Data Entry Keyers Salaries by State

Mean and median pay, wage percentiles, employment, and top-paying metro areas for data entry keyerss across the U.S. Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 (data.bls.gov OEWS tool /OESServices/combo/table, all-occupation crawl by area).

National mean salary $43,310 ≈ $21/hr
National median salary $41,340
Total employment 127,080 nationwide

Job Outlook, 2024–2034

Source: BLS Employment Projections 2024-2034.

Projected growth -25.9% Decline
Annual openings 9,500 per year (avg)
Employment 2024→2034 141,600 → 104,900 (-36,700)
Typical entry education High school diploma or equivalent

Salary Map

Brighter tiles = higher average pay; dashed tiles have no data. Click a state for details.

💰 Top 5 Highest-Paying States

  1. District of Columbia$58,250
  2. Washington$50,230
  3. Maine$49,260
  4. California$48,820
  5. Utah$48,360

📉 5 Lowest-Paying States

  1. South Dakota$35,590
  2. Mississippi$36,360
  3. West Virginia$36,690
  4. Alabama$36,710
  5. Arkansas$37,440
#StateMeanMedian Hourlyvs. U.S.Employment
1 District of Columbia $58,250 $55,170 $28 +34.5% 200
2 Washington $50,230 $47,480 $24 +16% 1,360
3 Maine $49,260 $48,190 $24 +13.7% 140
4 California $48,820 $47,010 $23 +12.7% 14,520
5 Utah $48,360 $47,180 $23 +11.7% 2,140
6 Alaska $47,850 $40,700 $23 +10.5% 160
7 New Mexico $47,740 $49,810 $23 +10.2% 300
8 Rhode Island $47,630 $44,980 $23 +10% 270
9 Minnesota $47,570 $44,280 $23 +9.8% 1,360
10 Massachusetts $46,880 $47,560 $23 +8.2% 1,590
11 New York $46,550 $44,860 $22 +7.5% 9,470
12 Colorado $46,120 $43,910 $22 +6.5% 1,190
13 North Dakota $46,080 $48,300 $22 +6.4% 110
14 Hawaii $45,840 $47,630 $22 +5.8% 210
15 New Jersey $45,020 $42,470 $22 +3.9% 4,940

Top-Paying Metro Areas

Highest median pay among 398 metro areas.

#Metro areaMedianMeanEmployment
1 San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA $54,510 $54,880 720
2 Albuquerque, NM $53,320 $49,670 220
3 Bismarck, ND $53,140 $48,700 30
4 Western Washington nonmetropolitan area $53,040 $53,020 60
5 Bloomington, IN $51,760 $47,610 230
6 Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA $51,660 $51,440 140
7 New Haven, CT $51,340 $50,740 140
8 San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA $51,250 $51,980 1,410
9 Boulder, CO $49,920 $50,220 90
10 Helena, MT $49,850 $47,790 90

Pay by Industry

Highest-paying industries employing data entry keyerss (BLS OEWS, by median).

#IndustryMedianMeanEmployment
1 Oil and Gas Extraction $69,120 $57,600 100
2 Oil and Gas Extraction $69,120 $57,600 100
3 Postal Service (Federal Government) $68,350 $64,220 650
4 Postal Service (Federal Government) $68,350 $64,220 650
5 Federal Government, including the U.S. Postal Service (OEWS Designation) $67,250 $63,250 680
6 Labor Unions and Similar Labor Organizations $61,410 $61,960 140
7 Technical and Trade Schools $56,590 $52,480 70
8 Technical and Trade Schools, Privately Owned $56,590 $52,740 70
9 Support Activities for Water Transportation $56,060 $51,100
10 Telecommunications $55,100 $50,800 110
11 Specialty (except Psychiatric and Substance Abuse) Hospitals, Privately Owned $54,880 $56,790 60
12 Paper Manufacturing $54,680 $53,460 40

Workforce Deep-Dive

Distribution and demographics from Census ACS (2023, self-reported). Wage figures here are ACS averages and run lower than the authoritative BLS wages above; use them for shape, not exact pay.

Annual wage distribution

< $10K
118,487
$10-20k
38,103
$20-30k
47,831
$30-40k
64,755
$40-50k
50,434
$50-60k
24,735
$60-70k
12,843
$70-80k
8,117
$80-90k
2,900
$90-100k
1,851
$100-110k
1,441
$110-120k
704
$120-130k
1,969
$130-140k
483
$140-150k
179
$150-160k
176
$170-180k
162
$180-190k
41
$190-200k
90
$200k+
1,910

Pay by age band

16-24
$13,704
25-34
$30,745
35-44
$35,541
45-54
$36,998
55-64
$33,290
65+
$18,435

Education level

Regular high school diploma
$28,441
Bachelors Degree
$32,582
1 or more years of college credit, no degree
$28,616
Associates Degree
$32,403
Some college, but less than 1 year
$26,228
GED or alternative credential
$26,208
Masters Degree
$26,334
12th grade - no diploma
$21,022
Grade 11
$9,577
Grade 10
$9,329
No schooling completed
$35,957
Professional degree
$28,110
Grade 9
$8,336
Doctorate degree
$31,347
Grade 8
$15,888
Grade 6
$28,505
Grade 7
$44,171
Grade 5
$35,320
Nursery school, preschool
$15,115
Grade 2
$30,586

Full-time vs part-time

Full-time
212,951 · $43,992
Part-time
70,302 · $15,577

Race / ethnicity

White
$28,627
Black
$29,556
Two or More Races
$32,173
Asian
$22,016
Other
$31,650
American Indian
$33,351
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander
$18,163
American Indian and Alaska Native tribes specified; or American Indian or Alaska Native, not specified and no other races
$15,251

Top fields of study

Business Management And Administration
$35,015
General Business
$33,467
Psychology
$28,098
Criminal Justice And Fire Protection
$30,138
General Education
$31,116
Finance
$21,652
English Language And Literature
$24,937
Liberal Arts
$27,318

Top Skills

Most important skills for this role (O*NET importance, 1–5 scale).

Reading Comprehension
3.6
Active Listening
3.4
Monitoring
3.3
Writing
3.0
Time Management
3.0
Speaking
2.9
Critical Thinking
2.9
Complex Problem Solving
2.9
Active Learning
2.8
Coordination
2.8
Service Orientation
2.8
Social Perceptiveness
2.6

Frequently Asked Questions

How much do data entry keyers make in the U.S.?

The median data entry keyers salary in the United States is $41,340 per year (mean $43,310), and about 80% earn between $31,200 and $58,790.

How much do data entry keyers make per hour?

Roughly $21 per hour, based on a mean annual wage of $43,310 and 2,080 work hours per year.

Which state pays data entry keyers the most?

District of Columbia has the highest average pay for data entry keyers at $58,250 per year (median $55,170).

What is the job outlook for data entry keyers?

Employment is projected to change -25.9% from 2024 to 2034 (Decline), with about 9,500 openings per year.