Highest-Paying Jobs Without a College Degree in Philadelphia (2025 BLS Data)
- The median wage for all jobs in Philadelphia was $54,310 in May 2025, above the U.S. median of $50,980.
- The best-paid job here that typically needs only a high school diploma or less was elevator and escalator installers and repairers, at a median of $132,640.
- Short training programs and associate’s degrees open another tier, led by commercial pilots at $158,670.
You don’t need a four-year degree to earn well in Philadelphia. Using the federal government’s most recent occupational wage survey (BLS OEWS May 2025 metropolitan-area data (includes Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD)) and the education level BLS lists as typical for entry into each job (BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35), here are the best-paying jobs in the metro area that don’t require a bachelor’s degree. Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD had about 2,897,830 wage and salary jobs in the survey.
Top-paying jobs that need a high school diploma or less
Jobs with at least 300 positions in the metro area, ranked by median annual wage. The last column shows the national median for comparison.
| Occupation | Philadelphia median | Jobs | U.S. median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elevator and Escalator Installers and Repairers | $132,640 | 540 | $109,910 |
| Transportation, Storage, and Distribution Managers | $121,570 | 4,270 | $107,230 |
| First-Line Supervisors of Police and Detectives | $119,540 | 3,250 | $106,040 |
| Electrical Power-Line Installers and Repairers | $119,460 | 1,420 | $95,320 |
| Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers | $105,580 | 590 | $96,710 |
| Structural Iron and Steel Workers | $103,330 | 800 | $62,780 |
| Power Plant Operators | $101,350 | 310 | $102,040 |
| First-Line Supervisors of Correctional Officers | $98,300 | 730 | $77,970 |
| Detectives and Criminal Investigators | $97,580 | 2,160 | $93,790 |
| Telecommunications Line Installers and Repairers | $96,540 | 1,760 | $74,330 |
| First-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers | $95,840 | 10,700 | $79,920 |
| First-Line Supervisors of Non-Retail Sales Workers | $92,510 | 3,740 | $87,520 |
Many of these jobs pay well because they come with long on-the-job training, licensing, physical risk or irregular hours. Several are skilled trades that train through paid apprenticeships.
Top-paying jobs that need a certificate or associate’s degree
Jobs where BLS lists a postsecondary certificate, some college or an associate’s degree as the typical entry credential:
| Occupation | Philadelphia median | Jobs | U.S. median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Commercial Pilots | $158,670 | 310 | $123,220 |
| Radiation Therapists | $119,960 | 390 | $105,310 |
| Electrical and Electronics Repairers, Powerhouse, Substation, and Relay | $106,510 | 400 | $103,020 |
| Broadcast Technicians | $103,180 | 460 | $59,570 |
| Nuclear Medicine Technologists | $102,460 | 410 | $101,370 |
| First-Line Supervisors of Firefighting and Prevention Workers | $101,050 | 950 | $93,530 |
| Dental Hygienists | $100,820 | 4,180 | $98,100 |
| Magnetic Resonance Imaging Technologists | $98,620 | 1,160 | $95,480 |
The most common jobs in Philadelphia, for context
The largest occupations by employment, and what they pay locally:
| Occupation | Median | Jobs |
|---|---|---|
| Home Health and Personal Care Aides | $29,800 | 158,280 |
| Registered Nurses | $101,180 | 73,790 |
| Fast Food and Counter Workers | $32,220 | 69,080 |
| General and Operations Managers | $121,630 | 68,730 |
| Retail Salespersons | $34,810 | 63,990 |
| Cashiers | $33,050 | 54,100 |
| Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand | $43,460 | 51,100 |
| Stockers and Order Fillers | $36,800 | 45,770 |
How to use these numbers
- Medians are midpoints. Half of workers in each job earn more and half earn less; new workers usually start well below the median.
- Overtime is not included. BLS wage estimates exclude overtime pay and shift differentials, so jobs with heavy overtime often pay more in practice (see the OEWS technical notes).
- Check the training path. “Typical entry education” is what most new workers have; licenses and apprenticeships may still be required.
Published October 28, 2026. Sources are linked in the text.
Header image: original chart by JobPayRaise.com using BLS OEWS May 2025 data.
Comments (1)
One more data point from the same survey: the occupation most concentrated in Philadelphia relative to the nation is biochemists and biophysicists, with a location quotient of 4.84. That means those jobs make up about 4.84 times as large a share of local employment as they do nationally. There are about 3,050 of them locally, at a median of $134,090. Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 metropolitan-area data (includes Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD). Location quotients compare each job’s share of local employment with its share nationally (see BLS OEWS overview).
— JobPayRaise Data Desk