Office Clerks, General Salary: $52,262 Median Pay (2026 stats)
TL;DR
About 2,510,550 office clerks, general nationally earn a mean of $52,262. Projections imply about 1.4% annual decline; CA accounts for about 282,920 jobs in our geographic extract.
Key Statistics
Office Clerks, General: what the data shows
Common questions about office clerks, general careers, answered from BLS OEWS and O*NET in this repository.
What is a office clerks, general?
Office Clerks, General is tracked by the Bureau of Labor Statistics under SOC 43-9061.
U.S. employment in our OEWS extract is about 2,510,550 workers.
What does a office clerks, general do?
O*NET work activities rated highest for this occupation include Working with Computers, Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates, Getting Information, Performing Administrative Activities, Documenting/Recording Information, Processing Information, and related tasks. See Work Activities for the full list.
How much does a office clerks, general make?
BLS national median annual wage: $43,630 (May 2024 in our extract).
Mean annual wage in our occupational extract: $52,262 — higher than the median, which often reflects top earners in the distribution.
| Wage percentile | Annual wage |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $36,367 |
| 25th percentile | $40,555 |
| Median (50th) | $48,952 |
| 75th percentile | $60,363 |
| 90th percentile | $73,030 |
What education do you need?
For Office Clerks, General, 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, Active Listening, Speaking, Writing, Time Management, Coordination, and knowledge areas including Administrative, English Language, Customer and Personal Service, Administration and Management. See Education & Skills for detail.
Is office clerks, general in demand?
Historical employment trend in our series implies about 1.4% annual decline (compound rate in the extract).
Five-year projected employment change: -6.9%.
Ten-year projected employment change: -13.2%.
Current U.S. headcount: 2,510,550.
We report federal series only—compare wages, growth, and openings against your target market.
Where do office clerks, generals work?
Top industries by employment share in our OEWS industry extract:
| Industry | Employment | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Cross-industry | 2,510,550 | 17.6% |
| Cross-industry, Private Ownership only | 2,029,870 | 14.2% |
| Educational Services | 609,720 | 4.3% |
| Federal, State, and Local Government, including State and Local Government Schools and Hospitals and the U.S. Postal Service (OEWS Designation) | 480,680 | 3.4% |
| Educational Services | 304,860 | 2.1% |
| Health Care and Social Assistance | 289,710 | 2.0% |
See Industry for charts.
What degrees lead to this career?
Common majors for Office Clerks, General 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Data Entry Keyers | 135,280 | $39,850 |
| Word Processors and Typists | 36,030 | $47,850 |
| Area, Ethnic, and Cultural Studies Teachers, Postsecondary | 11,430 | $84,290 |
| Dentists, General | 113,490 | $172,790 |
| General and Operations Managers | 3,584,420 | $102,950 |
| Recreation and Fitness Studies Teachers, Postsecondary | 12,680 | $75,890 |
| Maintenance and Repair Workers, General | 1,531,700 | $48,620 |
Employment
Employment and salary information for the Office Clerks, General workforce.
Employment Over Time
2,510,550 Workforce in 2023
The Office Clerks, General workforce has been growing over time.
Historical employment trends for Office Clerks, General.
Yearly Wage Ranking
$52,262 Average Wage
In 2023, Office Clerks, General earned an average of $52,262.
Wage ranking compared to other occupations.
Wage Distribution
This chart shows the distribution of average salaries by income buckets for Office Clerks, General.
Salary distribution for Office Clerks, General.
Employment Growth Projections
-1.4% Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR)
1,126,953 Projected Employment (5 years)
Projected growth: -6.9%
1,049,746 Projected Employment (10 years)
Projected growth: -13.2%
This occupation is experiencing a decline. Consider related fields with better growth prospects.
Historical employment trends and future projections for Office Clerks, General.
Industry
Information on the industries that employ Office Clerks, General and on wages for those in the field.
Occupations by Industries
This graphic shows the share of Office Clerks, General employed by various industries.
Industry distribution for Office Clerks, General.
Wage Trends by Industry
2.3% Average Annual Wage Growth Rate
Historical wage growth trends by industry for Office Clerks, General.
Geographic Distribution
Employment and wage information by geographic location for Office Clerks, General.
Metropolitan employment on this page is from the California OEWS extract. Area names omit state codes; all listed metros are in California, so the state chart shows California totals (not a multi-state ranking).
Top States by Employment
Top States by Employment:
- CA: 282,920 employees, $52,420 avg wage
Top 10 states by employment for Office Clerks, General.
Top Metropolitan Areas
Top Metropolitan Areas:
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale MD: 83,740 employees, $51,170 avg wage
- San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad MSA: 28,550 employees, $50,750 avg wage
- Anaheim-Santa Ana-Irvine MD: 27,700 employees, $50,411 avg wage
- Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario MSA: 25,970 employees, $48,829 avg wage
- Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom MSA: 22,020 employees, $53,283 avg wage
- Oakland-Fremont-Berkeley MD: 18,390 employees, $58,876 avg wage
- San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City MD: 15,500 employees, $60,159 avg wage
- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara MSA: 14,040 employees, $60,577 avg wage
- Fresno MSA: 8,900 employees, $48,605 avg wage
- Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura MSA: 5,590 employees, $51,639 avg wage
Top 10 metropolitan statistical areas by employment for Office Clerks, General.
Diversity
Demographic information on Office Clerks, General in the US.
Gender and Age
The workforce of Office Clerks, General in 2023 was 2,510,550 people, with 62.0% women and 38.0% men.
Gender and age distribution for Office Clerks, General.
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 Office Clerks, General.
Education & Skills
Data on higher education choices and required skills for Office Clerks, General.
Majors
The most common majors achieved by Office Clerks, General in 2023 were Business Administration, Business, Social Sciences.
Common majors for Office Clerks, General.
Education Levels
The main educational levels achieved by Office Clerks, General workers.
Education level distribution for Office Clerks, General.
Skills
Office Clerks, General need many skills, but most especially Reading Comprehension, Active Listening, Speaking, Writing, Time Management.
Required skills for Office Clerks, General.
Knowledge & Abilities
Knowledge areas and abilities required for Office Clerks, General.
Knowledge Areas
The most important knowledge areas for Office Clerks, General include Administrative, English Language, Customer and Personal Service, Administration and Management, Computers and Electronics.
Knowledge areas required for Office Clerks, General.
Abilities
Key abilities needed for Office Clerks, General include Oral Expression, Written Comprehension, Oral Comprehension, Written Expression, Speech Clarity.
Required abilities for Office Clerks, General.
Work Activities
Common work activities performed by Office Clerks, General.
Daily Activities
Office Clerks, General spend their time on activities such as Working with Computers, Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates, Getting Information, Performing Administrative Activities, Documenting/Recording Information.
Most important work activities for Office Clerks, General.
About
Office Clerks, General
The average yearly wage for Office Clerks, General was $52,262 in 2023.
SOC Code
43-9061 - Office Clerks, General
Insights and Analysis
Compensation snapshot: Office Clerks, General reports an average salary of $52,262.
Labor market presence: The current workforce is approximately 2,510,550 workers, indicating sustained demand.
Forward outlook: Projected annual decline is -1.4%, 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.