Highest-paying jobs in Las Vegas that don't require a college degree

Gen Z has figured out that college isn't the only way to land a high-paying job. According to the most recent data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, nearly 2 in 5 (38.6%) of recent high school graduates opted out of college in 2023, up from 33.8% in 2019.

This shift comes at a good time for high school grads, as companies face labor shortages for many jobs that don't require a college degree. Baby boomers retiring and a trend to reopen factories in the United States have both driven demand for young talent. A July 2024 Intelligent report found that 1 in 3 companies have already dropped bachelor's degree requirements across entry-level, mid-tier, and even senior positions to attract more employees.

The need for skilled workers, regardless of educational attainment, means better pay. Median wages for those with a high school degree are at their highest since 1990, according to the New York Federal Reserve.

At $40,000 on average, these wages are still $20,000 lower than those of a college grad. Yet nearly 1 in 5 workers who opt out of college earn more than employees with bachelor's degrees. Two million high school grads across the U.S. make six-figure annual salaries—without the financial burden of attending a four-year university. As of 2025, the average annual cost of college is more than $38,200 per student, and the average college graduate has more than $39,000 in student debt. It's little wonder that, according to a May 2024 survey from Pew Research, 29% of Americans think attending college is not worthwhile.

However, not every career field pays high school grads equally well, and understanding what the good jobs are is the first step to landing one. Stacker ranked the 50 highest-paying jobs that don't require a college degree in Las Vegas using annual compensation data from the BLS. The analysis included jobs that listed a high school diploma, a postsecondary nondegree award, or had no formal education requirements for entry-level positions. Jobs are ranked by their median annual pay as of May 2024, so any jobs without annual compensation figures available were excluded from this analysis.

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1 / 50

#50. Plant and system operators, all other

- Median annual wage: $65,130
- Median hourly wage: $31.31
- Total employment: Not available

Andrey_Popov // Shutterstock

2 / 50

#49. Meter readers, utilities

- Median annual wage: $65,330
- Median hourly wage: $31.41
- Total employment: 40 people (0.04 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

anatoliy_gleb // Shutterstock

3 / 50

#48. Solar photovoltaic installers

- Median annual wage: $66,070
- Median hourly wage: $31.77
- Total employment: 100 people (0.09 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

muratart // Shutterstock

4 / 50

#47. Pipelayers

- Median annual wage: $66,190
- Median hourly wage: $31.82
- Total employment: Not available

Oleksandr Nagaiets // Shutterstock

5 / 50

#46. Lighting technicians

- Median annual wage: $66,370
- Median hourly wage: $31.91
- Total employment: 330 people (0.3 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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6 / 50

#45. Musical instrument repairers and tuners

- Median annual wage: $66,460
- Median hourly wage: $31.95
- Total employment: Not available

XiXinXing // Shutterstock

7 / 50

#44. Medical records specialists

- Median annual wage: $68,680
- Median hourly wage: $33.02
- Total employment: 2,300 people (2.06 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

DenisKlimov // Shutterstock

8 / 50

#43. Aircraft cargo handling supervisors

- Median annual wage: $68,840
- Median hourly wage: $33.10
- Total employment: 140 people (0.13 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

welcomia // Shutterstock

9 / 50

#42. Mobile heavy equipment mechanics, except engines

- Median annual wage: $68,910
- Median hourly wage: $33.13
- Total employment: 1,150 people (1.02 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

g-stockstudio // Shutterstock

10 / 50

#41. First-line supervisors of non-retail sales workers

- Median annual wage: $70,990
- Median hourly wage: $34.13
- Total employment: 1,170 people (1.05 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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11 / 50

#40. Telecommunications equipment installers and repairers, except line installers

- Median annual wage: $71,250
- Median hourly wage: $34.25
- Total employment: 780 people (0.7 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

ITisha // Shutterstock

12 / 50

#39. Bailiffs

- Median annual wage: $72,070
- Median hourly wage: $34.65
- Total employment: 160 people (0.14 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Jat306 // Shutterstock

13 / 50

#38. Millwrights

- Median annual wage: $72,620
- Median hourly wage: $34.91
- Total employment: 70 people (0.06 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

refrina // Shutterstock

14 / 50

#37. Animal control workers

- Median annual wage: $73,310
- Median hourly wage: $35.24
- Total employment: 40 people (0.04 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Jacob Lund // Shutterstock

15 / 50

#36. Licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses

- Median annual wage: $73,650
- Median hourly wage: $35.41
- Total employment: 2,410 people (2.15 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

4 PM production // Shutterstock

16 / 50

#35. First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers

- Median annual wage: $74,340
- Median hourly wage: $35.74
- Total employment: 3,340 people (2.98 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock

17 / 50

#34. Surveying and mapping technicians

- Median annual wage: $75,300
- Median hourly wage: $36.20
- Total employment: 220 people (0.2 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Kmpzzz // Shutterstock

18 / 50

#33. Construction and building inspectors

- Median annual wage: $75,670
- Median hourly wage: $36.38
- Total employment: 730 people (0.66 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Gerain0812 // Shutterstock

19 / 50

#32. Surgical technologists

- Median annual wage: $76,740
- Median hourly wage: $36.89
- Total employment: 880 people (0.78 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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20 / 50

#31. Correctional officers and jailers

- Median annual wage: $76,800
- Median hourly wage: $36.92
- Total employment: 2,060 people (1.84 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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21 / 50

#30. Insurance appraisers, auto damage

- Median annual wage: $78,360
- Median hourly wage: $37.67
- Total employment: 50 people (0.05 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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22 / 50

