Highest-paying jobs in Akron

·Stacker

PeopleImages.com - Yuri A // Shutterstock
PeopleImages.com - Yuri A // Shutterstock

Despite recession fears and falling consumer confidence, the job market in the United States has remained relatively stable in 2025 thus far. According to May 2025 Bureau of Labor Statistics data, around 177,000 new jobs were added in April, a slight decrease from the 185,000 new jobs added in the month before, but an extension of the country's 52-month streak of job growth. Unemployment rates also held relatively steady between April 2024 and April 2025, coming in at around 4%.

Of course, that doesn't necessarily mean Americans have it easy in the workplace. A December 2024 Payscale report found that nearly half (47%) of business organizations struggle to balance fair pay practices with spend optimization, and 18% plan to reduce pay increases in 2025 as a result.

For context, median weekly earnings across all employees in the U.S. stood at $1,194 in the first quarter of 2025. This represents an increase of 4.8% from a year prior and exceeds the Consumer Price Index's 2.7% increase in the same time period. However, there's one caveat: Earnings go much further in some places than in others.

In fact, the very definition of a "high-paying" job varies by location, as well as other factors such as industry and benefits. Even a six-figure salary may be considered low-income in places with an unusually high cost of living. Meanwhile, technology, finance, and health care jobs lead in terms of salary, but benefits like remote work can make other lower-paying jobs more desirable.

Regardless, anyone seeking a high-paying job should start by looking at the numbers. Stacker used BLS data to find the 50 highest-paying jobs in Akron. 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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#50. Occupational therapists

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1 / 50

#50. Occupational therapists

- Median annual wage: $99,440
- Median hourly wage: $47.81
- Total employment: 340 people (1.06 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#49. Industrial engineers

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2 / 50

#49. Industrial engineers

- Median annual wage: $99,750
- Median hourly wage: $47.96
- Total employment: 1,270 people (3.97 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#48. Public relations managers

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3 / 50

#48. Public relations managers

- Median annual wage: $99,930
- Median hourly wage: $48.04
- Total employment: 60 people (0.18 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#47. Physical therapists

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4 / 50

#47. Physical therapists

- Median annual wage: $100,340
- Median hourly wage: $48.24
- Total employment: 540 people (1.69 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#45. Financial risk specialists

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6 / 50

#45. Financial risk specialists

- Median annual wage: $100,970
- Median hourly wage: $48.55
- Total employment: 50 people (0.15 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#44. Electronics engineers, except computer

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7 / 50

#44. Electronics engineers, except computer

- Median annual wage: $101,040
- Median hourly wage: $48.58
- Total employment: 150 people (0.46 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#43. Software developers

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8 / 50

#43. Software developers

- Median annual wage: $101,110
- Median hourly wage: $48.61
- Total employment: 2,290 people (7.16 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#42. Information security analysts

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9 / 50

#42. Information security analysts

- Median annual wage: $101,130
- Median hourly wage: $48.62
- Total employment: 260 people (0.81 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#40. Industrial production managers

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11 / 50

#40. Industrial production managers

- Median annual wage: $102,290
- Median hourly wage: $49.18
- Total employment: 860 people (2.67 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#39. Materials engineers

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12 / 50

#39. Materials engineers

- Median annual wage: $102,310
- Median hourly wage: $49.19
- Total employment: 90 people (0.29 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#38. Web developers

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13 / 50

#38. Web developers

- Median annual wage: $102,390
- Median hourly wage: $49.22
- Total employment: 130 people (0.4 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#37. Medical and health services managers

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14 / 50

#37. Medical and health services managers

- Median annual wage: $102,400
- Median hourly wage: $49.23
- Total employment: 1,230 people (3.85 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#35. Computer programmers

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16 / 50

#35. Computer programmers

- Median annual wage: $103,330
- Median hourly wage: $49.68
- Total employment: 110 people (0.35 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#34. Materials scientists

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17 / 50

#34. Materials scientists

- Median annual wage: $103,350
- Median hourly wage: $49.69
- Total employment: 60 people (0.2 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#33. Engineers, all other

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18 / 50

#33. Engineers, all other

- Median annual wage: $104,920
- Median hourly wage: $50.44
- Total employment: 200 people (0.62 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#32. Database administrators

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19 / 50

#32. Database administrators

- Median annual wage: $105,250
- Median hourly wage: $50.60
- Total employment: 140 people (0.43 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#31. Chemical engineers

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20 / 50

#31. Chemical engineers

- Median annual wage: $105,660
- Median hourly wage: $50.80
- Total employment: 40 people (0.13 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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#30. Bioengineers and biomedical engineers

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21 / 50

#30. Bioengineers and biomedical engineers

- Median annual wage: $105,860
- Median hourly wage: $50.89
- Total employment: 80 people (0.26 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#29. Data scientists

