth
| Median annual wage | $159,670 |
|---|---|
| Median hourly wage | $76.76/hr |
| Mean annual wage | $185,840 |
| People employed | 754,500 |
Versus all US occupations
At $159,670, Lawyers earn 213% above the $50,980 median across all US occupations, a difference of $108,690 a year.
Versus legal occupations
Inside the Legal group, where the middle occupation pays $75,530, this is 111% above the group median.
Pay range
The top 10% earn $351,600 or more while the bottom 10% earn $78,360, a gap of 4.5×. That is an unusually wide spread, which usually tracks specialisation, employer type and years of experience.
Rank in the bank
This median pays more than 95% of the 923 occupations in the NueCareer career bank.
Highest-paying state
New York pays the most at $207,860, and still leads at $192,604 once local prices are taken into account.
Which states pay Lawyers the most?
| State | Median | COL-adjusted | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|
| New York | $207,860 | $192,604 | 91,870 |
| District of Columbia | $195,190 | $177,605 | 33,070 |
| California | $195,080 | $176,192 | 95,770 |
| Massachusetts | $176,680 | $167,062 | 23,560 |
| Delaware | $173,510 | $173,844 | 2,920 |
| Colorado | $168,520 | $163,529 | 16,720 |
| Virginia | $167,210 | $165,384 | 18,580 |
| Connecticut | $163,600 | $157,900 | 8,420 |
| New Jersey | $161,430 | $148,366 | 23,160 |
| Illinois | $160,800 | $160,868 | 33,590 |
Is Lawyer a growing career?
Lawyers4.1%
All US occupations3.1%
+4.1% projected growth vs 3.1% for all occupations.
Faster than average
BLS projects employment of Lawyers to change 4.1% over 2024–2034, against 3.1% projected for all occupations. That is 35,900 more jobs.
Annual openings
About 31,500 openings are projected each year, 3.6% of the 864,800 jobs that existed in 2024. Most come from workers leaving the occupation, not from growth alone.
Many of those openings are expected to result from the need to replace workers who transfer to different occupations or exit the labor force, such as to retire.
Demand for legal work is expected to continue as individuals, businesses, and all levels of government require legal services in many areas.
Despite this need for legal services, more price competition over the projections decade may lead law firms to rethink project staffing to reduce costs to clients. Moreover, some routine legal work may be automated or outsourced to low-cost legal providers.
How to become a Lawyer
Lawyers typically need a law degree and a state license, which usually requires passing a bar examination.
| Typical entry-level education | Doctoral or professional degree |
|---|---|
| Preparation needed (O*NET job zone) | Considerable preparation |
| Work experience in a related occupation | None |
| Typical on-the-job training | None |
What education people in the job have
O*NET incumbent survey: the highest level of education reported by people already working as lawyers.
- Doctoral Degree77.2%
- First Professional Degree22.8%
What does a Lawyer do?
Represent clients in criminal and civil litigation and other legal proceedings, draw up legal documents, or manage or advise clients on legal transactions. May specialize in a single area or may practice broadly in many areas of law.
Lawyers advise and represent clients on legal proceedings or transactions.
Day-to-day tasks
- Interpret laws, rulings and regulations for individuals and businesses.
- Analyze the probable outcomes of cases, using knowledge of legal precedents.
- Confer with colleagues with specialties in appropriate areas of legal issue to establish and verify bases for legal proceedings.
- Examine legal data to determine advisability of defending or prosecuting lawsuit.
- Study Constitution, statutes, decisions, regulations, and ordinances of quasi-judicial bodies to determine ramifications for cases.
- Prepare, draft, and review legal documents, such as wills, deeds, patent applications, mortgages, leases, and contracts.
- Supervise legal assistants.
- Negotiate contractual agreements.
O*NET core tasks, ordered by reported importance.
Where lawyers work
| Legal services | 51% |
|---|---|
| Self-employed workers | 12% |
| Local government, excluding education and hospitals | 8% |
| State government, excluding education and hospitals | 6% |
| Federal government | 5% |
BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2024–2034 edition.
Core skills
- Speaking4.6/5
- Reading Comprehension4.5/5
- Active Listening4.5/5
- Critical Thinking4.5/5
- Writing4.3/5
- Active Learning3.8/5
- Monitoring3.4/5
- Learning Strategies3.1/5
Transferable skills
- Complex Problem Solving4.1/5
- Judgment and Decision Making4.1/5
- Persuasion4.0/5
- Negotiation4.0/5
- Social Perceptiveness3.8/5
- Time Management3.6/5
- Coordination3.5/5
- Systems Analysis3.4/5
Tools and software
- Data base user interface and query software · in demand
- Data mining software · in demand
- Document management software · in demand
- Electronic mail software · in demand
- Enterprise resource planning ERP software · in demand
- Office suite software · in demand
- Presentation software · in demand
- Project management software · in demand
- Spreadsheet software · in demand
- Word processing software · in demand
- Accounting software
- Analytical or scientific software
“In demand” marks an O*NET Employer-Based Hot Technology, software named in real job postings for this occupation.
What personality type suits a Lawyer?
Interest profile: O*NET Occupational Interests, scored 1–7
Realistic1.1
Investigativeprimary4.4
Artistic2.4
Social3.5
Enterprisingprimary5.5
Conventionalprimary4.6
Day to day this is work built around leading, persuading, selling and making decisions, combined with organising, following procedures and working precisely with data.
Closest MBTI types
NueCareer fit scores: cosine similarity between each MBTI type's interest vector and this occupation's O*NET interest profile. Not a BLS or O*NET figure; the method is documented on our methodology page.
Lawyer: frequently asked questions
How much do Lawyers make?
Lawyers earn a median of $159,670 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025). That is 213% above the $50,980 median for all US occupations. That works out at $76.76/hr. The middle half earn between $102,990 and $221,370. The top 10% earn $351,600 or more.
Do you need a degree to become a Lawyer?
Yes, and beyond a bachelor's: BLS lists a doctoral or professional degree as the typical entry requirement for Lawyers. In O*NET's survey of people already doing the job, 77.2% hold doctoral degree.
Is Lawyer a growing career?
Yes. Employment is projected to grow 4.1% over 2024–2034, faster than the 3.1% average for all occupations (BLS EP, 2024–2034). BLS still projects about 31,500 openings a year, mostly from workers retiring or moving to other work.
What does a Lawyer do?
Lawyers advise and represent clients on legal proceedings or transactions. A core O*NET task: interpret laws, rulings and regulations for individuals and businesses. Employers most often ask for Data base user interface and query software, Data mining software, Document management software.
Which states pay Lawyers the most?
The highest state medians for Lawyers are New York ($207,860), District of Columbia ($195,190), California ($195,080) (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
What personality type suits a Lawyer?
O*NET scores Lawyers highest on the Enterprising, Conventional and Investigative interest areas, so the work mixes leading, persuading, selling and making decisions with organising, following procedures and working precisely with data. On NueCareer's MBTI-to-interest mapping that lines up most closely with ENTJ personalities. Personality is a fit signal, not a gate. The free NueCareer quiz scores your own profile against all 923 occupations in the bank.