Highest Paying Jobs in Montana

Top 100 occupations ranked by median annual salary, Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025

Highest Salary

$560,820

Orthopedic Surgeons, Except Pediatric

Top 25 Average

$200,979

median salary

$100K+ Jobs

occupations

Occupations

100

with wage data

This ranking surfaces the 100 highest-paying occupations in Montana by BLS OEWS state median salary, drawn from the May 2025 release. At the top, Orthopedic Surgeons, Except Pediatric pays a state median of $560,820, +56% above the national median of $358,550 for the same role. Of the 100 tracked positions, 59 pay above $100,000 per year in Montana - a useful threshold for separating specialist professional roles from mid-tier employment. The top-10 average sits at $306,936, giving a sense of what elite specialists inside this state actually clear.

The "Difference" column compares each state median to the corresponding national median for the same SOC code, making pay premiums and discounts immediately visible. In this list, 30 of 100 occupations pay above the national median in Montana, which usually signals one of three things: a local concentration of specialized employers (finance hubs, tech clusters, research universities, federal agencies), a cost-of-living adjustment baked into state-wide wage scales, or scarce in-state talent supply bidding up competitive roles. Occupations paying below the national median are not necessarily bad news, they often reflect lower cost of living in the state or industries where Montana is not a concentrated employer.

Rankings like this show ceiling-potential by specialty, but they don't tell you the odds of landing one of those roles. Pair this table with the employment column (how many workers the state actually employs in each occupation) and the growth projections on each occupation's national page to see whether the field is expanding or contracting. BLS wages exclude benefits, bonuses, and overtime, especially distorting for top-paying roles where equity and performance compensation can represent 30-50% of total pay. Use this leaderboard to shortlist careers worth exploring in Montana, then drill into each row's linked profile to check percentile spread, typical education, metro-level variation, and whether projected openings match your timeline.

