N.Z.Photography // Shutterstock
1 / 50#50. Computer occupations, all other
- Median annual wage: $75,710
- Median hourly wage: $36.40
- Total employment: 320 people (4.07 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Highest-paying jobs in Jefferson City
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 Jefferson City. 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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2 / 50#49. Registered nurses
- Median annual wage: $75,930
- Median hourly wage: $36.50
- Total employment: 1,450 people (18.64 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
3 / 50#48. Computer network architects
- Median annual wage: $76,910
- Median hourly wage: $36.97
- Total employment: 80 people (1.07 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Vera Larina // Shutterstock
4 / 50#47. Sheet metal workers
- Median annual wage: $77,390
- Median hourly wage: $37.21
- Total employment: 290 people (3.78 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
santi lumubol // Shutterstock
5 / 50#46. Aircraft mechanics and service technicians
- Median annual wage: $77,440
- Median hourly wage: $37.23
- Total employment: 30 people (0.44 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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6 / 50#45. First-line supervisors of construction trades and extraction workers
- Median annual wage: $77,580
- Median hourly wage: $37.30
- Total employment: 350 people (4.55 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Rawpixel.com //Shutterstock
7 / 50#44. Web developers
- Median annual wage: $77,850
- Median hourly wage: $37.43
- Total employment: 90 people (1.19 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
8 / 50#43. Mechanical engineers
- Median annual wage: $79,230
- Median hourly wage: $38.09
- Total employment: 40 people (0.57 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Natee K Jindakum // Shutterstock
9 / 50#42. Financial examiners
- Median annual wage: $79,390
- Median hourly wage: $38.17
- Total employment: 60 people (0.77 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
10 / 50#41. Computer systems analysts
- Median annual wage: $79,480
- Median hourly wage: $38.21
- Total employment: 90 people (1.16 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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11 / 50#40. Industrial engineers
- Median annual wage: $79,650
- Median hourly wage: $38.29
- Total employment: 90 people (1.14 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
12 / 50#39. Project management specialists
- Median annual wage: $80,250
- Median hourly wage: $38.58
- Total employment: 470 people (6.07 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
4 PM production // Shutterstock
13 / 50#38. First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers
- Median annual wage: $80,380
- Median hourly wage: $38.64
- Total employment: 340 people (4.32 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Unai Huizi Photography // Shutterstock
14 / 50#37. Dental hygienists
- Median annual wage: $80,650
- Median hourly wage: $38.78
- Total employment: 60 people (0.74 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
g-stockstudio // Shutterstock
15 / 50#36. First-line supervisors of non-retail sales workers
- Median annual wage: $80,760
- Median hourly wage: $38.83
- Total employment: 50 people (0.68 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
16 / 50#35. Database architects
- Median annual wage: $82,800
- Median hourly wage: $39.81
- Total employment: 50 people (0.67 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
BalanceFormCreative // Shutterstock
17 / 50#34. Information security analysts
- Median annual wage: $84,830
- Median hourly wage: $40.79
- Total employment: 50 people (0.59 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Quality Stock Arts // Shutterstock
18 / 50#33. Facilities managers
- Median annual wage: $85,340
- Median hourly wage: $41.03
- Total employment: 60 people (0.79 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Luisa Leal Photography // Shutterstock
19 / 50#32. Electrical power-line installers and repairers
- Median annual wage: $86,080
- Median hourly wage: $41.38
- Total employment: 310 people (3.98 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
wutzkohphoto // Shutterstock
20 / 50#31. Civil engineers
- Median annual wage: $86,130
- Median hourly wage: $41.41
- Total employment: 170 people (2.12 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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SpeedKingz // Shutterstock
21 / 50#30. Managers, all other
- Median annual wage: $87,420
- Median hourly wage: $42.03
- Total employment: 870 people (11.09 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Krakenimages.com // Shutterstock
22 / 50#29. Education administrators, kindergarten through secondary
- Median annual wage: $88,780
- Median hourly wage: Not available
- Total employment: 180 people (2.25 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Pressmaster // Shutterstock
23 / 50#28. Public relations managers
- Median annual wage: $90,020
- Median hourly wage: $43.28
- Total employment: 70 people (0.9 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
dokurose // Shutterstock
24 / 50#27. Sales managers
- Median annual wage: $90,250
- Median hourly wage: $43.39
- Total employment: 180 people (2.32 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
BGStock72 // Shutterstock
25 / 50#26. Engineering technologists and technicians, except drafters, all other
