Last Updated on April 5, 2022
Wondering which career path to follow? Do you wish to know where the biggest job incentives are in the USA right now? Then, you have come to the right place.
Knowing the current high paying jobs in the USA can help motivate you to work hard, sacrifice, and exercise, as well as guide your career path.
While most high paying jobs might seem out of reach, it pays to learn everything you need to know about them. By knowing about these jobs, you will be able to prepare yourself to meet the minimum requirements needed to land any one of them. That said, here are the top 10 highest paying jobs in USA in 2022.
Table of Contents
Highest Paying Jobs in USA
1. Physicians
Physicians (also known as doctors) are responsible for providing medical care to their patients. Depending on their area of specialty, physicians may see a wide range of patients (for example, pediatricians treat children) and provide a variety of services (like anesthesiologists, who deliver anesthesia and monitor patients before, during, and after surgery, or podiatrists, who manage foot-related care).
All physicians need to go to medical school following their undergraduate studies (podiatrists, however, go to specific podiatry schools). Then they need to complete a residency—or postgraduate training for new doctors during which they are supervised by more senior doctors in a particular specialty—before they can become a practicing doctor. Physicians are among the highest-paid individuals in the U.S.—and while most physicians are paid extremely well, some specialties make more money than others.
Some of the most highly compensated physicians include the roles below.
- Anesthesiologists: Average salary: $271,440; Job outlook: 0.5% growth
- Surgeons: Average salary: $251,650; Job outlook: -2.2% growth
- Obstetricians and gynecologists: Average salary: $239,120; Job outlook: -1.4% growth
- Physicians (all other) and opthamologists (except pediatric): Average salary: $218,850; Job outlook: 4.3% growth
- Psychiatrists: Average salary: $217,100; Job outlook: 11.9% growth
- Family medicine physicians: Average salary: $214,370; Job outlook: 6.1% growth
- General internal medicine physicians: Average salary: $210,960; Job outlook: -0.6% growth
- Pediatricians: Average salary: $184,570; Job outlook: -1.6% growth
- Podiatrists: Average salary: $151,110; Job outlook: 0.2% growth
2. Dentists and Other Dental Specialists
Dental specialists are any medical professionals who work with the teeth, gums, and mouth. Similar to physicians, dental professionals may provide a wide range of services depending on their area of specialty (for example, general dentists provide routine care, including checking for and filling cavities, while orthodontists diagnose and treat irregularities in the jaw and teeth, including creating space for crowded teeth using a palette expander or fixing a crooked smile with braces).
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After completing their undergraduate degrees, dental specialists attend dental school—and depending on their area of specialty, may need to pursue additional schooling and/or residency (for example, following their DDS program, oral and maxillofacial surgeons need to complete a surgical residency program).
There’s a lot of money to be made in the dental world, but the financial opportunity varies by speciality. Some of the top-paying dental professions in the U.S. include:
- Orthodontists: Average salary: $237,990; Job outlook: 2.4% growth
- Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons: Average salary: $234,990; Job outlook: 2.4% growth
- Prosthodontists: Average salary: $214,870; Job outlook: 2.2% growth
- Dentists (all other specialties): Average salary: $194,930; Job outlook: 0.2% growth
- Dentists (general): Average salary: $180,830; Job outlook: 2.8% growth
3. Chief Executives
- Average salary: $197,840
- Job outlook: -10% growth
Chief executives (also known as chief executive officers or CEOs) lead companies. As the highest-ranking office in the company, a chief executive role comes with a lot of responsibilities. Not only do CEOs oversee the operations of the company, but they’re also responsible for setting its mission and vision and making the big, strategic decisions (whether that’s deciding to expand into new markets, launch a new product, or build out the team). Chief executives are also often responsible for communicating on behalf of the company—whether that’s with the public, the press, shareholders, or the company’s board of directors.
There are no universal education requirements for chief executives; while many are experienced business people with advanced degrees to match (like MBAs), others are entrepreneurial-minded, business-savvy individuals who decided to forgo traditional education and focus on building their businesses.
4. Nurse Anesthetists
- Average salary: $189,190
- Job outlook: 13.7% growth
Nurse anesthetists are responsible for providing care to surgical patients that’s specifically related to anesthesia. This includes evaluating patients before surgery, administering anesthesia, monitoring patients during surgery (including vital signs and other biological functions), adjusting anesthesia as necessary to keep patients unconscious and unable to feel pain, and managing post-surgery care.
