Highest-Paying Jobs Without a Degree
Answer
Commercial Pilots ($123,220), Nuclear Power Reactor Operators ($122,890), Elevator and Escalator Installers and Repairers ($109,910) top this list. BLS lists the education people typically need to enter each occupation. These jobs typically need a high school diploma, a postsecondary certificate or no formal credential, but most demand long on-the-job training, apprenticeships, licenses or years of related experience instead: supervisors, for example, usually rise from the jobs they supervise.
How this ranking works
Includes: BLS typical entry education is a high school diploma, no formal credential, some college with no degree, or a postsecondary nondegree award (certificate); at least 5,000 US jobs. Ranked by: Median annual wage. Data: BLS OEWS, May 2025; typical entry education from BLS Employment Projections 2025–35. Occupations without a published median and the residual “all other” categories are left out. Methodology
| 1 | Commercial Pilots | $123,220 | — | 47,630 | Postsecondary nondegree award | +5.2% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | Nuclear Power Reactor Operators | $122,890 | $59.08 | 5,150 | High school diploma or equivalent | −5.9% |
| 3 | Elevator and Escalator Installers and Repairers | $109,910 | $52.84 | 23,790 | High school diploma or equivalent | +5.7% |
| 4 | Ship Engineers | $109,530 | $52.66 | 8,400 | Postsecondary nondegree award | +2.7% |
| 5 | Transportation, Storage, and Distribution Managers | $107,230 | $51.55 | 221,180 | High school diploma or equivalent | +6.1% |
| 6 | Power Distributors and Dispatchers | $106,730 | $51.31 | 8,520 | High school diploma or equivalent | +1.2% |
| 7 | First-Line Supervisors of Police and Detectives | $106,040 | $50.98 | 154,610 | High school diploma or equivalent | +3.3% |
| 8 | Electrical and Electronics Repairers, Powerhouse, Substation, and Relay | $103,020 | $49.53 | 20,720 | Postsecondary nondegree award | +9.7% |
| 9 | Power Plant Operators | $102,040 | $49.06 | 29,320 | High school diploma or equivalent | −5.1% |
| 10 | Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers | $96,710 | $46.50 | 33,160 | High school diploma or equivalent | −1.9% |
| 11 | Postmasters and Mail Superintendents | $96,660 | $46.47 | 13,810 | High school diploma or equivalent | −0.3% |
| 12 | Electrical Power-Line Installers and Repairers | $95,320 | $45.83 | 131,070 | High school diploma or equivalent | +10.3% |
| 13 | Detectives and Criminal Investigators | $93,790 | $45.09 | 114,430 | High school diploma or equivalent | +0.2% |
| 14 | First-Line Supervisors of Firefighting and Prevention Workers | $93,530 | $44.96 | 99,140 | Postsecondary nondegree award | +3.7% |
| 15 | Gambling Managers | $93,220 | $44.82 | 5,030 | High school diploma or equivalent | +3.6% |
| 16 | Signal and Track Switch Repairers | $92,460 | $44.45 | 8,720 | High school diploma or equivalent | +1.8% |
| 17 | Captains, Mates, and Pilots of Water Vessels | $92,460 | $44.45 | 36,850 | Postsecondary nondegree award | +4.0% |
| 18 | Transportation Inspectors | $92,100 | $44.28 | 24,500 | High school diploma or equivalent | +2.2% |
| 19 | Farmers, Ranchers, and Other Agricultural Managers | $89,900 | $43.22 | 6,500 | High school diploma or equivalent | −3.4% |
| 20 | Gas Plant Operators | $87,820 | $42.22 | 18,030 | High school diploma or equivalent | −6.0% |
| 21 | First-Line Supervisors of Non-Retail Sales Workers | $87,520 | $42.08 | 214,390 | High school diploma or equivalent | +0.5% |
| 22 | Subway and Streetcar Operators | $86,380 | $41.53 | 10,200 | High school diploma or equivalent | +3.7% |
| 23 | Electrical and Electronics Installers and Repairers, Transportation Equipment | $84,890 | $40.81 | 6,940 | Postsecondary nondegree award | +5.4% |
| 24 | Avionics Technicians | $82,280 | $39.56 | 18,830 | Postsecondary nondegree award | +9.4% |
| 25 | Locomotive Engineers | $81,410 | $39.14 | 33,470 | High school diploma or equivalent | +0.5% |
| 26 | First-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers | $79,920 | $38.42 | 812,210 | High school diploma or equivalent | +5.0% |
| 27 | Aircraft Mechanics and Service Technicians | $79,870 | $38.40 | 138,090 | Postsecondary nondegree award | +5.4% |
| 28 | First-Line Supervisors of Mechanics, Installers, and Repairers | $79,860 | $38.39 | 617,500 | High school diploma or equivalent | +4.1% |
| 29 | Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators | $78,620 | $37.80 | 28,250 | High school diploma or equivalent | +3.1% |
| 30 | Insurance Appraisers, Auto Damage | $78,240 | $37.61 | 11,560 | Postsecondary nondegree award | −8.7% |
| 31 | Chemical Plant and System Operators | $78,120 | $37.56 | 16,610 | High school diploma or equivalent | −5.2% |
| 32 | Claims Adjusters, Examiners, and Investigators | $78,000 | $37.50 | 324,230 | High school diploma or equivalent | −5.5% |
| 33 | Railroad Conductors and Yardmasters | $78,000 | $37.50 | 46,440 | High school diploma or equivalent | +0.9% |
| 34 | First-Line Supervisors of Correctional Officers | $77,970 | $37.49 | 53,380 | High school diploma or equivalent | −2.5% |
| 35 | Executive Secretaries and Executive Administrative Assistants | $76,590 | $36.82 | 459,910 | High school diploma or equivalent | 0.0% |
| 36 | Boilermakers | $76,410 | $36.74 | 10,190 | High school diploma or equivalent | −1.8% |
| 37 | Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers | $76,210 | $36.64 | 670,520 | High school diploma or equivalent | +3.5% |
| 38 | Fire Inspectors and Investigators | $75,920 | $36.50 | 13,800 | Postsecondary nondegree award | +4.2% |
| 39 | Construction and Building Inspectors | $74,690 | $35.91 | 146,720 | High school diploma or equivalent | 0.0% |
| 40 | Loading and Moving Machine Operators, Underground Mining | $74,500 | $35.82 | 5,930 | No formal educational credential | −15.8% |
BLS OEWS, May 2025, national cross-industry estimates; projections and typical entry education from BLS Employment Projections 2025–35. Occupation names are the official BLS titles; linked names have a full pay and how-to-become page on this site.