Commercial Divers Salary: $100,858 Median Pay (2026 stats)
TL;DR
About 3,430 commercial divers nationally earn a mean of $100,858. Projections imply about 0.9% annual growth; much hiring sits in administrative and support and waste management and remediation services.
Key Statistics
Commercial Divers: what the data shows
Common questions about commercial divers careers, answered from BLS OEWS and O*NET in this repository.
What is a commercial divers?
Commercial Divers is tracked by the Bureau of Labor Statistics under SOC 49-9092.
U.S. employment in our OEWS extract is about 3,430 workers.
What does a commercial divers do?
O*NET work activities rated highest for this occupation include Performing General Physical Activities, Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials, Handling and Moving Objects, Making Decisions and Solving Problems, Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates, Getting Information, and related tasks. See Work Activities for the full list.
How much does a commercial divers make?
BLS national median annual wage: $61,130 (May 2024 in our extract).
Mean annual wage in our occupational extract: $100,858 — 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 | $38,449 |
| 25th percentile | $45,043 |
| Median (50th) | $62,747 |
| 75th percentile | $138,044 |
| 90th percentile | $202,147 |
What education do you need?
For Commercial Divers, 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 Critical Thinking, Operations Monitoring, Active Listening, Speaking, Quality Control Analysis, Time Management, and knowledge areas including Mechanical, Building and Construction, Physics, Customer and Personal Service. See Education & Skills for detail.
Is commercial divers in demand?
Historical employment trend in our series implies about 0.9% annual growth (compound rate in the extract).
Five-year projected employment change: 4.7%.
Ten-year projected employment change: 9.6%.
Current U.S. headcount: 3,430.
We report federal series only—compare wages, growth, and openings against your target market.
Where do commercial diverss work?
Top industries by employment share in our OEWS industry extract:
| Industry | Employment | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Cross-industry | 3,430 | 21.7% |
| Cross-industry, Private Ownership only | 3,390 | 21.5% |
| Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services | 1,220 | 7.7% |
| Other Support Services | 1,200 | 7.6% |
| Administrative and Support Services | 1,200 | 7.6% |
| Construction | 1,050 | 6.7% |
See Industry for charts.
What degrees lead to this career?
Common majors for Commercial Divers in O*NET:
See Related degrees.
What careers are related?
Other occupations linked through shared degree pathways in our mapping:
| Occupation | U.S. employment | Median wage |
|---|---|---|
| Photographers | 51,230 | $42,520 |
| Commercial Pilots | 51,830 | $122,670 |
| Commercial and Industrial Designers | 30,250 | $79,450 |
| Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers | 99,300 | $226,600 |
| Flight Attendants | 130,110 | $67,130 |
Employment
Employment and salary information for the Commercial Divers workforce.
Employment Over Time
3,430 Workforce in 2023
The Commercial Divers workforce has been growing over time.
Historical employment trends for Commercial Divers.
Yearly Wage Ranking
$100,858 Average Wage
In 2023, Commercial Divers earned an average of $100,858.
Wage ranking compared to other occupations.
Wage Distribution
This chart shows the distribution of average salaries by income buckets for Commercial Divers.
Salary distribution for Commercial Divers.
Employment Growth Projections
0.9% Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR)
460 Projected Employment (5 years)
Projected growth: 4.7%
482 Projected Employment (10 years)
Projected growth: 9.6%
This occupation is projected to grow at 0.9% annually, indicating strong future demand.
Historical employment trends and future projections for Commercial Divers.
Industry
Information on the industries that employ Commercial Divers and on wages for those in the field.
Occupations by Industries
This graphic shows the share of Commercial Divers employed by various industries.
Industry distribution for Commercial Divers.
Wage Trends by Industry
-19.8% Average Annual Wage Growth Rate
Total, All Industry: -39.3% growth (Current: $112,131)
Historical wage growth trends by industry for Commercial Divers.
Geographic Distribution
Employment and wage information by geographic location for Commercial Divers.
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:
- FL: 570 employees, $64,030 avg wage
- LA: 350 employees, $56,390 avg wage
- TX: 250 employees, $55,050 avg wage
- NY: 200 employees, $144,310 avg wage
- CT: 160 employees, $62,750 avg wage
- ME: 140 employees, $66,550 avg wage
- VA: 120 employees, $79,570 avg wage
- WA: 100 employees, $139,630 avg wage
- IN: 60 employees, $79,840 avg wage
- WI: 50 employees, $98,930 avg wage
Top 10 states by employment for Commercial Divers.
Top Metropolitan Areas
Top Metropolitan Areas:
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA: 230 employees, $90,280 avg wage
- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ: 190 employees, $138,990 avg wage
- Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL: 170 employees, $69,860 avg wage
- Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux, LA: 140 employees, $57,730 avg wage
- San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA: 90 employees, $79,670 avg wage
- Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC: 90 employees, $78,820 avg wage
- Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT: 80 employees, $62,450 avg wage
- Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL: 60 employees, $62,980 avg wage
- Jacksonville, FL: 50 employees, $55,850 avg wage
- Norwich-New London-Willimantic, CT: 40 employees, $68,020 avg wage
Top 10 metropolitan statistical areas by employment for Commercial Divers.
Diversity
Demographic information on Commercial Divers in the US.
Gender and Age
The workforce of Commercial Divers in 2023 was 3,430 people, with 62.0% women and 38.0% men.
Gender and age distribution for Commercial Divers.
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 Commercial Divers.
Education & Skills
Data on higher education choices and required skills for Commercial Divers.
Majors
The most common majors achieved by Commercial Divers in 2023 were Health Sciences, Business, Social Sciences.
Common majors for Commercial Divers.
Education Levels
The main educational levels achieved by Commercial Divers workers.
Education level distribution for Commercial Divers.
Skills
Commercial Divers need many skills, but most especially Critical Thinking, Operations Monitoring, Active Listening, Speaking, Quality Control Analysis.
Required skills for Commercial Divers.
Knowledge & Abilities
Knowledge areas and abilities required for Commercial Divers.
Knowledge Areas
The most important knowledge areas for Commercial Divers include Mechanical, Building and Construction, Physics, Customer and Personal Service, Mathematics.
Knowledge areas required for Commercial Divers.
Abilities
Key abilities needed for Commercial Divers include Oral Comprehension, Arm-Hand Steadiness, Problem Sensitivity, Oral Expression, Control Precision.
Required abilities for Commercial Divers.
Work Activities
Common work activities performed by Commercial Divers.
Daily Activities
Commercial Divers spend their time on activities such as Performing General Physical Activities, Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials, Handling and Moving Objects, Making Decisions and Solving Problems, Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates.
Most important work activities for Commercial Divers.
About
Commercial Divers
The average yearly wage for Commercial Divers was $100,858 in 2023.
SOC Code
49-9092 - Commercial Divers
Insights and Analysis
High earnings profile: Commercial Divers reports an average salary of $100,858, placing it among stronger-paying occupations.
Labor market presence: The current workforce is approximately 3,430 workers, indicating sustained demand.
Forward outlook: Projected annual growth is 0.9%, 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.