Categories

WageDex organizes Bureau of Labor Statistics data into navigable categories so you can drill from high-level groupings into individual occupation, state, or metro pages.

Occupational Categories (SOC Major Groups)

The Standard Occupational Classification system groups all U.S. jobs into 22 major categories. Each category page lists every occupation in that group with median salary and employment.

Management Occupations

SOC 11-0000

Business and Financial Operations Occupations

SOC 13-0000

Computer and Mathematical Occupations

SOC 15-0000

Architecture and Engineering Occupations

SOC 17-0000

Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations

SOC 19-0000

Community and Social Service Occupations

SOC 21-0000

Legal Occupations

SOC 23-0000

Educational Instruction and Library Occupations

SOC 25-0000

Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media Occupations

SOC 27-0000

Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations

SOC 29-0000

Healthcare Support Occupations

SOC 31-0000

Protective Service Occupations

SOC 33-0000

Food Preparation and Serving Related Occupations

SOC 35-0000

Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance Occupations

SOC 37-0000

Personal Care and Service Occupations

SOC 39-0000

Sales and Related Occupations

SOC 41-0000

Office and Administrative Support Occupations

SOC 43-0000

Farming, Fishing, and Forestry Occupations

SOC 45-0000

Construction and Extraction Occupations

SOC 47-0000

Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Occupations

SOC 49-0000

Production Occupations

SOC 51-0000

Transportation and Material Moving Occupations

SOC 53-0000

Geographic Categories

States (54)

Every U.S. state with median salary, highest-paying jobs, and fastest-growing occupations.

Metro Areas

400+ metropolitan statistical areas with local pay premiums and cost-of-living context.

Analytical Categories

Rankings

Highest-paying, fastest-growing, most annual openings, largest employment.

Job Outlook

10-year growth projections, annual openings, education requirements per SOC code.

Workplace Safety

Fatality and injury rates per occupation from BLS CFOI and SOII.

Career Explorer

Filter by growth trajectory, education level, or required skills.

Methodology

WageDex categories mirror the structure of BLS publications. Occupational categories use the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) 2018 edition, which assigns every occupation a 6-digit code grouped into 22 major groups. Geographic categories use BLS Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) boundaries as defined by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) in OMB Bulletin 23-01 (July 2023).

Salary data on every category page comes from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2025 annual release. Growth and outlook figures come from BLS Employment Projections program, 2024–2034. Safety data draws from the BLS Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI) and the Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses (SOII), 2023.

Categories on this page are navigation lenses, not editorial curation – every grouping is mechanically defined by BLS taxonomy. For sampling, suppression, and confidence-interval details see the full methodology page.