Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations
BLS May 2025 wages Peer-group outlier SOC 29-2081

Opticians, Dispensing

Median pay sits 86% below the mid peer in Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations (neighbors include Pediatric Surgeons, Obstetricians and Gynecologists, Surgeons, All Other, Anesthesiologists).

Full salary details → About this data

Same-major-group titles next to Opticians, Dispensing: Pediatric Surgeons ($559K) , Obstetricians and Gynecologists ($293K) , Surgeons, All Other ($414K) , Anesthesiologists ($391K) . Hash-ordered per card so residual SOC siblings do not share an identical peer sentence.

What Opticians, Dispensing publish as work

O*NET task statements for SOC 29-2081 - occupation-level descriptions, not every employer's posting. Sibling cards diverge here because the task set is entity-keyed.

  1. 1. Measure clients' bridge and eye size, temple length, vertex distance, pupillary distance, and optical centers of eyes, using measuring de…
  2. 2. Verify that finished lenses are ground to specifications
  3. 3. Evaluate prescriptions in conjunction with clients' vocational and avocational visual requirements
  4. 4. Recommend specific lenses, lens coatings, and frames to suit client needs
  5. 5. Assist clients in selecting frames according to style and color, and ensure that frames are coordinated with facial and eye measurements…
  6. 6. Maintain records of customer prescriptions, work orders, and payments
  7. 7. Heat, shape, or bend plastic or metal frames to adjust eyeglasses to fit clients, using pliers and hands
  8. 8. Show customers how to insert, remove, and care for their contact lenses
  9. 9. Determine clients' current lens prescriptions, when necessary, using lensometers or lens analyzers and clients' eyeglasses
  10. 10. Prepare work orders and instructions for grinding lenses and fabricating eyeglasses
  11. 11. Obtain a customer's previous record, or verify a prescription with the examining optometrist or ophthalmologist
  12. 12. Sell goods such as contact lenses, spectacles, sunglasses, and goods related to eyes, in general

Opticians, Dispensing: O*NET ranks Speaking first

Importance-ranked O*NET profile for SOC 29-2081 - lead skill Speaking at 4.0 ; lead knowledge Customer and Personal Service. Sibling cards diverge here even when peer titles overlap.

Top skills

  1. 1. Speaking 4.0
  2. 2. Active Listening 3.9
  3. 3. Reading Comprehension 3.8
  4. 4. Critical Thinking 3.5
  5. 5. Service Orientation 3.5
  6. 6. Writing 3.3
  7. 7. Social Perceptiveness 3.3
  8. 8. Coordination 3.3

Knowledge areas

  1. 1. Customer and Personal Service 4.9
  2. 2. Sales and Marketing 4.3
  3. 3. Mathematics 3.9
  4. 4. Production and Processing 3.8
  5. 5. Administrative 3.8
  6. 6. English Language 3.7
Pay vs Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations peers
-86%
vs mid peer median $335,550
This role $47,260/yr
$47K
National median
↑ +3%
Growth 2024-2034
6,800
Annual openings
73,530
Estimated US jobs
Pediatric Surgeons
Highest-pay peer · $559K

Typical Entry and Preparation Assignments

Entry education High school diploma or equivalent

Top Paying States for Opticians, Dispensing

1. Florida $58,850
2. Massachusetts $67,210
3. New Jersey $72,460
4. Vermont $57,350
5. Hawaii $75,300
6. California $57,990
7. District of Columbia $61,310
8. Connecticut $75,300
9. Alaska $58,250
10. New York $63,880

Other Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations titles

  1. 1. Surgeons, All Other $414,010
  2. 2. Anesthesiologists $391,490
  3. 3. Emergency Medicine Physicians $335,550
  4. 4. Pediatric Surgeons $559,030
  5. 5. Prosthodontists $311,180
  6. 6. Obstetricians and Gynecologists $292,910

Among Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations peers on this card, Opticians, Dispensing sits 86% below the mid peer median ($335,550). Its own median is $47,260.

Employment Projections expect +3% change between 2024 and 2034 (about as fast as average vs baseline 3.1%). About 6,800 annual openings are projected. BLS assigns High school diploma or equivalent as typical education needed for entry. These are occupation-level assignments, not universal requirements. BLS does not publish a separate occupation-specific safety rate for this role; its broad SOC-group rate is excluded from this career card's grade.

Highest published state median in this ranking: Florida at $58,850. The table records differences without proving causes. Highest-pay peer shown here: Pediatric Surgeons at $559,030. Compare the same statistic in the relevant local wage area before treating the national median as a personal benchmark; OEWS excludes employer benefits.

