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Pilot salary: airline and commercial pilot pay by state
BLS separates airline pilots, copilots and flight engineers (scheduled airlines) from commercial pilots (charter, cargo feeders, crop dusting, tours, flight instruction and similar). Pay differs a lot between the two.
Data vintage: BLS OEWS May 2025 estimates, compared with May 2024. Last checked 2026-10-27 by The CompareTheData team.
Data: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. Jump to sources · Methodology
Key takeaways
- Airline pilots, copilots and flight engineers: mean $288,650, median $232,140, 103,560 jobs. The middle 80% earned between $106,710 and $463,830.
- Commercial pilots: mean $146,080, median $123,220, 47,630 jobs.
- Highest mean airline-pilot pay by state: Georgia ($476,310), Idaho ($361,180) and Michigan ($330,480).
- Mean airline-pilot pay rose 2.9% from May 2024; commercial pilot pay rose 2.2%.
- For comparison, air traffic controllers averaged $146,490.
Airline pilot salary by state chart
Pilot salary by state
Click a column heading to sort. States where BLS did not publish an airline-pilot wage (Massachusetts, Wyoming) are listed last without a rank. Download this table (CSV).
| Rank | State | Airline pilot mean | Airline pilot jobs | Commercial pilot mean | Commercial pilot jobs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Georgia | $476,310 | 8,770 | $147,610 | 1,020 |
| 2 | Idaho | $361,180 | 330 | $131,800 | 310 |
| 3 | Michigan | $330,480 | — | $127,700 | 1,390 |
| 4 | Illinois | $316,140 | 6,460 | $157,600 | 1,170 |
| 5 | California | $310,190 | 10,670 | $202,040 | 4,900 |
| 6 | Kentucky | $302,340 | 6,260 | $168,100 | 800 |
| 7 | Washington | $298,560 | 3,450 | $149,860 | 890 |
| 8 | New York | $298,260 | 6,900 | $184,580 | 1,070 |
| 9 | Colorado | $290,850 | 5,830 | $152,820 | 1,240 |
| 10 | Connecticut | $282,160 | 80 | $231,650 | 460 |
| 11 | Texas | $275,710 | 10,930 | $152,090 | 4,120 |
| 12 | Minnesota | $256,750 | 2,960 | $123,240 | 910 |
| 13 | Florida | $254,420 | 7,760 | $145,320 | 6,340 |
| 14 | Alaska | $249,460 | 1,350 | $107,070 | 1,000 |
| 15 | Arizona | $236,550 | 2,200 | $119,320 | 1,540 |
| 16 | Ohio | $222,540 | 1,550 | $145,490 | 2,680 |
| 17 | Utah | $214,140 | 1,880 | $115,970 | 540 |
| 18 | Oregon | $209,040 | 750 | $144,320 | 670 |
| 19 | Nevada | $204,470 | 2,160 | $125,470 | 1,100 |
| 20 | Indiana | $200,950 | — | $125,910 | 960 |
| 21 | Maine | $195,680 | 40 | $139,890 | 100 |
| 22 | Rhode Island | $186,560 | 40 | $131,970 | 80 |
| 23 | Pennsylvania | $172,500 | 2,270 | $151,950 | 530 |
| 24 | Kansas | $163,070 | 80 | $111,540 | 680 |
| 25 | Nebraska | $156,450 | 60 | $103,300 | 290 |
| 26 | Alabama | $155,520 | 360 | $108,580 | 780 |
| 27 | Arkansas | $152,980 | 250 | $95,380 | 460 |
| 28 | Mississippi | $151,890 | 360 | $120,670 | 240 |
| 29 | New Hampshire | $151,790 | 50 | — | 440 |
| 30 | South Carolina | $150,970 | 110 | $108,640 | 290 |
| 31 | North Carolina | $148,500 | 2,240 | $138,680 | 1,520 |
| 32 | Iowa | $144,660 | 100 | $124,640 | 300 |
| 33 | Louisiana | $144,220 | 150 | $109,200 | 910 |
| 34 | Oklahoma | $144,000 | 180 | $136,510 | 540 |
| 35 | Tennessee | $142,700 | 110 | $126,190 | 1,030 |
| 36 | New Mexico | $141,570 | 50 | $114,690 | 370 |
| 37 | Missouri | $110,610 | 120 | $119,400 | 670 |
| — | Massachusetts | — | 2,240 | — | 160 |
| — | Wyoming | — | 80 | $106,190 | 190 |
Pay range and change since 2024
Median. 10th percentile $106,710, 90th $463,830. Mean $280,570 in 2024.
Median. 10th percentile $58,850, 90th $266,620. Mean $142,960 in 2024.
Pilot pay depends heavily on seniority and aircraft type, so the spread between the 10th and 90th percentiles is wide.
How to read these numbers
- State figures reflect where pilots' employers report them (often an airline's base), not where pilots live.
- BLS suppresses some state estimates when samples are too small or would reveal one employer.
- OEWS wages exclude per diem, profit sharing and other irregular pay, which can be significant for airline pilots.
Common questions
How much do airline pilots make?
A mean $288,650 and median $232,140 a year in May 2025 (BLS).
How much do commercial pilots make?
Mean $146,080, median $123,220.
Which state pays pilots the most?
Georgia had the highest mean airline-pilot wage ($476,310).
What is the difference between an airline pilot and a commercial pilot?
In BLS terms, airline pilots fly for scheduled passenger or cargo airlines; commercial pilots fly charters, air ambulances, crop dusters, tours and similar unscheduled work, and include many flight instructors.
Sources
Figures computed by CompareTheData.com from the official files below; the raw downloads are archived with the build. Where D.C. is included it is ranked alongside the states.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 and May 2024. May 2025 estimates, downloaded Oct 27, 2026.