Pay by state · 52 states
Tour Guide and Escort Salary by State (2026)
Tour Guides and Escorts earn the most in U.S. Virgin Islands at $102,020 a year and the least in Iowa at $22,490 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). The national median is $38,120. All 52 states and territories with reported data are ranked below, with a cost-of-living adjusted column.
- Highest median
- $102,020U.S. Virgin Islands
- National median
- $38,120BLS OEWS, May 2025
- Lowest median
- $22,490Iowa
- States reporting
- 52of 54 OEWS areas
All states
Tour Guide and Escort salary in every state
Sort by any column. Employment is the number of tour guides and escorts OEWS estimates in that state; blank cells are estimates BLS suppressed because the sample was too small.
| # | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | VIU.S. Virgin Islands | $102,020 | $102,020 | $102,030 | 50 | N/A |
| 2 | WAWashington | $54,160 | $43,150 | $66,020 | 1,420 | $50,611 |
| 3 | DCDistrict of Columbia | $49,210 | $39,650 | $58,940 | 380 | $44,777 |
| 4 | WYWyoming | $47,020 | $33,960 | $58,040 | 560 | $50,728 |
| 5 | CACalifornia | $46,000 | $38,770 | $57,510 | 6,900 | $41,546 |
| 6 | HIHawaii | $45,940 | $38,350 | $50,320 | 1,370 | $41,782 |
| 7 | VTVermont | $45,920 | $43,690 | $55,850 | 140 | $46,877 |
| 8 | MEMaine | $44,940 | $35,100 | $47,930 | 270 | $46,306 |
| 9 | NYNew York | $44,450 | $37,160 | $50,600 | 2,870 | $41,188 |
| 10 | AKAlaska | $44,210 | $37,330 | $50,060 | 1,660 | $43,191 |
| 11 | KSKansas | $43,700 | $31,260 | $52,790 | 400 | $48,519 |
| 12 | COColorado | $42,840 | $36,630 | $47,110 | 2,150 | $41,571 |
| 13 | FLFlorida | $41,600 | $33,510 | $52,720 | 2,720 | $40,227 |
| 14 | NHNew Hampshire | $41,600 | $32,150 | $47,260 | 260 | $39,937 |
| 15 | MDMaryland | $40,310 | $33,740 | $45,810 | 510 | $38,405 |
| 16 | GAGeorgia | $40,190 | $34,270 | $67,090 | 1,080 | $41,737 |
| 17 | MTMontana | $40,100 | $28,340 | $48,830 | 680 | $42,369 |
| 18 | MNMinnesota | $39,650 | $35,370 | $44,820 | 630 | $40,204 |
| 19 | NVNevada | $39,360 | $32,400 | $43,620 | 620 | $39,368 |
| 20 | OROregon | $39,260 | $33,970 | $48,890 | 530 | $37,983 |
| 21 | UTUtah | $38,540 | $35,090 | $45,440 | 1,630 | $38,983 |
| 22 | RIRhode Island | $38,310 | $34,900 | $48,710 | 210 | $37,456 |
| 23 | IDIdaho | $37,960 | $29,980 | $46,950 | 460 | $39,751 |
| 24 | MAMassachusetts | $37,840 | $35,560 | $42,170 | 1,760 | $35,780 |
| 25 | AZArizona | $37,560 | $34,910 | $46,610 | 2,450 | $37,307 |
| 26 | NMNew Mexico | $37,080 | $30,380 | $46,690 | 360 | $40,212 |
| 27 | ILIllinois | $36,780 | $33,160 | $40,210 | 1,090 | $36,795 |
| 28 | NJNew Jersey | $36,640 | $33,160 | $44,860 | 390 | $33,675 |
| 29 | KYKentucky | $36,070 | $32,910 | $41,600 | 1,010 | $40,007 |
| 30 | NDNorth Dakota | $35,360 | $32,910 | $43,680 | 90 | $39,749 |
| 31 | SCSouth Carolina | $35,190 | $29,740 | $48,810 | 660 | $37,536 |
| 32 | SDSouth Dakota | $35,100 | $33,800 | $39,540 | 440 | $39,623 |
| 33 | CTConnecticut | $35,090 | $34,220 | $43,860 | 220 | $33,867 |
| 34 | MIMichigan | $35,090 | $33,440 | $36,750 | 1,160 | $36,470 |
| 35 | ARArkansas | $34,290 | $30,040 | $41,340 | 160 | $39,442 |
| 36 | TNTennessee | $33,760 | $29,740 | $36,900 | 1,840 | $36,748 |
| 37 | DEDelaware | $33,210 | $31,200 | $34,330 | 330 | $33,274 |
| 38 | TXTexas | $33,080 | $28,250 | $45,270 | 2,250 | $34,083 |
| 39 | PAPennsylvania | $32,910 | $27,860 | $44,430 | 1,970 | $33,729 |
| 40 | OHOhio | $32,800 | $24,600 | $37,290 | 1,000 | $35,355 |
| 41 | NCNorth Carolina | $32,570 | $28,690 | $37,230 | 1,650 | $34,529 |
| 42 | OKOklahoma | $32,150 | $24,490 | $40,720 | 350 | $36,599 |
| 43 | LALouisiana | $32,060 | $24,760 | $58,480 | 580 | $36,346 |
| 44 | MOMissouri | $31,980 | $29,710 | $37,090 | 1,360 | $35,214 |
| 45 | ALAlabama | $31,700 | $26,900 | $35,090 | 410 | $35,689 |
| 46 | NENebraska | $31,580 | $28,080 | $34,750 | 340 | $35,049 |
| 47 | INIndiana | $31,030 | $27,160 | $36,340 | 700 | $33,248 |
| 48 | WIWisconsin | $30,160 | $28,070 | $38,010 | 910 | $32,053 |
| 49 | WVWest Virginia | $28,570 | $22,420 | $37,500 | 270 | $31,923 |
| 50 | PRPuerto Rico | $27,860 | $22,680 | $37,270 | 490 | N/A |
| 51 | MSMississippi | $27,460 | $23,000 | $34,530 | 150 | $31,580 |
| 52 | IAIowa | $22,490 | $21,260 | $35,010 | 330 | $25,626 |
Method
How the cost-of-living adjustment works
The adjusted column divides each state median by that state's BEA Regional Price Parity (RPP) and multiplies by 100. RPPs measure how much a fixed basket of goods, services and rents costs in one state relative to the national average, so the result restates local pay in national-average dollars.
For Tour Guides and Escorts, that changes the ranking: U.S. Virgin Islands leads on raw pay at $102,020, while Wyoming leads once prices are taken into account at $50,728.
Source: BEA Regional Price Parities by State, 2024 (public domain). The adjustment is NueCareer's calculation, not a BLS or BEA published statistic.
Questions
Tour Guide and Escort pay by state: FAQ
Which state pays Tour Guides and Escorts the most?
U.S. Virgin Islands reports the highest median wage for Tour Guides and Escorts at $102,020 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025), followed by Washington ($54,160) and District of Columbia ($49,210).
Which state pays Tour Guides and Escorts the least?
Iowa reports the lowest median for Tour Guides and Escorts at $22,490 a year, $79,530 below the highest-paying state (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
Where do Tour Guides and Escorts earn the most after cost of living?
Dividing each state median by that state's BEA Regional Price Parity puts Wyoming first at $50,728 in national-average dollars, from a raw median of $47,020. BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024.