Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
1 / 50#50. First-line supervisors of retail sales workers
- Median annual wage: $43,020
- Median hourly wage: $20.69
- Total employment: 290 people (8.74 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Highest-paying jobs in Bay City 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 Bay City 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.
You may also like: Highest-paying jobs in Bay City that require a graduate degree
Philip Lange // Shutterstock
2 / 50#49. Highway maintenance workers
- Median annual wage: $43,060
- Median hourly wage: $20.70
- Total employment: 30 people (0.92 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Evgeny Atamanenko // Shutterstock
3 / 50#48. Maintenance and repair workers, general
- Median annual wage: $43,140
- Median hourly wage: $20.74
- Total employment: 380 people (11.44 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Andrey_Popov // Shutterstock
4 / 50#47. Billing and posting clerks
- Median annual wage: $43,550
- Median hourly wage: $20.94
- Total employment: 120 people (3.48 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Glenn Highcove // Shutterstock
5 / 50#46. Industrial truck and tractor operators
- Median annual wage: $44,630
- Median hourly wage: $21.46
- Total employment: 160 people (4.65 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
You may also like: Cities with the fastest-growing home prices in the Bay City metro area
DC Studio // Shutterstock
6 / 50#45. Dispatchers, except police, fire, and ambulance
- Median annual wage: $44,880
- Median hourly wage: $21.58
- Total employment: 30 people (0.98 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Randy Hergenrether // Shutterstock
7 / 50#44. Construction laborers
- Median annual wage: $45,050
- Median hourly wage: $21.66
- Total employment: 200 people (5.86 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
8 / 50#43. Bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks
- Median annual wage: $45,240
- Median hourly wage: $21.75
- Total employment: 310 people (9.39 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Victor Moussa // Shutterstock
9 / 50#42. Firefighters
- Median annual wage: $45,380
- Median hourly wage: $21.82
- Total employment: 40 people (1.25 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
4 PM production // Shutterstock
10 / 50#41. Automotive service technicians and mechanics
- Median annual wage: $45,570
- Median hourly wage: $21.91
- Total employment: 210 people (6.44 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
You may also like: The 30 most popular homes for sale in Bay City
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
11 / 50#40. Driver/sales workers
- Median annual wage: $45,610
- Median hourly wage: $21.93
- Total employment: 170 people (5.12 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Syda Productions // Shutterstock
12 / 50#39. Dental assistants
- Median annual wage: $46,020
- Median hourly wage: $22.13
- Total employment: 80 people (2.52 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Tyler Olson // Shutterstock
13 / 50#38. Library technicians
- Median annual wage: $46,590
- Median hourly wage: $22.40
- Total employment: 40 people (1.24 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
brizmaker // Shutterstock
14 / 50#37. Roofers
- Median annual wage: $46,800
- Median hourly wage: $22.50
- Total employment: 60 people (1.66 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Oleksandr Berezko // Shutterstock
15 / 50#36. Painters, construction and maintenance
- Median annual wage: $46,880
- Median hourly wage: $22.54
- Total employment: 70 people (2.09 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
You may also like: Highest-paying jobs in Bay City that require a bachelor's degree
Lee Charlie // Shutterstock
16 / 50#35. Court, municipal, and license clerks
- Median annual wage: $47,220
- Median hourly wage: $22.70
- Total employment: 60 people (1.69 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Kitawit Jitaton // Shutterstock
17 / 50#34. Telecommunications line installers and repairers
- Median annual wage: $47,890
- Median hourly wage: $23.02
- Total employment: 50 people (1.39 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
David Spates // Shutterstock
18 / 50#33. Heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers
- Median annual wage: $48,300
- Median hourly wage: $23.22
- Total employment: 60 people (1.87 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
4 PM production // Shutterstock
19 / 50#32. Automotive body and related repairers
- Median annual wage: $48,480
- Median hourly wage: $23.31
- Total employment: 50 people (1.37 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
FabrikaSimf // Shutterstock
20 / 50#31. Carpenters
- Median annual wage: $48,790
- Median hourly wage: $23.46
- Total employment: 90 people (2.77 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
You may also like: Car insurance rates in Bay City October 2025
DenisProduction.com // Shutterstock
21 / 50#30. Chefs and head cooks
- Median annual wage: $49,100
- Median hourly wage: $23.61
- Total employment: 40 people (1.08 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Shift Drive // Shutterstock
22 / 50#29. Computer user support specialists
- Median annual wage: $51,140
- Median hourly wage: $24.59
- Total employment: 70 people (2.18 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
BigPixel Photo // Shutterstock
23 / 50#28. Machinists
- Median annual wage: $51,260
- Median hourly wage: $24.65
- Total employment: 180 people (5.41 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Zahovaev K // Shutterstock
24 / 50#27. Welders, cutters, solderers, and brazers
- Median annual wage: $52,460
- Median hourly wage: $25.22
- Total employment: 120 people (3.74 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Loveischiangrai // Shutterstock
25 / 50#26. First-line supervisors of landscaping, lawn service, and groundskeeping workers
- Median annual wage: $53,780
- Median hourly wage: $25.86
- Total employment: 40 people (1.22 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
You may also like: People from these metros are looking to buy homes in Bay City
Vitpho // Shutterstock
