Los Angeles vs. New York
Inspectors, Testers, Sorters, Samplers, and Weighers. Median, spread and buying power, side by side.
Data released May 2025
BLS OEWS · SOC 51-9061
Fig. 1 — Side by side
Both distributions, one scale
10th to 90th percentile, median struck in red
Table 1 — Adjusted
Los Angeles's median is 2.7% higher — but at national prices the two medians buy almost exactly the same.
Los Angeles's median $51,560 buys $45,400 at national prices (price parity 113.6); New York's $50,160 buys $44,600 (112.6).
Table 2 — The figures
Point by point
Published percentiles for both metros; the last column is New York against Los Angeles.
| Los Angeles | New York | Δ | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employment | 22,610 | 16,370 | −27.6% |
| 10th percentile | $38,470 | $36,550 | −5.0% |
| 25th percentile | $44,720 | $41,120 | −8.1% |
| Median | $51,560 | $50,160 | −2.7% |
| 75th percentile | $63,980 | $62,720 | −2.0% |
| 90th percentile | $82,200 | $78,510 | −4.5% |
Sources
How this page was made
- Wage data
- Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 release. Public domain.
- Price parity
- Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.
- Full pages
- Inspectors, Testers, Sorters, Samplers, and Weighers in Los Angeles · Inspectors, Testers, Sorters, Samplers, and Weighers in New York
Percentiles are reported exactly as released. Derived (price-adjusted) figures round to the nearest hundred. We take no payment for how any figure is presented.