Quality Stock Arts // Shutterstock
1 / 50#50. Facilities managers
- Median annual wage: $92,650
- Median hourly wage: $44.54
- Total employment: 80 people (0.51 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Highest-paying jobs in Roanoke
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 Roanoke. 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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Rido // Shutterstock
2 / 50#49. Social workers, all other
- Median annual wage: $92,850
- Median hourly wage: $44.64
- Total employment: 90 people (0.57 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Chaay_Tee // Shutterstock
3 / 50#48. Data scientists
- Median annual wage: $94,960
- Median hourly wage: $45.65
- Total employment: 70 people (0.43 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
fizkes // Shutterstock
4 / 50#47. General and operations managers
- Median annual wage: $95,940
- Median hourly wage: $46.12
- Total employment: 2,910 people (19.12 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Bannafarsai_Stock // Shutterstock
5 / 50#46. Construction managers
- Median annual wage: $96,150
- Median hourly wage: $46.23
- Total employment: 290 people (1.9 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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ABO PHOTOGRAPHY // Shutterstock
6 / 50#45. Occupational therapists
- Median annual wage: $96,530
- Median hourly wage: $46.41
- Total employment: 210 people (1.39 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Ground Picture // Shutterstock
7 / 50#44. First-line supervisors of police and detectives
- Median annual wage: $97,240
- Median hourly wage: $46.75
- Total employment: 120 people (0.79 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
8 / 50#43. Computer network architects
- Median annual wage: $98,040
- Median hourly wage: $47.13
- Total employment: 120 people (0.77 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Krakenimages.com // Shutterstock
9 / 50#42. Education administrators, kindergarten through secondary
- Median annual wage: $98,410
- Median hourly wage: Not available
- Total employment: 340 people (2.22 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
N.Z.Photography // Shutterstock
10 / 50#41. Computer occupations, all other
- Median annual wage: $98,700
- Median hourly wage: $47.45
- Total employment: 100 people (0.69 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
11 / 50#40. Mechanical engineers
- Median annual wage: $98,920
- Median hourly wage: $47.56
- Total employment: 300 people (1.96 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Roman Samborskyi // Shutterstock
12 / 50#39. Software quality assurance analysts and testers
- Median annual wage: $99,140
- Median hourly wage: $47.67
- Total employment: 60 people (0.41 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Roman Samborskyi // Shutterstock
13 / 50#38. Software developers
- Median annual wage: $99,700
- Median hourly wage: $47.93
- Total employment: 840 people (5.55 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
GaudiLab // Shutterstock
14 / 50#37. Personal financial advisors
- Median annual wage: $99,990
- Median hourly wage: $48.07
- Total employment: 180 people (1.19 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Stock Rocket // Shutterstock
15 / 50#36. Sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing, technical and scientific products
- Median annual wage: $100,110
- Median hourly wage: $48.13
- Total employment: 80 people (0.53 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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creativemarc // Shutterstock
16 / 50#35. Administrative services managers
- Median annual wage: $100,600
- Median hourly wage: $48.36
- Total employment: 60 people (0.42 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Aykut Erdogdu // Shutterstock
17 / 50#34. Physical therapists
- Median annual wage: $101,260
- Median hourly wage: $48.69
- Total employment: 340 people (2.23 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
18 / 50#33. Engineers, all other
- Median annual wage: $101,340
- Median hourly wage: $48.72
- Total employment: 70 people (0.45 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
19 / 50#32. Education administrators, postsecondary
- Median annual wage: $101,930
- Median hourly wage: $49.01
- Total employment: 70 people (0.46 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Zivica Kerkez // Shutterstock
20 / 50#31. Veterinarians
- Median annual wage: $103,350
- Median hourly wage: $49.69
- Total employment: 110 people (0.72 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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BalanceFormCreative // Shutterstock
21 / 50#30. Information security analysts
- Median annual wage: $104,600
- Median hourly wage: $50.29
- Total employment: 120 people (0.79 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
TaLaNoVa // Shutterstock
22 / 50#29. Sales engineers
- Median annual wage: $104,720
- Median hourly wage: $50.35
- Total employment: 50 people (0.33 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
23 / 50#28. Electrical engineers
- Median annual wage: $105,830
- Median hourly wage: $50.88
- Total employment: 220 people (1.42 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
VE.Studio // Shutterstock
24 / 50#27. Natural sciences managers
- Median annual wage: $106,750
- Median hourly wage: $51.32
- Total employment: 30 people (0.21 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Prath // Shutterstock
25 / 50#26. Detectives and criminal investigators
