Legal salaries
Legal careers include lawyers, judges, paralegals, and other roles in the justice system. Pay varies widely by practice area and firm size.
Below are all 7 legal occupations the BLS tracks, ranked by median annual pay for May 2024. The best paid, judges, magistrate judges, and magistrates, earns a median of $156,210 a year.
| # | Job | Median annual | Hourly | Typical education | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Judges, Magistrate Judges, and Magistrates | $156,210 | $75.10 | Doctoral or professional degree | 25,580 |
| 2 | Lawyers | $151,160 | $72.67 | Doctoral or professional degree | 747,750 |
| 3 | Administrative Law Judges, Adjudicators, and Hearing Officers | $115,230 | $55.40 | Doctoral or professional degree | 16,230 |
| 4 | Arbitrators, Mediators, and Conciliators | $67,710 | $32.55 | Bachelor's degree | 7,860 |
| 5 | Paralegals and Legal Assistants | $61,010 | $29.33 | Associate's degree | 367,220 |
| 6 | Judicial Law Clerks | $60,400 | $29.04 | Doctoral or professional degree | 13,220 |
| 7 | Title Examiners, Abstractors, and Searchers | $54,980 | $26.43 | High school diploma or equivalent | 48,170 |
Ranked by median annual wage. National estimates from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS, May 2024.
Legal salary FAQ
What is the highest paying legal job?
Judges, Magistrate Judges, and Magistrates top the legal field at a median of $156,210 a year, based on BLS data for May 2024.
How much do legal jobs pay on average?
Pay varies widely across the 7 occupations in this field. The middle of the list, arbitrators, mediators, and conciliators, sits at a median of $67,710 a year. The overall U.S. median across all jobs is $49,500.