Chief Executives Salary: $294,898 Median Pay (2026 stats)
TL;DR
About 211,850 chief executives nationally earn a mean of $294,898. Employment in the series shown fell about 5% from the first to the last year; projections imply about 0.4% annual growth.
Key Statistics
Chief Executives: what the data shows
Common questions about chief executives careers, answered from BLS OEWS and O*NET in this repository.
What is a chief executives?
Chief Executives is tracked by the Bureau of Labor Statistics under SOC 11-1011.
U.S. employment in our OEWS extract is about 211,850 workers.
What does a chief executives do?
O*NET work activities rated highest for this occupation include Making Decisions and Solving Problems, Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships, Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates, Guiding, Directing, and Motivating Subordinates, Coaching and Developing Others, Developing and Building Teams, and related tasks. See Work Activities for the full list.
How much does a chief executives make?
BLS national median annual wage: $206,420 (May 2024 in our extract).
Mean annual wage in our occupational extract: $294,898 — higher than the median, which often reflects top earners in the distribution.
Wage percentiles below are from the California OEWS extract (not national unless noted).
| Wage percentile | Annual wage |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $88,684 |
| 25th percentile | $144,908 |
| Median (50th) | $224,690 |
What education do you need?
For Chief Executives, O*NET incumbent surveys in our extract most often report: Some college (29%), High School or Equivalent (27%), Bachelors Degree (22%).
These are education levels of current workers, not minimum legal requirements.
What skills do you need?
O*NET ratings for this occupation emphasize skills such as Judgment and Decision Making, Complex Problem Solving, Critical Thinking, Management of Financial Resources, Coordination, Systems Evaluation, and knowledge areas including Administration and Management, Personnel and Human Resources, English Language, Customer and Personal Service. See Education & Skills for detail.
Is chief executives in demand?
Historical employment trend in our series implies about 0.4% annual growth (compound rate in the extract).
Five-year projected employment change: 2.2%.
Ten-year projected employment change: 4.4%.
Current U.S. headcount: 211,850.
We report federal series only—compare wages, growth, and openings against your target market.
Where do chief executivess work?
Top industries by employment share in our OEWS industry extract:
| Industry | Employment | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Cross-industry | 211,850 | 18.5% |
| Cross-industry, Private Ownership only | 173,460 | 15.2% |
| Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 39,980 | 3.5% |
| Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 39,980 | 3.5% |
| Federal, State, and Local Government, including State and Local Government Schools and Hospitals and the U.S. Postal Service (OEWS Designation) | 38,390 | 3.4% |
| Educational Services | 34,470 | 3.0% |
See Industry for charts.
What degrees lead to this career?
Common majors for Chief Executives in O*NET:
See Related degrees.
Employment
Employment and salary information for the Chief Executives workforce.
Employment Over Time
211,850 Workforce in 2023
The Chief Executives workforce has been growing over time.
Historical employment trends for Chief Executives.
Yearly Wage Ranking
$294,898 Average Wage
In 2023, Chief Executives earned an average of $294,898.
Wage ranking compared to other occupations.
Wage Distribution
This chart shows the distribution of average salaries by income buckets for Chief Executives.
Salary distribution for Chief Executives.
Employment Growth Projections
0.4% Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR)
147,878 Projected Employment (5 years)
Projected growth: 2.2%
151,127 Projected Employment (10 years)
Projected growth: 4.4%
This occupation is projected to grow at 0.4% annually, indicating strong future demand.
Historical employment trends and future projections for Chief Executives.
Industry
Information on the industries that employ Chief Executives and on wages for those in the field.
Occupations by Industries
This graphic shows the share of Chief Executives employed by various industries.
Industry distribution for Chief Executives.
Wage Trends by Industry
46.6% Average Annual Wage Growth Rate
Historical wage growth trends by industry for Chief Executives.
Geographic Distribution
Employment and wage information by geographic location for Chief Executives.
State employment and wages are from the U.S. BLS OEWS May 2024 state extract. Metropolitan areas use the national MSA file when available.
