Curators · SOC 25-4012

Highest-Paying Metro Areas for Curatorss

Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025U.S. metropolitan areas

Metro areas ranked by published median annual wage for curators. Areas where BLS suppressed the median are not ranked. Higher medians often track higher living costs — this is a pay comparison, not a ranking of where the job is “best”.

Top 25 of 81 metro areas

Curators: metro areas with the highest published median annual wages, May 2025
#	Metro area	Median annual	Employment	Per 1,000 jobs
1	New Haven, CT	$102,110	70	0.2
2	Dayton-Kettering-Beavercreek, OH	$94,740	40	0.1
3	San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA	$90,800	240	0.1
4	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV	$87,400	270	0.1
5	Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ	$84,150	70	0.0
6	New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ	$83,110	970	0.1
7	Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY	$82,640	80	0.2
8	Ann Arbor, MI	$82,150	60	0.3
9	Amherst Town-Northampton, MA	$79,380	Not published	Not published
10	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH	$78,720	220	0.1
11	Worcester, MA	$78,450	30	0.1
12	Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA	$78,420	50	0.0
13	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA	$78,340	150	0.1
14	Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO	$77,700	180	0.1
15	Providence-Warwick, RI-MA	$77,670	90	0.1
16	Omaha, NE-IA	$77,460	40	0.1
17	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA	$77,160	390	0.1
18	Toledo, OH	$76,910	40	0.1
19	Pittsfield, MA	$76,850	40	0.7
20	San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA	$75,800	170	0.1
21	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX	$75,260	150	0.0
22	Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA	$74,950	60	0.0
23	Kiryas Joel-Poughkeepsie-Newburgh, NY	$73,680	40	0.1
24	Pittsburgh, PA	$73,330	110	0.1
25	Columbus, OH	$72,780	50	0.0

Full state and metro tables, the national distribution, and the pay map are on the Curators 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.