Flight Attendants Salaries by State

Mean and median pay, wage percentiles, employment, and top-paying metro areas for flight attendantss 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 $77,440 ≈ $37/hr
National median salary $63,580
Total employment 131,650 nationwide

Job Outlook, 2024–2034

Source: BLS Employment Projections 2024-2034.

Projected growth +9.2% Much faster than average
Annual openings 19,800 per year (avg)
Employment 2024→2034 130,800 → 142,900 (+12,100)
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.

Mean annual wage $0–$57,000 $57,000–$63,000 $63,000–$73,000 $73,000–$84,000 $84,000–$116,000 U.S. mean $77,440

💰 Top 5 Highest-Paying States

  1. New York$115,670
  2. Utah$88,930
  3. Connecticut$87,210
  4. Idaho$84,280
  5. Georgia$83,930

📉 5 Lowest-Paying States

  1. Pennsylvania$43,130
  2. Nevada$52,280
  3. Texas$56,870
  4. Florida$58,050
  5. Colorado$62,490
#StateMeanMedian Hourlyvs. U.S.Employment
1 New York $115,670 $126,650 $56 +49.4% 12,060
2 Utah $88,930 $82,730 $43 +14.8% 2,490
3 Connecticut $87,210 $78,180 $42 +12.6% 250
4 Idaho $84,280 $62,200 $41 +8.8%
5 Georgia $83,930 $78,320 $40 +8.4%
6 Washington $83,660 $74,090 $40 +8%
7 California $83,000 $82,170 $40 +7.2% 15,840
8 Michigan $81,850 $62,490 $39 +5.7%
9 Illinois $72,830 $62,120 $35 -6% 9,350
10 Massachusetts $68,670 $61,510 $33 -11.3% 4,390
11 Oregon $65,460 $61,480 $31 -15.5% 980
12 Ohio $62,990 $62,440 $30 -18.7% 990
13 Arizona $62,820 $61,780 $30 -18.9% 4,590
14 Minnesota $62,760 $61,230 $30 -19% 4,050
15 Colorado $62,490 $59,500 $30 -19.3% 7,110

Top-Paying Metro Areas

Highest median pay among 28 metro areas.

#Metro areaMedianMeanEmployment
1 New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ $127,740 $127,220 18,030
2 San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA $89,430 $91,980 4,420
3 Columbus, OH $83,450 $79,820 290
4 Salt Lake City-Murray, UT $82,730 $90,870
5 Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA $79,390 $76,980 10,080
6 Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA $78,320 $83,910
7 Tucson, AZ $75,610 $78,150
8 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA $75,100 $84,220
9 Richmond, VA $72,600 $75,480 40
10 Atlantic City-Hammonton, NJ $67,140 $84,310

Pay by Industry

Highest-paying industries employing flight attendantss (BLS OEWS, by median).

#IndustryMedianMeanEmployment
1 Sector 52 - Finance and Insurance $152,570 $144,930
2 Credit Intermediation and Related Activities $123,560 $121,530
3 Nonscheduled Air Transportation $70,700 $73,550 2,080
4 Air Transportation $63,580 $77,360 129,740
5 Cross-Industry, Private, Federal, State, and Local $63,580 $77,440 131,650
6 Cross-industry, Private Ownership only $63,580 $77,440 131,650
7 Scheduled Air Transportation $63,570 $77,420 127,660
8 Sectors 48 and 49 - Transportation and Warehousing $63,340 $77,170 131,110
9 Support Activities for Transportation $59,020 $59,090 1,360
10 Support Activities for Air Transportation $59,020 $59,090 1,360

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
24,384
$10-20k
8,037
$20-30k
13,105
$30-40k
19,546
$40-50k
17,718
$50-60k
15,409
$60-70k
14,370
$70-80k
12,394
$80-90k
8,991
$90-100k
5,372
$100-110k
4,445
$110-120k
844
$120-130k
1,568
$130-140k
689
$140-150k
457
$150-160k
347
$160-170k
383
$170-180k
88
$190-200k
104
$200k+
615

Pay by age band

16-24
$27,055
25-34
$43,491
35-44
$54,930
45-54
$53,623
55-64
$59,507
65+
$27,711

Education level

Bachelors Degree
$47,933
1 or more years of college credit, no degree
$49,694
Regular high school diploma
$38,614
Associates Degree
$48,180
Some college, but less than 1 year
$45,483
Masters Degree
$80,723
GED or alternative credential
$37,509
12th grade - no diploma
$38,591
Professional degree
$58,387
Doctorate degree
$55,547
No schooling completed
$33,225
Grade 6
$28,037
Grade 10
$34,664

Full-time vs part-time

Full-time
75,000 · $60,371
Part-time
52,328 · $49,501

Race / ethnicity

White
$48,729
Two or More Races
$43,497
Black
$49,722
Asian
$51,361
Other
$49,403
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander
$60,512
American Indian
$44,439
American Indian and Alaska Native tribes specified; or American Indian or Alaska Native, not specified and no other races
$25,488

Top fields of study

Psychology
$34,223
General Business
$52,564
Business Management And Administration
$45,942
Communications
$59,644
Marketing And Marketing Research
$49,167
Hospitality Management
$101,348
Linguistics And Comparative Language And Literature
$60,388
English Language And Literature
$80,821

Top Skills

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

Speaking
4.1
Monitoring
3.9
Active Listening
3.9
Service Orientation
3.8
Social Perceptiveness
3.8
Coordination
3.6
Critical Thinking
3.1
Reading Comprehension
3.1
Active Learning
3.1
Time Management
3.1
Writing
3.0
Persuasion
3.0

Frequently Asked Questions

How much do flight attendants make in the U.S.?

The median flight attendants salary in the United States is $63,580 per year (mean $77,440), and about 80% earn between $35,110 and $136,430.

How much do flight attendants make per hour?

Roughly $37 per hour, based on a mean annual wage of $77,440 and 2,080 work hours per year.

Which state pays flight attendants the most?

New York has the highest average pay for flight attendants at $115,670 per year (median $126,650).

What is the job outlook for flight attendants?

Employment is projected to change +9.2% from 2024 to 2034 (Much faster than average), with about 19,800 openings per year.