NueCareer
Protective Service

Smokejumper Salary (2026), outlook and how to become one

An experienced wildland firefighter who parachutes from aircraft into remote terrain to attack new fires before they grow.

Median pay
$59,280
Growth to 2035
+3.7%
Openings a year
26,800
Typical entry
High school

An experienced wildland firefighter who parachutes from aircraft into remote terrain to attack new fires before they grow. BLS does not publish separate figures for firefighters; it counts them within firefighter (SOC 33-2011), whose median pay is $59,280 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025). Typical entry-level education: High school diploma or equivalent.

  • SOC 33-2011
  • Protective Service
  • Last updated October 9, 2026

At a glance

Smokejumper in four numbers

Median pay
$59,280a year, or $28.50/hr
Lowest 10% $35KTop 10% $101K

US median, all jobs: $50,980

BLS OEWS, May 2025
Projected growth
+3.7%About as fast as average
This career
+3.7%
All jobs
+3.5%
Projected employment change, 2025–2035
ItemValue
This career+3.7%
All jobs+3.5%
BLS EP, 2025–2035
Openings a year
26,800355,300 jobs today
  • Jobs in 2025355.3K
  • Projected 2035368.4K
Employment, 2025–2035
ItemValue
Jobs in 2025355.3K
Projected 2035368.4K
BLS EP, 2025–2035
Typical education
High schoolneeded to enterBLS EP, 2025–2035; mix: O*NET

Also advertised as: Forestry Technician (Smokejumper), Smokejumper Squad Leader, Smokejumper Spotter, Rookie Smokejumper, Parachute Firefighter.

Pay

How much do Firefighters make?

Annual pay, lowest-paid to highest-paid

Every smokejumper in the US, by percentile of annual wage

Median

$59,280

Middle half earn $44,490 to $77,250

10th
$34,910
25th
$44,490
75th
$77,250
90th
$101,040

All US occupations: $50,980

Smokejumper annual wages
PercentileValue
10th$34,910
25th$44,490
Median$59,280
75th$77,250
90th$101,040
All US occupations$50,980

Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025

Median annual wage
$59,280
Median hourly wage
$28.50/hr
Mean annual wage
$63,630
People employed
345,990

Versus all US occupations

At $59,280, Firefighters earn 16% above the $50,980 median across all US occupations, a difference of $8,300 a year.

Versus protective service occupations

Inside the Protective Service group, where the middle occupation pays $74,060, this is 20% below the group median.

Pay range

The top 10% earn $101,040 or more while the bottom 10% earn $34,910, a gap of 2.9×. That is a typical spread for a US occupation.

Rank in the bank

This median pays more than 31% of the 1,741 occupations in the NueCareer career bank.

Highest-paying state

New York pays the most at $100,960, and still leads at $93,550 once local prices are taken into account.

Pay by state

Which states pay Firefighters the most?

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.

Top 10 states by median annual wage for Firefighters
StateMedianCOL-adjustedEmployed
1New York$100,960$93,55012,950
2Washington$94,520$88,3267,560
3California$85,120$76,87931,470
4New Jersey$84,130$77,3227,500
5Illinois$78,380$78,41318,400
6Connecticut$77,630$74,9252,970
7District of Columbia$75,870$69,0351,480
8Colorado$74,170$71,9736,510
9Maryland$73,810$70,3235,340
10Pennsylvania$73,460$75,2885,020
See all 51 states, sortable, with cost-of-living adjustments

Job outlook

Is Smokejumper a growing career?

Projected change in jobs

Employment change over 2025–2035, against every US occupation

Firefighters
+3.7%
All US occupations
+3.5%

About as fast as average. +3.7% projected growth vs 3.5% for all occupations.

Projected employment change, 2025–2035
ItemValue
Firefighters+3.7%
All US occupations+3.5%

Source: BLS EP, 2025–2035

About as fast as average

BLS projects employment of Firefighters to change 3.7% over 2025–2035, against 3.5% projected for all occupations. That is 13,100 more jobs.

Annual openings

About 26,800 openings are projected each year, 7.5% of the 355,300 jobs that existed in 2025. Most come from workers leaving the occupation, not from growth alone.

Getting in

How to become a Smokejumper

Smokejumping is not an entry-level firefighting job. The Forest Service requires prior wildland fire suppression experience, including at least one full season of specialized fire suppression, along with skill with hand tools, chainsaws, and pumps. Many rookies come from hotshot crews, helitack, or engines.

Rookies who are hired complete several weeks of rookie training that tests fitness, includes parachute and aircraft exit training, timber and rough terrain landings, and tree climbing for let-downs. Candidates must pass a fitness test and meet federal wildland firefighter medical standards. Jumpers keep proficiency with refresher training each season.

  1. 1

    Typical entry-level education

    High school diploma or equivalent

  2. 2

    Work experience in a related occupation

    None

  3. 3

    Typical on-the-job training

    Long-term on-the-job training

  4. 4

    Preparation needed (O*NET job zone)

    Little or no preparation

BLS Employment Projections, 2025–2035; job zone from O*NET 31.0 Database.

The work

What does a Smokejumper do?

Smokejumpers reach wildfires that are far from roads by parachuting from aircraft near the fire. Once on the ground, they retrieve cargo boxes of tools, food, and water dropped after them, then attack the fire with hand tools, chainsaws, and pumps while it is still small. When the fire is out, they often hike out carrying heavy packs.

Smokejumpers also staff large fires, lead other crews, and work on prescribed burns and fuels projects. During the off season many sew and repair their own parachutes and jump gear in base loft shops. Bases are run by the U.S. Forest Service in the western states and by the Bureau of Land Management in Idaho and Alaska.

