Madison, WI metro area
Highest-Paying Occupations in Madison Metro
Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025Madison, WI metro area
Figures describe the Madison, WI metropolitan statistical area as defined by BLS/OMB — the whole multi-county metro region, not Madison city limits. Occupations are ranked by published median annual wage; occupations where BLS suppressed the annual median or publishes only hourly wages are not ranked (5 such occupations here).
Top 25 of 534 occupations
| # | Occupation | Median annual | Median hourly | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Emergency Medicine Physicians | $340,150 | $163.53 | 170 |
| 2 | General Internal Medicine Physicians | $329,670 | $158.50 | 270 |
| 3 | Physicians, All Other | $301,940 | $145.16 | 850 |
| 4 | Psychiatrists | $296,230 | $142.42 | 160 |
| 5 | Family Medicine Physicians | $291,000 | $139.90 | 160 |
| 6 | Nurse Anesthetists | $283,980 | $136.53 | 150 |
| 7 | Obstetricians and Gynecologists | $227,650 | $109.45 | 80 |
| 8 | Chief Executives | $217,010 | $104.33 | 900 |
| 9 | Dentists, General | $176,460 | $84.84 | 270 |
| 10 | Computer and Information Systems Managers | $168,900 | $81.20 | 2,540 |
| 11 | Architectural and Engineering Managers | $160,700 | $77.26 | 750 |
| 12 | Pharmacists | $158,120 | $76.02 | 1,120 |
| 13 | Database Architects | $155,160 | $74.60 | 170 |
| 14 | Financial Managers | $148,970 | $71.62 | 2,320 |
| 15 | Sales Managers | $146,380 | $70.37 | 1,660 |
| 16 | Biological Science Teachers, Postsecondary | $142,490 | Not published | 210 |
| 17 | Human Resources Managers | $140,680 | $67.63 | 660 |
| 18 | Computer Science Teachers, Postsecondary | $140,660 | Not published | 90 |
| 19 | Marketing Managers | $138,270 | $66.48 | 1,000 |
| 20 | Engineering Teachers, Postsecondary | $137,840 | Not published | 340 |
| 21 | Business Teachers, Postsecondary | $137,060 | Not published | 270 |
| 22 | Natural Sciences Managers | $136,990 | $65.86 | 530 |
| 23 | Physicists | $136,450 | $65.60 | 80 |
| 24 | Computer Network Architects | $135,490 | $65.14 | 340 |
| 25 | Actuaries | $135,330 | $65.06 | 170 |
The full list of every published occupation here is on the Madison metro area overview.
About this data. Estimates are from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program, May 2025 release, retrieved from bls.gov/oes/tables.htm on July 24, 2026. OEWS estimates describe metropolitan/nonmetropolitan areas and states — not city limits — and are not designed for year-over-year comparisons. See BLS methodology, our plain-English methodology, and sources. CitySalaryData is independent and not affiliated with BLS.