26 / 50#25. Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers
- Median annual wage: $54,790
- Median hourly wage: $26.34
- Total employment: 480 people (14.48 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Kot500 // Shutterstock
27 / 50#24. Bus and truck mechanics and diesel engine specialists
- Median annual wage: $56,590
- Median hourly wage: $27.21
- Total employment: 90 people (2.64 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Stock Rocket // Shutterstock
28 / 50#23. Sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing, except technical and scientific products
- Median annual wage: $57,060
- Median hourly wage: $27.43
- Total employment: 310 people (9.15 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Vera Larina // Shutterstock
29 / 50#22. Sheet metal workers
- Median annual wage: $57,470
- Median hourly wage: $27.63
- Total employment: 60 people (1.78 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
GaudiLab // Shutterstock
30 / 50#21. First-line supervisors of office and administrative support workers
- Median annual wage: $57,530
- Median hourly wage: $27.66
- Total employment: 220 people (6.55 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
You may also like: Highest-rated restaurants in Bay City by diners
Paolo Bona // Shutterstock
31 / 50#20. Food service managers
- Median annual wage: $57,570
- Median hourly wage: $27.68
- Total employment: 90 people (2.66 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
ALPA PROD // Shutterstock
32 / 50#19. First-line supervisors of transportation and material moving workers, except aircraft cargo handling supervisors
- Median annual wage: $58,070
- Median hourly wage: $27.92
- Total employment: 110 people (3.43 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Joey Chung // Shutterstock
33 / 50#18. Sales representatives of services, except advertising, insurance, financial services, and travel
- Median annual wage: $58,590
- Median hourly wage: $28.17
- Total employment: 130 people (3.94 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
34 / 50#17. Licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses
- Median annual wage: $58,890
- Median hourly wage: $28.31
- Total employment: 120 people (3.49 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Syda Productions // Shutterstock
35 / 50#16. Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants
- Median annual wage: $59,010
- Median hourly wage: $28.37
- Total employment: 50 people (1.37 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
You may also like: How much house does $500,000 buy you in Bay City?
g-stockstudio // Shutterstock
36 / 50#15. First-line supervisors of non-retail sales workers
- Median annual wage: $60,230
- Median hourly wage: $28.96
- Total employment: 50 people (1.51 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Bigflick // Shutterstock
37 / 50#14. Correctional officers and jailers
- Median annual wage: $60,640
- Median hourly wage: $29.15
- Total employment: 40 people (1.29 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Irene Miller // Shutterstock
38 / 50#13. Operating engineers and other construction equipment operators
- Median annual wage: $61,640
- Median hourly wage: $29.64
- Total employment: 130 people (3.99 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Oleg Golovnev // Shutterstock
39 / 50#12. First-line supervisors of production and operating workers
- Median annual wage: $62,400
- Median hourly wage: $30.00
- Total employment: 220 people (6.73 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Erin Deleon // Shutterstock
40 / 50#11. Postal service mail carriers
- Median annual wage: $62,500
- Median hourly wage: $30.05
- Total employment: 130 people (3.9 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
You may also like: Highest-paying computer and engineering jobs in Bay City
Etaphop photo // Shutterstock
41 / 50#10. Electricians
- Median annual wage: $66,770
- Median hourly wage: $32.10
- Total employment: 220 people (6.62 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Daniel M Ernst // Shutterstock
42 / 50#9. Eligibility interviewers, government programs
- Median annual wage: $67,290
- Median hourly wage: $32.35
- Total employment: 50 people (1.39 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
SritanaN // Shutterstock
43 / 50#8. Industrial machinery mechanics
- Median annual wage: $69,810
- Median hourly wage: $33.56
- Total employment: 190 people (5.7 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
pio3 // Shutterstock
44 / 50#7. Police and sheriff's patrol officers
- Median annual wage: $70,240
- Median hourly wage: $33.77
- Total employment: 190 people (5.59 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
sculpies // Shutterstock
45 / 50#6. First-line supervisors of construction trades and extraction workers
- Median annual wage: $71,130
- Median hourly wage: $34.20
- Total employment: 120 people (3.58 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
You may also like: Highest-paying jobs in Bay City for high school graduates
G-Stock Studio // Shutterstock
46 / 50#5. Production, planning, and expediting clerks
- Median annual wage: $74,250
- Median hourly wage: $35.70
- Total employment: 40 people (1.18 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Andrey_Popov // Shutterstock
47 / 50#4. Plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters
- Median annual wage: $74,400
- Median hourly wage: $35.77
- Total employment: 80 people (2.39 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
4 PM production // Shutterstock
48 / 50#3. First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers
- Median annual wage: $74,530
- Median hourly wage: $35.83
- Total employment: 130 people (3.78 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
goodluz // Shutterstock
49 / 50#2. Transportation, storage, and distribution managers
- Median annual wage: $75,740
- Median hourly wage: $36.41
- Total employment: 40 people (1.23 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Pixel B // Shutterstock
50 / 50#1. Tool and die makers
- Median annual wage: $84,610
- Median hourly wage: $40.68
- Total employment: 30 people (0.93 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.
You may also like: Biggest sources of immigrants to Bay City