#	Occupation	State Median	National	Difference	Employment
1	Orthopedic Surgeons, Except Pediatric Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations	$560,820	$358,550	+56% above	N/A
2	Physicians, All Other Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations	$438,850	$265,930	+65% above	580
3	Radiologists Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations	$360,330	$420,860	14% below	110
4	Family Medicine Physicians Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations	$330,760	$244,180	+35% above	460
5	Orthodontists Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations	$312,840	$289,140	+8% above	N/A
6	Nurse Anesthetists Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations	$277,380	$236,590	+17% above	N/A
7	Pediatricians, General Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations	$273,260	$210,040	+30% above	50
8	Chief Executives Management Occupations	$182,340	$213,990	15% below	670
9	Dentists, General Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations	$167,200	$170,950	2% below	380
10	Marketing Managers Management Occupations	$165,580	$166,790	1% below	N/A
11	Architectural and Engineering Managers Management Occupations	$146,030	$171,270	15% below	560
12	Pharmacists Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations	$142,080	$140,910	+1% above	1,190
13	Physician Assistants Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations	$141,470	$135,880	+4% above	600
14	Nurse Practitioners Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations	$137,210	$132,300	+4% above	1,260
15	Computer and Information Systems Managers Management Occupations	$132,860	$175,140	24% below	1,180
16	Advertising and Promotions Managers Management Occupations	$131,770	$133,660	1% below	N/A
17	Financial Managers Management Occupations	$131,060	$166,570	21% below	1,510
18	Administrative Services Managers Management Occupations	$129,670	$114,130	+14% above	400
19	Chemical Engineers Architecture and Engineering Occupations	$127,490	$125,040	+2% above	80
20	Psychologists, All Other Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations	$126,960	$110,840	+15% above	40
21	Purchasing Managers Management Occupations	$123,480	$148,080	17% below	160
22	Healthcare Diagnosing or Treating Practitioners, All Other Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations	$122,930	$115,210	+7% above	110
23	Software Developers Computer and Mathematical Occupations	$121,990	$135,980	10% below	2,160
24	Industrial Production Managers Management Occupations	$120,690	$126,060	4% below	270
25	Natural Sciences Managers Management Occupations	$119,430	$167,220	29% below	370
26	Sales Managers Management Occupations	$117,390	$148,270	21% below	1,200
27	Human Resources Managers Management Occupations	$115,280	$149,280	23% below	530
28	Managers, All Other Management Occupations	$110,470	$141,900	22% below	1,600
29	Electrical Power-Line Installers and Repairers Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Occupations	$110,320	$95,320	+16% above	680
30	Farmers, Ranchers, and Other Agricultural Managers Management Occupations	$110,250	$89,900	+23% above	30
31	Database Architects Computer and Mathematical Occupations	$109,990	$139,500	21% below	N/A
32	Political Science Teachers, Postsecondary Educational Instruction and Library Occupations	$109,050	$98,070	+11% above	N/A
33	Atmospheric and Space Scientists Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations	$108,890	$99,070	+10% above	70
34	Transportation, Storage, and Distribution Managers Management Occupations	$108,180	$107,230	+1% above	300
35	Power Plant Operators Production Occupations	$106,040	$102,040	+4% above	130
36	Medical and Health Services Managers Management Occupations	$105,840	$123,860	15% below	1,870
37	Mining and Geological Engineers, Including Mining Safety Engineers Architecture and Engineering Occupations	$105,410	$106,220	1% below	110
38	Radiation Therapists Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations	$105,400	$105,310	same as	50
39	Construction Managers Management Occupations	$104,480	$114,990	9% below	2,140
40	Industrial Engineers Architecture and Engineering Occupations	$104,430	$102,440	+2% above	390
41	Computer Network Architects Computer and Mathematical Occupations	$104,300	$134,050	22% below	250
42	Optometrists Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations	$104,280	$136,570	24% below	140
43	Forestry and Conservation Science Teachers, Postsecondary Educational Instruction and Library Occupations	$104,220	$101,420	+3% above	60
44	Petroleum Engineers Architecture and Engineering Occupations	$104,060	$144,910	28% below	N/A
45	Software Quality Assurance Analysts and Testers Computer and Mathematical Occupations	$103,930	$104,300	same as	150
46	Physicists Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations	$103,800	$172,250	40% below	30
47	Lawyers Legal Occupations	$103,720	$159,670	35% below	2,380
48	Commercial Pilots Transportation and Material Moving Occupations	$103,690	$123,220	16% below	330
49	Education Administrators, Postsecondary Management Occupations	$102,980	$104,590	2% below	300
50	Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations	$101,950	$103,410	1% below	320
51	Air Traffic Controllers Transportation and Material Moving Occupations	$101,380	$148,080	32% below	60
52	Health Specialties Teachers, Postsecondary Educational Instruction and Library Occupations	$101,220	$107,310	6% below	370
53	Engineering Teachers, Postsecondary Educational Instruction and Library Occupations	$101,170	$109,270	7% below	280
54	Diagnostic Medical Sonographers Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations	$101,000	$96,590	+5% above	230
55	Financial Risk Specialists Business and Financial Operations Occupations	$100,920	$117,330	14% below	50