Opticians, Dispensing pay-rank #66 in Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations

On the Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations median table (71 detailed occupations with OEWS medians), Opticians, Dispensing lands at #66, in the lower third. That rank is a table position, not a statement about individual workers.

Other lower-third titles · closest medians

Full Salary Details Compare this role

Data from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025. Projections from BLS Employment Projections program, 2024-2034.

Opticians, Dispensing pays 86% below its major-group peer median. See the state map and the peers closest to (and furthest from) this line.

Opticians, Dispensing salary map

State, metro, and percentile for SOC 29-2081

Florida · top state for Opticians, Dispensing

$59K published median

Massachusetts · #2 state pay

$67K · behind Florida

Pediatric Surgeons

Highest-pay peer vs Opticians, Dispensing · $559K

Obstetricians and Gynecologists

Lower-pay peer beside Opticians, Dispensing · $293K

Compare Opticians, Dispensing

Head-to-head OEWS medians with another SOC
Compare Opticians, Dispensing with another occupation →

Peer-comparison next reads

Compare Opticians, Dispensing

Against another occupation

Pediatric Surgeons card

Top peer in this major group

Frequently Asked Questions

Where does Opticians, Dispensing land on the Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations median table? ▼
Opticians, Dispensing is pay-rank #66 of 71 in this major group, lower third of the median table. Closest lower-third titles: Veterinary Technologists and Technicians ($47K), Pharmacy Technicians ($46K), Ophthalmic Medical Technicians ($46K), Psychiatric Technicians ($45K). That position is a table rank, not a worker percentile.
What do opticians, dispensing do day to day? ▼
O*NET lists published task statements for Opticians, Dispensing. Leading ones include: Measure clients' bridge and eye size, temple length, vertex distance, pupillary distance, and optical centers of eyes, using measuring de…; Verify that finished lenses are ground to specifications; Evaluate prescriptions in conjunction with clients' vocational and avocational visual requirements; Recommend specific lenses, lens coatings, and frames to suit client needs. These are occupation-level task descriptions, not every employer's job description.
Which O*NET skills rank highest for opticians, dispensing? ▼
For SOC 29-2081, O*NET importance scores lead with Speaking (4.0), Active Listening (3.9), Reading Comprehension (3.8), Critical Thinking (3.5). Knowledge areas emphasize Customer and Personal Service, Sales and Marketing, Mathematics. These are occupation-level profiles, not a hiring checklist for every employer.
What is the OEWS national median for Opticians, Dispensing? ▼
May 2025 OEWS reports $47,260 as the national median for Opticians, Dispensing. The published 10th-90th range is $35,610 to $76,750. Beside Pediatric Surgeons ($559,030), this is the occupation-level national figure, not a local offer.
What employment change does BLS publish for Opticians, Dispensing? ▼
The 2024-2034 projection for Opticians, Dispensing is +3%. Projected annual openings: about 6,800. Relative to the current all-occupations baseline of 3.1%: about as fast as average.
What typical entry education does BLS assign to Opticians, Dispensing? ▼
BLS assigns High school diploma or equivalent as the typical-education-needed-for-entry category for Opticians, Dispensing. These are occupation-level labels, not every employer's hiring rule.
Which three states show the highest OEWS medians for Opticians, Dispensing? ▼
Florida ($58,850), Massachusetts ($67,210), New Jersey ($72,460) lead this ranking. The table does not identify why those state estimates differ.

Source data and WageDex calculations are identified in context on this page. Wage and state figures use BLS OEWS May 2025; growth and education use BLS Employment Projections for 2024-2034; safety fields cite BLS CFOI/SOII; task statements cite O*NET where shown. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.

Disclaimer: Wage and outlook figures on this page are provided for informational purposes only and do not constitute career, financial, or salary-negotiation advice. Actual pay varies by employer, experience, and local conditions; consult a career counselor or the hiring employer for guidance specific to your situation.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OES Occupational wage estimates by area and industry · 2025

Federal sources on this Opticians, Dispensing card
  • BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS / OES) - national median and percentiles for SOC 29-2081. bls.gov/oes
  • O*NET OnLine - task and skill statements for Opticians, Dispensing. onetcenter.org
  • BLS Employment Projections - 2024-2034 change and openings for this occupation. bls.gov/emp
  • U.S. Census Bureau ACS - demographic and labor-force context for state and metro geography. census.gov/programs-surveys/acs
  • IRS Statistics of Income (SOI) - payroll-tax aggregate context for wage comparisons. irs.gov/statistics