General and Operations Managers salary in the US
A data-first look at general and operations managers' pay: the median, the thresholds for the top 25% and top 10%, and how earnings vary across the country.
How much do general and operations managers earn?
Half of all general and operations managers in the United States earned more than $85,541 a year, and half earned less — 63% more than the $52,508 median for all US earners aged 25 and older. Among the 171 occupation groups in our data, only 32 report a higher median, so this is one of the better-paid lines of work in the country. That estimate rests on 59,362 individual Census survey responses from workers 25 and up.
| Position | Annual earnings |
|---|---|
| Top 10% start at | $195,523 |
| Top 25% start at | $128,312 |
| Median (top 50%) | $85,541 |
| Bottom 25% earn below | $58,094 |
How wide is the pay range?
The gap between the middle and the top is wide: the top tenth of general and operations managers earn at least $195,523, 2.3× the median, and the top quarter begins around $128,312. A quarter of workers in the field made $58,094 or less over the year — a figure shaped by part-time and seasonal work as much as by hourly rates. Put differently, the middle earner makes 1.5× what someone at the 25th percentile does.
Earnings by age
Few early-career workers earn what mid-career ones do: $67,211 at 25–34 versus $97,761 at 45–54, a gap of 45%. Among those 65 and older who still work, the median is $79,190, 19% below the peak — reduced schedules explain much of that.
Men and women
There is a 22% gap at the median: $94,095 for men and $73,098 for women. Women make up roughly 35% of the survey records here (an unweighted count, so treat it as approximate). Part of that difference reflects hours worked and job level within the occupation, which these totals don't control for.
| Group | Median earnings | Survey records |
|---|---|---|
| Men | $94,095 | 38,306 |
| Women | $73,098 | 21,056 |
Does education change the pay?
Credentials make a large difference. Workers with a doctorate have a median of $136,431, 91% more than those with a high school education or less ($71,594). The most common credential in the sample is a bachelor's degree, with 19,728 records. Thin cells (under 100 records) aren't shown.
| Education | Median earnings | Survey records |
|---|---|---|
| High school or less | $71,594 | 11,916 |
| Some college / associate | $78,204 | 19,365 |
| Bachelor's | $96,449 | 19,728 |
| Master's | $120,689 | 7,204 |
| Professional degree | $114,956 | 600 |
| Doctorate | $136,431 | 549 |
Where the most work, and what they earn there
California, Texas, Florida, New York, and Illinois contribute the largest numbers of survey records for this job. Pay differs noticeably even across these five: $97,761 in California versus $76,186 in Florida. State figures aren't price-adjusted; 51 states have a large enough sample to report.
| State | Median earnings | Survey records |
|---|---|---|
| California | $97,761 | 6,773 |
| Texas | $88,327 | 5,475 |
| Florida | $76,186 | 3,913 |
| New York | $91,651 | 2,992 |
| Illinois | $83,958 | 2,429 |
Occupations with similar pay
Nearby on the pay scale are physical therapists ($85,281), medical and health services managers ($84,907), construction managers ($83,527), and firefighters ($83,527). They aren't interchangeable careers, though the middle of the pay distribution is close.
| Occupation | Median earnings | vs. this job |
|---|---|---|
| Physical Therapists | $85,281 | 0% |
| Medical and Health Services Managers | $84,907 | −1% |
| Construction Managers | $83,527 | −2% |
| Firefighters | $83,527 | −2% |
| Network And Computer Systems Administrators | $88,155 | +3% |
About these figures
About the data: the American Community Survey asks people their occupation and earnings; we pool the 2020–2024 responses, convert them to 2024 dollars, and weight each person to represent the population. The 59,362 records for general and operations managers include part-time workers, so these are annual totals rather than full-time salaries.
See where your pay ranks among general and operations managers
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Open the calculatorSource: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-Year Public Use Microdata Sample (PUMS) — personal earnings (PERNP) in 2024 dollars, person-weighted
Reference statistics only — not financial advice.