TL;DR

About 469,480 insurance sales agents nationally earn a mean of $93,683. Projections imply about 2.4% annual growth; much hiring sits in finance and insurance.

Key Statistics

469,480
2023 Workforce
None
Average Age
$93,683
Average Salary

Insurance Sales Agents: what the data shows

Common questions about insurance sales agents careers, answered from BLS OEWS and O*NET in this repository.

What is a insurance sales agents?

Insurance Sales Agents is tracked by the Bureau of Labor Statistics under SOC 41-3021.

U.S. employment in our OEWS extract is about 469,480 workers.

What does a insurance sales agents do?

O*NET work activities rated highest for this occupation include Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships, Getting Information, Selling or Influencing Others, Working with Computers, Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work, Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards, and related tasks. See Work Activities for the full list.

How much does a insurance sales agents make?

BLS national median annual wage: $60,370 (May 2024 in our extract).

Mean annual wage in our occupational extract: $93,683 — 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 percentileAnnual wage
10th percentile$40,451
25th percentile$47,894
Median (50th)$66,453
75th percentile$105,758
90th percentile$169,502

What education do you need?

For Insurance Sales Agents, 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 Reading Comprehension, Speaking, Active Listening, Critical Thinking, Writing, Persuasion, and knowledge areas including Customer and Personal Service, Sales and Marketing, English Language, Mathematics. See Education & Skills for detail.

Is insurance sales agents in demand?

Historical employment trend in our series implies about 2.4% annual growth (compound rate in the extract).

Five-year projected employment change: 12.4%.

Ten-year projected employment change: 26.3%.

Current U.S. headcount: 469,480.

We report federal series only—compare wages, growth, and openings against your target market.

Where do insurance sales agentss work?

Top industries by employment share in our OEWS industry extract:

IndustryEmploymentShare
Cross-industry469,48017.0%
Cross-industry, Private Ownership only468,75017.0%
Finance and Insurance451,93016.4%
Insurance Carriers and Related Activities447,42016.2%
Agencies, Brokerages, and Other Insurance Related Activities368,64013.3%
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages353,25012.8%

See Industry for charts.

What degrees lead to this career?

Common majors for Insurance Sales Agents in O*NET:

See Related degrees.

Employment

Employment and salary information for the Insurance Sales Agents workforce.

Employment Over Time

469,480 Workforce in 2023

The Insurance Sales Agents workforce has been growing over time.

Historical employment trends for Insurance Sales Agents.

Yearly Wage Ranking

$93,683 Average Wage

In 2023, Insurance Sales Agents earned an average of $93,683.

Wage ranking compared to other occupations.

Wage Distribution

This chart shows the distribution of average salaries by income buckets for Insurance Sales Agents.

Salary distribution for Insurance Sales Agents.

Employment Growth Projections

2.4% Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR)

177,567 Projected Employment (5 years)

Projected growth: 12.4%

199,532 Projected Employment (10 years)

Projected growth: 26.3%

This occupation is projected to grow at 2.4% annually, indicating strong future demand.

Historical employment trends and future projections for Insurance Sales Agents.

Industry

Information on the industries that employ Insurance Sales Agents and on wages for those in the field.

Occupations by Industries

This graphic shows the share of Insurance Sales Agents employed by various industries.

Industry distribution for Insurance Sales Agents.

Wage Trends by Industry

-7.1% Average Annual Wage Growth Rate

Historical wage growth trends by industry for Insurance Sales Agents.

Geographic Distribution

Employment and wage information by geographic location for Insurance Sales Agents.

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:

  • TX: 44,670 employees, $66,490 avg wage
  • FL: 44,080 employees, $80,300 avg wage
  • CA: 41,150 employees, $91,620 avg wage
  • NY: 20,990 employees, $105,490 avg wage
  • NC: 19,540 employees, $76,080 avg wage
  • GA: 19,520 employees, $91,300 avg wage
  • IL: 17,640 employees, $96,810 avg wage
  • PA: 17,600 employees, $86,360 avg wage
  • OH: 15,750 employees, $79,940 avg wage
  • VA: 14,090 employees, $77,470 avg wage

Top 10 states by employment for Insurance Sales Agents.

Top Metropolitan Areas

Top Metropolitan Areas:

  • New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ: 19,570 employees, $110,260 avg wage
  • Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX: 14,990 employees, $72,580 avg wage
  • Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL: 14,050 employees, $80,700 avg wage
  • Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA: 13,810 employees, $90,870 avg wage
  • Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN: 13,370 employees, $105,340 avg wage
  • Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA: 10,740 employees, $112,090 avg wage
  • Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD: 8,190 employees, $92,530 avg wage
  • Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX: 8,190 employees, $63,500 avg wage
  • Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH: 7,770 employees, $101,760 avg wage
  • Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ: 7,570 employees, $70,830 avg wage

Top 10 metropolitan statistical areas by employment for Insurance Sales Agents.

Diversity

Demographic information on Insurance Sales Agents in the US.

Gender and Age

The workforce of Insurance Sales Agents in 2023 was 469,480 people, with 62.0% women and 38.0% men.

Gender and age distribution for Insurance Sales Agents.

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 Insurance Sales Agents.

Education & Skills

Data on higher education choices and required skills for Insurance Sales Agents.

Majors

The most common majors achieved by Insurance Sales Agents in 2023 were Business Administration, Business, Marketing.

Common majors for Insurance Sales Agents.

Education Levels

The main educational levels achieved by Insurance Sales Agents workers.

Education level distribution for Insurance Sales Agents.

Skills

Insurance Sales Agents need many skills, but most especially Reading Comprehension, Speaking, Active Listening, Critical Thinking, Writing.

Required skills for Insurance Sales Agents.

Knowledge & Abilities

Knowledge areas and abilities required for Insurance Sales Agents.

Knowledge Areas

The most important knowledge areas for Insurance Sales Agents include Customer and Personal Service, Sales and Marketing, English Language, Mathematics, Law and Government.

Knowledge areas required for Insurance Sales Agents.

Abilities

Key abilities needed for Insurance Sales Agents include Written Comprehension, Oral Expression, Oral Comprehension, Speech Clarity, Written Expression.

Required abilities for Insurance Sales Agents.

Work Activities

Common work activities performed by Insurance Sales Agents.

Daily Activities

Insurance Sales Agents spend their time on activities such as Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships, Getting Information, Selling or Influencing Others, Working with Computers, Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work.

Most important work activities for Insurance Sales Agents.

About

Insurance Sales Agents

The average yearly wage for Insurance Sales Agents was $93,683 in 2023.

SOC Code

41-3021 - Insurance Sales Agents

Insights and Analysis

Compensation snapshot: Insurance Sales Agents reports an average salary of $93,683.

Labor market presence: The current workforce is approximately 469,480 workers, indicating sustained demand.

Forward outlook: Projected annual growth is 2.4%, 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.