Los Angeles vs. Philadelphia
Packers and Packagers, Hand. Median, spread and buying power, side by side.
Data released May 2025
BLS OEWS · SOC 53-7064
Fig. 1 — Side by side
Both distributions, one scale
10th to 90th percentile, median struck in red
Table 1 — Adjusted
Philadelphia's median is 17.6% higher — but after local prices, Philadelphia still leads by 30.2%.
Los Angeles's median $37,390 buys $32,900 at national prices (price parity 113.6); Philadelphia's $43,970 buys $42,900 (102.6).
Table 2 — The figures
Point by point
Published percentiles for both metros; the last column is Philadelphia against Los Angeles.
| Los Angeles | Philadelphia | Δ | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employment | 25,350 | 23,180 | −8.6% |
| 10th percentile | $34,890 | $32,220 | −7.7% |
| 25th percentile | $35,870 | $36,250 | +1.1% |
| Median | $37,390 | $43,970 | +17.6% |
| 75th percentile | $41,540 | $44,740 | +7.7% |
| 90th percentile | $46,560 | $46,840 | +0.6% |
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
- Packers and Packagers, Hand in Los Angeles · Packers and Packagers, Hand in Philadelphia
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.