Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand · SOC 53-7062
Highest-Paying Metro Areas for Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hands
Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025U.S. metropolitan areas
Metro areas ranked by published median annual wage for laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand. 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 392 metro areas
| # | Metro area | Median annual | Employment | Per 1,000 jobs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Topeka, KS | $49,140 | 2,140 | 18.5 |
| 2 | Hanford-Corcoran, CA | $48,420 | 790 | 16.1 |
| 3 | San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | $48,400 | 30,710 | 12.9 |
| 4 | Sheboygan, WI | $48,150 | 1,550 | 25.6 |
| 5 | Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | $47,740 | 29,490 | 14.1 |
| 6 | Chambersburg, PA | $47,540 | 3,130 | 51.9 |
| 7 | Kahului-Wailuku, HI | $47,490 | 1,040 | 14.0 |
| 8 | Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA | $47,440 | 2,920 | 34.6 |
| 9 | Stockton-Lodi, CA | $47,330 | 15,030 | 51.9 |
| 10 | Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI | $47,320 | 36,700 | 18.8 |
| 11 | Staunton-Stuarts Draft, VA | $47,310 | 1,880 | 36.5 |
| 12 | Albany, OR | $47,150 | 1,590 | 33.5 |
| 13 | Warner Robins, GA | $47,130 | 1,650 | 21.7 |
| 14 | Pueblo, CO | $47,100 | 1,410 | 22.9 |
| 15 | Bozeman, MT | $47,070 | 400 | 5.6 |
| 16 | San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | $47,060 | 11,830 | 10.4 |
| 17 | Kenosha, WI | $46,990 | 5,420 | 71.8 |
| 18 | Bakersfield-Delano, CA | $46,890 | 8,440 | 24.9 |
| 19 | Barnstable Town, MA | $46,860 | 890 | 9.5 |
| 20 | Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN | $46,830 | 29,400 | 42.9 |
| 21 | Boulder, CO | $46,730 | 970 | 5.1 |
| 22 | Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA | $46,640 | 2,810 | 13.7 |
| 23 | Modesto, CA | $46,630 | 4,810 | 24.6 |
| 24 | Blacksburg-Christiansburg-Radford, VA | $46,440 | 1,310 | 17.7 |
| 25 | Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard, WA | $46,370 | 980 | 10.5 |
Full state and metro tables, the national distribution, and the pay map are on the Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand 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.