Top States by Employment
Top States by Employment:
- CA: 36,980 employees, $289,530 avg wage
- PA: 14,140 employees, $282,200 avg wage
- NY: 7,830 employees, $343,030 avg wage
- MA: 7,110 employees, $324,340 avg wage
- MN: 6,690 employees, $243,330 avg wage
- GA: 5,440 employees, $265,000 avg wage
- TN: 5,360 employees, $223,350 avg wage
- IL: 5,150 employees, $315,570 avg wage
- VA: 4,620 employees, $336,960 avg wage
- MD: 4,580 employees, $292,170 avg wage
Top 10 states by employment for Chief Executives.
Top Metropolitan Areas
Top Metropolitan Areas:
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA: 12,420 employees, $299,860 avg wage
- Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD: 6,740 employees, $316,130 avg wage
- San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA: 6,170 employees, $319,950 avg wage
- Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH: 5,540 employees, $341,340 avg wage
- Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI: 4,590 employees, $265,030 avg wage
- Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV: 4,590 employees, $345,810 avg wage
- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN: 3,920 employees, $327,700 avg wage
- Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA: 3,710 employees, $184,800 avg wage
- Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA: 3,310 employees, $302,530 avg wage
- San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA: 3,260 employees, $281,820 avg wage
Top 10 metropolitan statistical areas by employment for Chief Executives.
Diversity
Demographic information on Chief Executives in the US.
Gender and Age
The workforce of Chief Executives in 2023 was 211,850 people, with 62.0% women and 38.0% men.
Gender and age distribution for Chief Executives.
Races
Racial and ethnic shares when present in the career dataset. If the chart area shows a notice instead, occupational race/ethnicity fields are not yet populated for this extract.
Race and ethnicity distribution for Chief Executives.
Education & Skills
Data on higher education choices and required skills for Chief Executives.
Majors
The most common majors achieved by Chief Executives in 2023 were Business Administration, Business, Social Sciences.
Common majors for Chief Executives.
Education Levels
The main educational levels achieved by Chief Executives workers.
Education level distribution for Chief Executives.
Skills
Chief Executives need many skills, but most especially Judgment and Decision Making, Complex Problem Solving, Critical Thinking, Management of Financial Resources, Coordination.
Required skills for Chief Executives.
Knowledge & Abilities
Knowledge areas and abilities required for Chief Executives.
Knowledge Areas
The most important knowledge areas for Chief Executives include Administration and Management, Personnel and Human Resources, English Language, Customer and Personal Service, Economics and Accounting.
Knowledge areas required for Chief Executives.
Abilities
Key abilities needed for Chief Executives include Oral Comprehension, Oral Expression, Written Comprehension, Speech Clarity, Written Expression.
Required abilities for Chief Executives.
Work Activities
Common work activities performed by Chief Executives.
Daily Activities
Chief Executives spend their time on activities such as Making Decisions and Solving Problems, Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships, Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates, Guiding, Directing, and Motivating Subordinates, Coaching and Developing Others.
Most important work activities for Chief Executives.
About
Chief Executives
The average yearly wage for Chief Executives was $294,898 in 2023.
SOC Code
11-1011 - Chief Executives
Insights and Analysis
High earnings profile: Chief Executives reports an average salary of $294,898, placing it among stronger-paying occupations.
Labor market presence: The current workforce is approximately 211,850 workers, indicating sustained demand.
Forward outlook: Projected annual growth is 0.4%, which should inform long-term career planning.
Data Sources
This page uses data from the following sources:
- College Scorecard - U.S. Department of Education
- Institutional characteristics, costs, completion rates, and earnings data
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: collegescorecard.ed.gov
- Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS)
- Employment and wage data by occupation
- Latest data: May 2024
- Source: bls.gov/oes
- O*NET Online - U.S. Department of Labor
- Occupational skills, knowledge, abilities, and work activities
- Database version: 28.0 (August 2023)
- Source: onetcenter.org
- IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) - National Center for Education Statistics
- Institutional data, completions, enrollment, and financial aid
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: nces.ed.gov/ipeds
- Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS)
- Demographic and workforce data
- Latest data: 2023 ACS 5-Year Estimates
- Source: census.gov/acs
Data Processing: All data has been processed, cleaned, and aggregated for presentation. Where specific data points are unavailable, estimates are based on available data and clearly marked.
Last Updated: Data reflects the most recent available information as of January 2025.
Methodology
Data for this profile is sourced from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS), and O*NET Online.
All wage figures represent annual averages and may vary by location, industry, and experience level.