- Median annual wage: $90,320
- Median hourly wage: $43.42
- Total employment: 30 people (0.4 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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fizkes // Shutterstock
26 / 50#25. Clinical and counseling psychologists
- Median annual wage: $90,510
- Median hourly wage: $43.52
- Total employment: 60 people (0.76 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
creativemarc // Shutterstock
27 / 50#24. Administrative services managers
- Median annual wage: $91,690
- Median hourly wage: $44.08
- Total employment: 120 people (1.59 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Nicola Forenza // Shutterstock
28 / 50#23. Lawyers
- Median annual wage: $91,830
- Median hourly wage: $44.15
- Total employment: 450 people (5.71 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Aykut Erdogdu // Shutterstock
29 / 50#22. Physical therapists
- Median annual wage: $92,730
- Median hourly wage: $44.58
- Total employment: 60 people (0.72 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
goodluz // Shutterstock
30 / 50#21. Transportation, storage, and distribution managers
- Median annual wage: $93,020
- Median hourly wage: $44.72
- Total employment: 60 people (0.76 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
31 / 50#20. Electrical engineers
- Median annual wage: $94,660
- Median hourly wage: $45.51
- Total employment: 110 people (1.35 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
32 / 50#19. Medical and health services managers
- Median annual wage: $96,140
- Median hourly wage: $46.22
- Total employment: 220 people (2.77 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
fizkes // Shutterstock
33 / 50#18. Marketing managers
- Median annual wage: $96,550
- Median hourly wage: $46.42
- Total employment: 90 people (1.17 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
34 / 50#17. Education administrators, postsecondary
- Median annual wage: $96,780
- Median hourly wage: $46.53
- Total employment: 100 people (1.29 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Bannafarsai_Stock // Shutterstock
35 / 50#16. Construction managers
- Median annual wage: $97,680
- Median hourly wage: $46.96
- Total employment: 60 people (0.74 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Zivica Kerkez // Shutterstock
36 / 50#15. Veterinarians
- Median annual wage: $99,560
- Median hourly wage: $47.86
- Total employment: 40 people (0.52 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Ground Picture // Shutterstock
37 / 50#14. First-line supervisors of police and detectives
- Median annual wage: $99,650
- Median hourly wage: $47.91
- Total employment: 270 people (3.49 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Roman Samborskyi // Shutterstock
38 / 50#13. Software developers
- Median annual wage: $99,740
- Median hourly wage: $47.95
- Total employment: 250 people (3.16 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
39 / 50#12. Human resources managers
- Median annual wage: $100,650
- Median hourly wage: $48.39
- Total employment: 120 people (1.5 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Kanghophoto // Shutterstock
40 / 50#11. Financial managers
- Median annual wage: $106,000
- Median hourly wage: $50.96
- Total employment: 350 people (4.47 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Sunshine Seeds // Shutterstock
41 / 50#10. Industrial production managers
- Median annual wage: $111,360
- Median hourly wage: $53.54
- Total employment: 110 people (1.43 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Frame Stock Footage // Shutterstock
42 / 50#9. Computer and information systems managers
- Median annual wage: $114,930
- Median hourly wage: $55.26
- Total employment: 240 people (3.06 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
VE.Studio // Shutterstock
43 / 50#8. Natural sciences managers
- Median annual wage: $120,640
- Median hourly wage: $58.00
- Total employment: 30 people (0.44 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
44 / 50#7. Nurse practitioners
- Median annual wage: $124,850
- Median hourly wage: $60.03
- Total employment: 130 people (1.6 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Drazen Zigic // Shutterstock
45 / 50#6. Pharmacists
- Median annual wage: $127,930
- Median hourly wage: $61.51
- Total employment: 110 people (1.44 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
46 / 50#5. Chief executives
- Median annual wage: $132,350
- Median hourly wage: $63.63
- Total employment: 150 people (1.89 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
BOY ANTHONY // Shutterstock
47 / 50#4. Architectural and engineering managers
- Median annual wage: $134,530
- Median hourly wage: $64.68
- Total employment: 60 people (0.81 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Prostock-studio // Shutterstock
48 / 50#3. Dentists, general
- Median annual wage: $194,380
- Median hourly wage: $93.45
- Total employment: 50 people (0.58 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
wutzkohphoto // Shutterstock
49 / 50#2. Physicians, all other
- Median annual wage: $209,500
- Median hourly wage: $100.72
- Total employment: 70 people (0.86 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
PeopleImages.com - Yuri A // Shutterstock
50 / 50#1. Family medicine physicians
- Median annual wage: $223,230
- Median hourly wage: $107.32
- Total employment: 40 people (0.53 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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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