BLS May 2025 wages for all 50 states plus DC, with percentiles and a raise projector
| Rank | State | 10th Percentile | Median | 90th Percentile | Median Hourly |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | District of Columbia | $50,390 | $61,270 | $81,990 | $29.46 |
| 2 | California | $48,240 | $60,630 | $75,860 | $29.15 |
| 3 | Washington | $46,390 | $59,740 | $77,300 | $28.72 |
| 4 | New York | $47,640 | $59,010 | $78,760 | $28.37 |
| 5 | Minnesota | $42,640 | $57,270 | $65,120 | $27.53 |
| 6 | Oregon | $39,920 | $55,810 | $77,710 | $26.83 |
| 7 | Virginia | $35,590 | $52,090 | $75,770 | $25.04 |
| 8 | Connecticut | $41,480 | $50,950 | $75,090 | $24.50 |
| 9 | Maine | $47,340 | $50,810 | $57,690 | $24.43 |
| 10 | Nevada | $34,700 | $50,250 | $65,420 | $24.16 |
| 11 | Michigan | $37,410 | $49,710 | $63,020 | $23.90 |
| 12 | Colorado | $37,820 | $49,650 | $60,380 | $23.87 |
| 13 | Massachusetts | $37,500 | $49,540 | $64,470 | $23.82 |
| 14 | Vermont | $48,050 | $49,490 | $58,430 | $23.79 |
| 15 | New Jersey | $37,870 | $49,050 | $75,310 | $23.58 |
| 16 | North Dakota | $35,960 | $48,790 | $56,980 | $23.46 |
| 17 | New Hampshire | $37,450 | $48,780 | $60,840 | $23.45 |
| 18 | Indiana | $37,820 | $48,720 | $59,490 | $23.42 |
| 19 | Hawaii | $35,990 | $48,550 | $62,660 | $23.34 |
| 20 | Delaware | $37,250 | $48,370 | $61,890 | $23.25 |
| 21 | Ohio | $34,760 | $47,990 | $61,360 | $23.07 |
| 22 | North Carolina | $35,890 | $47,620 | $59,420 | $22.89 |
| 23 | Maryland | $38,750 | $47,350 | $74,460 | $22.76 |
| 24 | Wisconsin | $37,900 | $47,020 | $59,110 | $22.61 |
| 25 | Alaska | $37,010 | $46,480 | $75,820 | $22.35 |
| 26 | Illinois | $38,580 | $46,440 | $60,520 | $22.33 |
| 27 | Pennsylvania | $36,480 | $46,430 | $60,280 | $22.32 |
| 28 | Florida | $36,600 | $46,380 | $57,870 | $22.30 |
| 29 | Arizona | $37,870 | $46,300 | $58,350 | $22.26 |
| 30 | Kansas | $36,780 | $45,810 | $58,250 | $22.02 |
| 31 | Iowa | $36,290 | $45,560 | $63,860 | $21.90 |
| 32 | Rhode Island | $37,570 | $45,310 | $63,590 | $21.78 |
| 33 | South Dakota | $35,780 | $45,300 | $50,440 | $21.78 |
| 34 | New Mexico | $31,350 | $44,790 | $56,870 | $21.53 |
| 35 | Nebraska | $37,770 | $43,680 | $57,310 | $21.00 |
| 36 | Missouri | $31,940 | $43,520 | $49,260 | $20.92 |
| 37 | Georgia | $35,060 | $43,060 | $58,590 | $20.70 |
| 38 | Tennessee | $31,660 | $42,810 | $57,040 | $20.58 |
| 39 | Idaho | $31,900 | $42,120 | $48,660 | $20.25 |
| 40 | Montana | $35,420 | $41,170 | $57,660 | $19.79 |
| 41 | Utah | $29,640 | $40,560 | $55,330 | $19.50 |
| 42 | Kentucky | $28,490 | $39,590 | $50,530 | $19.03 |
| 43 | Texas | $30,320 | $39,410 | $54,610 | $18.95 |
| 44 | Oklahoma | $31,390 | $39,100 | $53,880 | $18.80 |
| 45 | South Carolina | $33,870 | $39,020 | $57,970 | $18.76 |
| 46 | Wyoming | $28,630 | $38,650 | $49,260 | $18.58 |
| 47 | Arkansas | $27,250 | $38,360 | $47,820 | $18.44 |
| 48 | West Virginia | $29,430 | $37,700 | $48,170 | $18.13 |
| 49 | Alabama | $28,590 | $36,590 | $49,060 | $17.59 |
| 50 | Mississippi | $29,120 | $36,380 | $46,710 | $17.49 |
| 51 | Louisiana | $28,490 | $35,530 | $47,690 | $17.08 |
| — | United States | $35,710 | $47,380 | $63,180 | $22.78 |
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS May 2025 estimates (retrieved via the DOL's CareerOneStop salary tool, which republishes BLS state data). Low and high columns are the 10th and 90th wage percentiles; hourly figures divide the annual median by 2,080 hours, the BLS convention. Puerto Rico ($27,970 median) is excluded from the ranking.