Day-to-day tasks

  1. Parachute into remote terrain near new wildfires
  2. Recover cargo drops of tools, food, and water
  3. Attack fires with hand tools, chainsaws, and pumps
  4. Lead and support other crews on large fires
  5. Pack out gear over long distances after fires
  6. Manufacture and repair parachutes and jump gear
  7. Train for jumps, landings, and tree let-downs

Typical tasks, researched by NueCareer from the sources below.

Working conditions and hours

Smokejumpers work in remote backcountry with long shifts and multi-day assignments, often far from support. The job is physically demanding and dangerous, combining parachuting with fire suppression. Seasons are long, and jumpers often travel between bases in different regions as fire activity shifts.

Where the work happens

  • Indoors, climate-controlled

    NeverEvery day

  • Outdoors in all weather

    NeverEvery day

    Outdoors in all weather at least weekly.

Physical demands

  • Sitting

    NeverAlmost all the time

  • Standing

    NeverAlmost all the time

  • Bending or twisting

    NeverAlmost all the time

Working with people

  • Contact with other people

    NoneConstant

  • Face-to-face discussions

    NeverEvery day

  • Dealing with the public

    Not importantExtremely important

    Dealing with customers or the public is very important.

Pressure and stakes

  • Strict deadlines

    NeverEvery day

  • Conflict situations

    NeverEvery day

  • Cost of a mistake

    Not seriousExtremely serious

Autonomy

  • Freedom to decide

    NoneA lot

    A lot of freedom to make decisions without checking first.

Conditions: O*NET Work Context survey. Each item has its own scale, so each dot is read against the two answers that end its own line.

Core skills

O*NET importance, 1 to 5

  • Active Listening3.6
  • Critical Thinking3.6
  • Active Learning3.6
  • Speaking3.5
  • Monitoring3.5
  • Reading Comprehension3.0
  • Learning Strategies2.9
  • Writing2.6
Core skills for Firefighters
ItemValue
Active Listening3.6
Critical Thinking3.6
Active Learning3.6
Speaking3.5
Monitoring3.5
Reading Comprehension3.0
Learning Strategies2.9
Writing2.6

Source: O*NET 31.0 Database

Transferable skills

O*NET importance, 1 to 5

  • Coordination3.9
  • Service Orientation3.5
  • Judgment and Decision Making3.5
  • Social Perceptiveness3.1
  • Complex Problem Solving3.1
  • Operations Monitoring3.0
  • Operation and Control3.0
  • Time Management3.0
Transferable skills for Firefighters
ItemValue
Coordination3.9
Service Orientation3.5
Judgment and Decision Making3.5
Social Perceptiveness3.1
Complex Problem Solving3.1
Operations Monitoring3.0
Operation and Control3.0
Time Management3.0

Source: O*NET 31.0 Database

Tools and software

  • Data base user interface and query software · in demand
  • Electronic mail software · in demand
  • Office suite software · in demand
  • Operating system software · in demand
  • Presentation software · in demand
  • Spreadsheet software · in demand
  • Word processing software · in demand
  • Analytical or scientific software
  • Geographic information system
  • Internet browser software
  • Project management software

“In demand” marks an O*NET Employer-Based Hot Technology, software named in real job postings for this occupation.

Personality fit

What personality type suits a Smokejumper?

Interest profile

NueCareer estimate (Holland code RSI) built on O*NET's Firefighter profile, scored 1 to 7

Smokejumper · Realistic: 6Smokejumper · Investigative: 4Smokejumper · Artistic: 1Smokejumper · Social: 4Smokejumper · Enterprising: 3Smokejumper · Conventional: 3
Smokejumper interest profile
AxisSmokejumper
Realistic6
Investigative4
Artistic1
Social4
Enterprising3
Conventional3

Source: O*NET 31.0 Database

What the work is built around

Day to day this is work built around hands-on, practical work with tools, machines or the outdoors, combined with teaching, helping and working directly with other people.

  • Realistic6.5
  • Social4.1
  • Investigative3.6
  • Conventional3.5
  • Enterprising3.0
  • Artistic1.3

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.

Questions

Smokejumper: frequently asked questions

How much do Firefighters make?

BLS does not publish a separate wage for firefighters. It counts them within firefighter, whose median pay is $59,280 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025). The middle half of that occupation earn between $44,490 and $77,250, and the top 10% earn $101,040 or more.

Do you need a degree to become a Smokejumper?

No. A bachelor's degree is not the norm: BLS reports a high school diploma or equivalent as the typical entry-level education for Firefighters. BLS also lists long-term on-the-job training as typical on-the-job training.

Is Smokejumper a growing career?

It is stable rather than fast-growing: employment is projected to change 3.7% over 2025–2035, about the same as the 3.5% projected across all occupations (BLS EP, 2025–2035). BLS still projects about 26,800 openings a year, mostly from workers retiring or moving to other work.

What does a Smokejumper do?

Smokejumpers reach wildfires that are far from roads by parachuting from aircraft near the fire. A typical task: parachute into remote terrain near new wildfires. Employers most often ask for Data base user interface and query software, Electronic mail software, Office suite software.

Which states pay Firefighters the most?

The highest state medians for Firefighters are New York ($100,960), Washington ($94,520), California ($85,120) (BLS OEWS, May 2025).

What personality type suits a Smokejumper?

O*NET scores Firefighters highest on the Realistic, Social and Investigative interest areas, so the work mixes hands-on, practical work with tools, machines or the outdoors with teaching, helping and working directly with other people. On NueCareer's MBTI-to-interest mapping that lines up most closely with ISTJ personalities. Personality is a fit signal, not a gate. The free NueCareer quiz scores your own profile against all 1,731 careers in the bank.

Research sources for this career