- Median annual wage: $106,810
- Median hourly wage: $51.35
- Total employment: 140 people (0.9 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Sunshine Seeds // Shutterstock
26 / 50#25. Industrial production managers
- Median annual wage: $110,400
- Median hourly wage: $53.08
- Total employment: 210 people (1.35 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Dmitry Kalinovsky // Shutterstock
27 / 50#24. Elevator and escalator installers and repairers
- Median annual wage: $111,840
- Median hourly wage: $53.77
- Total employment: 70 people (0.45 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Kzenon // Shutterstock
28 / 50#23. Optometrists
- Median annual wage: $113,030
- Median hourly wage: $54.34
- Total employment: 50 people (0.34 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
29 / 50#22. Purchasing managers
- Median annual wage: $115,080
- Median hourly wage: $55.33
- Total employment: 60 people (0.38 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
30 / 50#21. Medical and health services managers
- Median annual wage: $120,020
- Median hourly wage: $57.70
- Total employment: 570 people (3.73 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
31 / 50#20. Nurse practitioners
- Median annual wage: $122,030
- Median hourly wage: $58.67
- Total employment: 250 people (1.67 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
SpeedKingz // Shutterstock
32 / 50#19. Managers, all other
- Median annual wage: $122,180
- Median hourly wage: $58.74
- Total employment: 250 people (1.64 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Worawee Meepian // Shutterstock
33 / 50#18. Administrative law judges, adjudicators, and hearing officers
- Median annual wage: $122,370
- Median hourly wage: $58.83
- Total employment: 50 people (0.32 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
wavebreakmedia // Shutterstock
34 / 50#17. Psychologists, all other
- Median annual wage: $122,620
- Median hourly wage: $58.95
- Total employment: 50 people (0.32 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
35 / 50#16. Human resources managers
- Median annual wage: $124,070
- Median hourly wage: $59.65
- Total employment: 160 people (1.05 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Nicola Forenza // Shutterstock
36 / 50#15. Lawyers
- Median annual wage: $127,270
- Median hourly wage: $61.19
- Total employment: 480 people (3.15 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
dokurose // Shutterstock
37 / 50#14. Sales managers
- Median annual wage: $127,990
- Median hourly wage: $61.53
- Total employment: 250 people (1.62 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jacob Lund // Shutterstock
38 / 50#13. Database architects
- Median annual wage: $128,330
- Median hourly wage: $61.70
- Total employment: 40 people (0.28 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Stokkete // Shutterstock
39 / 50#12. Physician assistants
- Median annual wage: $129,750
- Median hourly wage: $62.38
- Total employment: 180 people (1.17 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Pressmaster // Shutterstock
40 / 50#11. Public relations managers
- Median annual wage: $133,680
- Median hourly wage: $64.27
- Total employment: 50 people (0.32 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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fizkes // Shutterstock
41 / 50#10. Marketing managers
- Median annual wage: $134,190
- Median hourly wage: $64.52
- Total employment: 120 people (0.79 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
BOY ANTHONY // Shutterstock
42 / 50#9. Architectural and engineering managers
- Median annual wage: $134,270
- Median hourly wage: $64.56
- Total employment: 140 people (0.94 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Drazen Zigic // Shutterstock
43 / 50#8. Pharmacists
- Median annual wage: $135,350
- Median hourly wage: $65.07
- Total employment: 390 people (2.56 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Kanghophoto // Shutterstock
44 / 50#7. Financial managers
- Median annual wage: $146,210
- Median hourly wage: $70.29
- Total employment: 520 people (3.39 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Frame Stock Footage // Shutterstock
45 / 50#6. Computer and information systems managers
- Median annual wage: $159,190
- Median hourly wage: $76.53
- Total employment: 220 people (1.47 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Prostock-studio // Shutterstock
46 / 50#5. Dentists, general
- Median annual wage: $168,820
- Median hourly wage: $81.16
- Total employment: 110 people (0.74 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
PeopleImages.com - Yuri A // Shutterstock
47 / 50#4. Family medicine physicians
- Median annual wage: $206,970
- Median hourly wage: $99.51
- Total employment: 110 people (0.71 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
48 / 50#3. Chief executives
- Median annual wage: $230,320
- Median hourly wage: $110.73
- Total employment: 130 people (0.85 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
LightField Studios // Shutterstock
49 / 50#1. Psychiatrists (tie)
- Median annual wage: At least $239,200
- Median hourly wage: At least $115.00
- Total employment: 30 people (0.21 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
wutzkohphoto // Shutterstock
50 / 50#1. Physicians, all other (tie)
- Median annual wage: At least $239,200
- Median hourly wage: At least $115.00
- Total employment: 300 people (1.96 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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