There’s a lot of schooling that goes into becoming a nurse anesthetist: Nurses first must complete their bachelor’s in nursing (BSN), then get their RN license, and then pursue advanced education in nurse anesthesia. Currently, you can become a certified registered nurse anesthetist (CRNA) with a master’s degree—but by 2025, all new CNRAs will need to pursue a doctorate in order to practice.
5. Airline Pilots
- Average salary: $189,190
- Job outlook: 2.8% growth
When you book a flight to go on vacation or to visit family, someone has to fly that plane. Airline pilots fly aircraft for major airlines, both domestically and internationally.
Airline pilots need a bachelor’s degree and a private pilot license. From there, they’ll need to get a minimum of 1,500 hours of flight experience under their belts before they can get certified to fly a commercial airliner.
6. Computer and Information Systems Managers
- Average salary: $161,730
- Job outlook: 10.4% growth
Computer and information systems managers (a title often shortened to information systems managers or IS managers) design, manage, and maintain the systems and software a company uses to store, analyze, and communicate data. This includes evaluating the organization’s current systems and technology and making recommendations for improvements, developing large-scale information systems strategies, and continually monitoring the company’s information systems to ensure things are as safe, secure, and efficient as possible.
In order to succeed in their role, IS managers need to know the ins and outs of information systems, so they typically hold at least a bachelor’s degree in a tech-related field (like computer science or information technology).
7. Architectural and Engineering Managers
- Average salary: $158,100
- Job outlook: 2.6% growth
Architectural and engineering managers plan, oversee, and direct projects and activities for companies in the architectural and/or engineering spaces. Depending on the organization, this may include tasks like leading research and development, creating the plans for a new project (for example, a new product or design), solving technical problems, drafting budgets, hiring necessary staff, supervising operations at a construction or manufacturing site to ensure the project is completed on time.
Architectural and engineer managers need, at minimum, a bachelor’s degree in architecture, engineering, or a related field—but many companies prefer or require their managers to hold a master’s degree.
8. Natural Sciences Managers
- Average salary: $154,930
- Job outlook: 4.8% growth
Natural sciences managers leverage their scientific backgrounds to develop or improve a variety of initiatives within an organization (for example, a research and development firm or a manufacturing company), including research and development, testing, quality control, and production. Natural sciences managers work with a company’s leadership team to define and understand the organization’s goals—then hire and oversee a staff of researchers and scientists (chemists, physicists, biologists, and more) to bring those goals to fruition. While natural sciences managers need a strong background in the relevant science area, they also need to have business savvy and excellent project and people management skills.
Natural sciences managers need at least a bachelor’s degree in a scientific field (like biology or chemistry)—although many companies prefer that their managers hold advanced degrees.
9. Marketing Managers
- Average salary: $154,470
- Job outlook: 6.7% growth
Marketing managers are responsible for promoting a product, service, event, brand, or organization. Depending on what they’re promoting, they might conduct market research; develop creative marketing campaigns; spearhead digital marketing initiatives; write marketing content and materials; oversee social media, email, and other marketing channels; or focus on search engine optimization and/or marketing (here are some of the most common marketing paths). Marketing managers can be generalists or choose to become specialists in one type of marketing.
While many companies prefer that their marketing managers hold a bachelor’s degree, some are more interested in how a candidate’s background, experience, and expertise lines up with what they’ll be promoting (for example, a company that’s promoting a new product and wants to develop ad copy might look to hire a marketing manager with advertising experience, a company that conducts all of its business online might prefer to hire a marketing manager that specializes in digital marketing and e-commerce, and an organization that makes athletic gear might look to hire a former athlete or another candidate who with in-depth knowledge of sports).
10. Petroleum Engineers
- Average salary: $154,330
- Job outlook: 3.2% growth
A petroleum engineer’s job is to find and extract oil and gas from underneath the earth’s surface. Their responsibilities may include designing equipment to extract oil and gas from the earth; developing and implementing extraction plans to drill into the earth and secure the oil and gas; overseeing operation and maintenance of equipment; analyzing oil and gas field production; and finding new strategies for better, more effective extraction.
Petroleum engineers are required to have a bachelor’s degree in petroleum engineering or a related engineering field (like civil or mechanical engineering).
This is the list of high paying jobs in USA. However, it doesn’t include all jobs. We have selected the top 10 highest paying jobs in USA, but you can search for other places to work and enjoy earning good pay.
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