56	Data Scientists Computer and Mathematical Occupations	$100,490	$120,230	16% below	220
57	Nuclear Medicine Technologists Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations	$100,490	$101,370	1% below	50
58	Biological Science Teachers, Postsecondary Educational Instruction and Library Occupations	$100,480	$84,620	+19% above	110
59	Environmental Engineers Architecture and Engineering Occupations	$100,140	$107,110	7% below	300
60	Public Relations Managers Management Occupations	$99,990	$146,910	32% below	180
61	Veterinarians Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations	$99,390	$130,100	24% below	510
62	Financial and Investment Analysts Business and Financial Operations Occupations	$99,190	$102,740	3% below	440
63	Training and Development Managers Management Occupations	$98,950	$133,000	26% below	70
64	Dental Hygienists Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations	$98,440	$98,100	same as	860
65	Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers Production Occupations	$98,310	$96,710	+2% above	550
66	Physics Teachers, Postsecondary Educational Instruction and Library Occupations	$98,050	$100,310	2% below	70
67	Environmental Science Teachers, Postsecondary Educational Instruction and Library Occupations	$97,890	$94,980	+3% above	60
68	Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors Architecture and Engineering Occupations	$97,670	$115,160	15% below	60
69	Management Analysts Business and Financial Operations Occupations	$97,470	$101,860	4% below	1,590
70	Engineers, All Other Architecture and Engineering Occupations	$97,470	$122,930	21% below	240
71	Personal Financial Advisors Business and Financial Operations Occupations	$97,450	$105,070	7% below	N/A
72	Electrical and Electronics Repairers, Powerhouse, Substation, and Relay Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Occupations	$97,380	$103,020	5% below	130
73	Architects, Except Landscape and Naval Architecture and Engineering Occupations	$97,290	$99,280	2% below	550
74	Electrical and Electronics Installers and Repairers, Transportation Equipment Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Occupations	$96,560	$84,890	+14% above	50
75	Facilities Managers Management Occupations	$96,100	$106,660	10% below	340
76	Education Administrators, Kindergarten through Secondary Management Occupations	$95,700	$105,870	10% below	930
77	Physical Scientists, All Other Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations	$94,520	$122,570	23% below	100
78	Mechanical Engineers Architecture and Engineering Occupations	$94,190	$104,110	10% below	500
79	Agricultural Sciences Teachers, Postsecondary Educational Instruction and Library Occupations	$93,470	$98,700	5% below	160
80	Electronics Engineers, Except Computer Architecture and Engineering Occupations	$93,380	$130,220	28% below	140
81	Civil Engineers Architecture and Engineering Occupations	$93,070	$100,840	8% below	1,870
82	Detectives and Criminal Investigators Protective Service Occupations	$92,410	$93,790	1% below	500
83	Biological Scientists, All Other Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations	$91,560	$98,920	7% below	550
84	Physical Therapists Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations	$91,450	$102,760	11% below	1,180
85	General and Operations Managers Management Occupations	$91,380	$105,770	14% below	11,840
86	Computer Systems Analysts Computer and Mathematical Occupations	$91,310	$105,850	14% below	850
87	Elevator and Escalator Installers and Repairers Construction and Extraction Occupations	$90,370	$109,910	18% below	40
88	Locomotive Engineers Transportation and Material Moving Occupations	$90,220	$81,410	+11% above	470
89	Computer Programmers Computer and Mathematical Occupations	$89,920	$100,390	10% below	N/A
90	First-Line Supervisors of Police and Detectives Protective Service Occupations	$89,380	$106,040	16% below	450
91	Economists Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations	$89,340	$124,720	28% below	90
92	Occupational Therapists Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations	$88,990	$100,330	11% below	420
93	Postmasters and Mail Superintendents Management Occupations	$88,920	$96,660	8% below	170
94	Project Management Specialists Business and Financial Operations Occupations	$87,890	$102,320	14% below	2,940
95	Microbiologists Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations	$87,750	$87,990	same as	80
96	Electrical Engineers Architecture and Engineering Occupations	$87,360	$120,630	28% below	790
97	Audiologists Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations	$86,990	$95,780	9% below	60
98	Magnetic Resonance Imaging Technologists Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations	$86,950	$95,480	9% below	150
99	Registered Nurses Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations	$85,280	$97,550	13% below	10,950
100	Funeral Home Managers Management Occupations	$84,900	$78,790	+8% above	50

More ways to explore Montana pay and compare with national data.

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Orthopedic Surgeons, Except Pediatric

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About This Data

All salary data comes from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2025. State-level data reflects wages for workers employed in Montana. The "Difference" column shows how Montana pay compares to the national median for that occupation.

Every figure on WageDex is rendered directly from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics wage data, no number is typed in by an editor. These figures are computed directly from BLS OEWS state-level wage data. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of May 2025.

Compiled by WageDex Editorial, Occupational Wages Editorial Team · May 15, 2026

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