| Role | Median Annual Wage | Median Hourly | Typical Entry Education |
|---|---|---|---|
| Veterinary assistant / lab animal caretaker | $38,150 | $18.34 | High school diploma |
| Veterinary technologist / technician | $47,380 | $22.78 | Associate degree + credentialing exam |
| Veterinarian | $130,100 | $62.55 | Doctorate (DVM/VMD) + license |
| Animal care & service workers | $35,530 | $17.08 | High school diploma |
| Phlebotomists (human healthcare) | $45,230 | $21.75 | Postsecondary certificate |
| Radiologic & MRI technologists (human) | $81,390 | $39.13 | Associate degree |
The comparison cuts both ways: a vet tech out-earns the median phlebotomist slightly, while the human-hospital imaging tech running the same kind of equipment earns $34,000 more. That gap is one reason specialty and research paths are the standard advice for techs chasing pay.
| Industry | Median Annual Wage |
|---|---|
| Educational services (state, local, private) | $52,200 |
| Veterinary services (89% of jobs) | $47,170 |
| Social advocacy organizations | $45,970 |
| Other personal services | $44,730 |
Clinical practice is the volume employer, but research-adjacent and university settings pay about $5,000 more at the median, which is why the BLS notes that technologists in research positions generally out-earn clinic staff.
Three tools on one page. The state lookup reads the BLS OEWS May 2025 table above. The percentile finder places your hourly wage against the national 10th/25th/median/75th/90th bands and your state's spread. The projector compounds an annual raise over your horizon, the same arithmetic a step schedule uses.
Hourly equivalent = annual median ÷ 2,080, which is exactly how the BLS publishes the two figures, so $47,380 becomes $22.78. Rank orders the 51 areas (50 states plus DC) by median. The projector uses salary × (1 + raise%)^years, summing each year for cumulative earnings.
Pick your state for the published bands, then drop your actual wage into the finder to see which percentile you occupy; anyone below the 25th percentile ($38,910 nationally) is being paid like an assistant. For negotiation, the state's 75th percentile is a realistic target at a well-run hospital, and the projector shows what a 3-4% annual raise compounds to over a stay of a few years.
A Florida tech earning the state median, $46,380, projects 4% annual raises for three years: $48,235, then $50,165, then $52,171 in year four, for $144,780 cumulative. The hourly rate moves from $22.30 to $25.08. Against the national table, that year-four salary passes 22 states' current medians, including Texas ($39,410) and Ohio ($47,990).
Spread is worth reading too. New Jersey's band runs $37,870 to $75,310, a 1.99× ratio from 10th to 90th percentile, which says the same license pays wildly differently by hospital within one small state. Compare South Dakota, where the band is $35,780 to $50,440, a 1.41× spread: less upside, but less downside. Where the band is wide, the employer you pick matters as much as the state.
The District of Columbia leads at a $61,270 median (May 2025 BLS), followed by California at $60,630, Washington at $59,740, New York at $59,010, and Minnesota at $57,270. Louisiana is lowest at $35,530, with Mississippi ($36,380) and Alabama ($36,590) just above it. The top-to-bottom spread is nearly $26,000 a year, though high-paying states also carry higher living costs.
The median annual wage for veterinary technologists and technicians was $47,380 in May 2025, which is $22.78 an hour. The 10th percentile earned under $35,710 and the 90th percentile over $63,180. The field employed about 131,400 people in 2025 and is projected to grow 9% through 2035, much faster than the 3% average across occupations, with roughly 13,400 openings a year.
The May 2025 medians: veterinary assistants and laboratory animal caretakers $38,150, veterinary technologists and technicians $47,380, and veterinarians $130,100. So credentialed techs out-earn assistants by about $9,230 a year, while vets make about 2.75 times what techs make. Adjacent human-healthcare roles pay differently too: phlebotomists median $45,230 and radiologic technologists $81,390.
Generally yes: most states require credentialing (registered, licensed, or certified, depending on the state) for the full technician role, and uncredentialed assistants cluster near the lower percentiles. Specialization adds more: NAVTA-recognized academies exist in anesthesia, dentistry, emergency and critical care, internal medicine, and others, and specialists typically command the upper part of the pay band. The percentile finder above shows where your current wage sits nationally and in your state.
Yes, though the ceiling is real. The levers that work: credentialing if you're working uncredentialed, specialty certification (anesthesia and emergency/critical care pay best), moving into research or pharmaceutical industry roles (scientific research and pharmaceutical manufacturing pay well above clinical practice), relief work with premium hourly rates, and practice management. Geography matters too: the same credentials are worth nearly $26,000 more a year at the top of the state table than at the bottom.