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22 / 50

#29. Data scientists

- Median annual wage: $112,310
- Median hourly wage: $53.99
- Total employment: 320 people (1.01 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#28. Computer hardware engineers

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23 / 50

#28. Computer hardware engineers

- Median annual wage: $114,770
- Median hourly wage: $55.18
- Total employment: 70 people (0.22 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#27. Computer network architects

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24 / 50

#27. Computer network architects

- Median annual wage: $115,880
- Median hourly wage: $55.71
- Total employment: 220 people (0.68 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#25. Actuaries

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26 / 50

#25. Actuaries

- Median annual wage: $118,040
- Median hourly wage: $56.75
- Total employment: 50 people (0.15 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#24. Dentists, general

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27 / 50

#24. Dentists, general

- Median annual wage: $119,040
- Median hourly wage: $57.23
- Total employment: 250 people (0.79 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#23. Training and development managers

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28 / 50

#23. Training and development managers

- Median annual wage: $122,470
- Median hourly wage: $58.88
- Total employment: 50 people (0.14 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#22. Nurse practitioners

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29 / 50

#22. Nurse practitioners

- Median annual wage: $122,820
- Median hourly wage: $59.05
- Total employment: 740 people (2.31 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#21. Veterinarians

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30 / 50

#21. Veterinarians

- Median annual wage: $123,650
- Median hourly wage: $59.45
- Total employment: 200 people (0.64 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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#20. Lawyers

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31 / 50

#20. Lawyers

- Median annual wage: $125,680
- Median hourly wage: $60.42
- Total employment: 1,220 people (3.8 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#19. Managers, all other

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32 / 50

#19. Managers, all other

- Median annual wage: $126,270
- Median hourly wage: $60.71
- Total employment: 460 people (1.43 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#18. Physician assistants

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33 / 50

#18. Physician assistants

- Median annual wage: $127,740
- Median hourly wage: $61.41
- Total employment: 310 people (0.96 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#17. Natural sciences managers

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34 / 50

#17. Natural sciences managers

- Median annual wage: $127,890
- Median hourly wage: $61.49
- Total employment: 30 people (0.1 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#16. Sales managers

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35 / 50

#16. Sales managers

- Median annual wage: $128,710
- Median hourly wage: $61.88
- Total employment: 1,290 people (4.02 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

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#15. Database architects

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36 / 50

#15. Database architects

- Median annual wage: $129,120
- Median hourly wage: $62.08
- Total employment: 170 people (0.54 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#14. Financial managers

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37 / 50

#14. Financial managers

- Median annual wage: $132,410
- Median hourly wage: $63.66
- Total employment: 1,610 people (5.02 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#13. Pharmacists

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38 / 50

#13. Pharmacists

- Median annual wage: $134,000
- Median hourly wage: $64.42
- Total employment: 840 people (2.62 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#12. Human resources managers

Jacob Lund // Shutterstock

39 / 50

#12. Human resources managers

- Median annual wage: $134,030
- Median hourly wage: $64.44
- Total employment: 460 people (1.43 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#10. Marketing managers

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41 / 50

#10. Marketing managers

- Median annual wage: $138,250
- Median hourly wage: $66.47
- Total employment: 550 people (1.72 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#9. Optometrists

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42 / 50

#9. Optometrists

- Median annual wage: $139,600
- Median hourly wage: $67.11
- Total employment: 100 people (0.32 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#8. Architectural and engineering managers

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43 / 50

#8. Architectural and engineering managers

- Median annual wage: $158,960
- Median hourly wage: $76.42
- Total employment: 460 people (1.44 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#7. Computer and information systems managers

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44 / 50

#7. Computer and information systems managers

- Median annual wage: $161,840
- Median hourly wage: $77.81
- Total employment: 750 people (2.34 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#5. Nurse anesthetists

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46 / 50

#5. Nurse anesthetists

- Median annual wage: $185,140
- Median hourly wage: $89.01
- Total employment: 260 people (0.82 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#4. Physicians, all other

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47 / 50

#4. Physicians, all other

- Median annual wage: $213,900
- Median hourly wage: $102.84
- Total employment: 1,260 people (3.94 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#1. Family medicine physicians (tie)

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48 / 50

#1. Family medicine physicians (tie)

- Median annual wage: At least $239,200
- Median hourly wage: At least $115.00
- Total employment: 100 people (0.32 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#1. Psychiatrists (tie)

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49 / 50

#1. Psychiatrists (tie)

- Median annual wage: At least $239,200
- Median hourly wage: At least $115.00
- Total employment: 40 people (0.13 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)

#1. Radiologists (tie)

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50 / 50

#1. Radiologists (tie)

- Median annual wage: At least $239,200
- Median hourly wage: At least $115.00
- Total employment: Not available

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

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