#29. Media and communication equipment workers, all other

- Median annual wage: $78,460
- Median hourly wage: $37.72
- Total employment: 280 people (0.25 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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23 / 50

#28. Lodging managers

- Median annual wage: $78,570
- Median hourly wage: $37.77
- Total employment: 400 people (0.36 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

pio3 // Shutterstock

24 / 50

#27. Police and sheriff's patrol officers

- Median annual wage: $78,670
- Median hourly wage: $37.82
- Total employment: 4,080 people (3.65 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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25 / 50

#26. First-line supervisors of protective service workers, all other

- Median annual wage: $78,980
- Median hourly wage: $37.97
- Total employment: 330 people (0.3 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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Roman023_photography // Shutterstock

26 / 50

#25. Riggers

- Median annual wage: $79,090
- Median hourly wage: $38.02
- Total employment: 480 people (0.42 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

sculpies // Shutterstock

27 / 50

#24. First-line supervisors of construction trades and extraction workers

- Median annual wage: $79,980
- Median hourly wage: $38.45
- Total employment: 6,340 people (5.67 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Kitawit Jitaton // Shutterstock

28 / 50

#23. Sound engineering technicians

- Median annual wage: $80,470
- Median hourly wage: $38.69
- Total employment: 140 people (0.12 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Andrey_Popov // Shutterstock

29 / 50

#22. Carpet installers

- Median annual wage: $82,270
- Median hourly wage: $39.56
- Total employment: 730 people (0.65 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Avatar_023 // Shutterstock

30 / 50

#21. Water and wastewater treatment plant and system operators

- Median annual wage: $83,830
- Median hourly wage: $40.30
- Total employment: 410 people (0.36 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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31 / 50

#20. Transportation, storage, and distribution managers

- Median annual wage: $84,100
- Median hourly wage: $40.43
- Total employment: 1,380 people (1.23 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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32 / 50

#19. Avionics technicians

- Median annual wage: $86,800
- Median hourly wage: $41.73
- Total employment: Not available

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33 / 50

#18. First-line supervisors of firefighting and prevention workers

- Median annual wage: $86,950
- Median hourly wage: $41.81
- Total employment: 560 people (0.5 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

HannaTor // Shutterstock

34 / 50

#17. Gambling managers

- Median annual wage: $92,270
- Median hourly wage: $44.36
- Total employment: 550 people (0.49 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

funnyangel // Shutterstock

35 / 50

#16. Fire inspectors and investigators

- Median annual wage: $94,560
- Median hourly wage: $45.46
- Total employment: 130 people (0.11 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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36 / 50

#15. Detectives and criminal investigators

- Median annual wage: $95,590
- Median hourly wage: $45.96
- Total employment: 440 people (0.4 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Suwin // Shutterstock

37 / 50

#14. Electrical and electronics repairers, powerhouse, substation, and relay

- Median annual wage: $97,070
- Median hourly wage: $46.67
- Total employment: 70 people (0.06 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Washburn HM // Shutterstock

38 / 50

#13. Transportation inspectors

- Median annual wage: $98,560
- Median hourly wage: $47.39
- Total employment: 140 people (0.12 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

santi lumubol // Shutterstock

39 / 50

#12. Aircraft mechanics and service technicians

- Median annual wage: $99,510
- Median hourly wage: $47.84
- Total employment: 1,800 people (1.6 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Magsi // Shutterstock

40 / 50

#11. Electrical and electronics installers and repairers, transportation equipment

- Median annual wage: $99,540
- Median hourly wage: $47.86
- Total employment: 100 people (0.09 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Onk-Q // Shutterstock

41 / 50

#10. Reinforcing iron and rebar workers

- Median annual wage: $99,570
- Median hourly wage: $47.87
- Total employment: 310 people (0.27 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Rebekah Zemansky // Shutterstock

42 / 50

#9. First-line supervisors of correctional officers

- Median annual wage: $107,810
- Median hourly wage: $51.83
- Total employment: 100 people (0.09 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

michaeljung // Shutterstock

43 / 50

#8. Power plant operators

- Median annual wage: $108,000
- Median hourly wage: $51.92
- Total employment: 160 people (0.14 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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44 / 50

#7. Insulation workers, mechanical

- Median annual wage: $108,640
- Median hourly wage: $52.23
- Total employment: Not available

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45 / 50

#6. Surgical assistants

- Median annual wage: $110,020
- Median hourly wage: $52.90
- Total employment: Not available

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46 / 50

#5. Electrical power-line installers and repairers

- Median annual wage: $120,260
- Median hourly wage: $57.82
- Total employment: 600 people (0.54 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Vladeep // Shutterstock

47 / 50

#4. Crane and tower operators

- Median annual wage: $132,560
- Median hourly wage: $63.73
- Total employment: Not available

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48 / 50

#3. First-line supervisors of police and detectives

- Median annual wage: $133,660
- Median hourly wage: $64.26
- Total employment: 760 people (0.68 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Lovely Bird // Shutterstock

49 / 50

#2. Power distributors and dispatchers

- Median annual wage: $133,910
- Median hourly wage: $64.38
- Total employment: 80 people (0.07 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

Skycolors // Shutterstock

50 / 50

#1. Commercial pilots

- Median annual wage: $133,990
- Median hourly wage: Not available
- Total employment: 1,400 people (1.25 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

This story features data reporting by Wade Zhou, writing by Jill Jaracz, and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 364 metros.

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