Wages by Occupation in Michigan City-La Porte, IN

Pay and jobs by occupation in the Michigan City-La Porte, IN metropolitan area (BLS, May 2025). BLS counts about 40,840 jobs across all occupations here, with a median annual wage of $45,540 for all occupations combined. 195 occupations have a published median wage in this area.

Education and earnings of residents

Who lives in the Michigan City-La Porte, IN area and what they earn, by education, from federal survey data (not a measure of any one employer or college).

22.7% of adults 25 and over in this area have a bachelor’s degree or higher (±1.3), compared with 35.7% nationally.

Prices of goods and services here run at 91.7 when the whole U.S. is 100 (housing 68.5; U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024; estimates are revised). A higher number means prices are higher on average, not that the area is better or worse.

About 3,523 residents (3.3% of those 3 and older; U.S. 6.6%) are enrolled in college or graduate school, at any school (±445; ACS 2020-2024, Table B14001).

The unemployment rate in this area averaged 4.1% in 2025, with a labor force of about 52,039 people (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, not seasonally adjusted annual average; estimates are model-based and revised).

23.4% of adults 25 to 34 have a bachelor’s degree or higher (±3.0), compared with 39.6% nationally (Table B15001).

Median yearly earnings by education, adults 25 and over who have earnings

Education	This area	United States
Less than high school	$32,177	$32,485
High school graduate	$39,072	$40,153
Some college or associate's degree	$50,059	$47,260
Bachelor's degree	$60,607	$70,044
Graduate or professional degree	$77,847	$90,720

Poverty rate by education, adults 25 and over

Education	This area	United States
Less than high school	24.9% (±5.6)	24.2%
High school graduate	13.2% (±1.7)	14.4%
Some college or associate's degree	10.2% (±1.7)	9.8%
Bachelor's degree or higher	4.3% (±1.0)	4.5%

What residents with a bachelor’s degree studied

Field of first major	This area	United States
Science and engineering	27.3%	36.1%
Science and engineering related fields	14.9%	10.0%
Business	20.8%	20.1%
Education	14.6%	10.9%
Arts, humanities and other	22.4%	23.0%

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, Tables B15003, B20004 (earnings shown only when the margin of error is at most 20% of the value), B23006 (unemployment shown only when every margin is at most 3 points), B17003 (margins of error at the 90% level; poverty shown only when every margin is at most 8 points) and C15010 (the Census Bureau’s own field groups, in a fixed order, not ranked). Describes residents of the area, not a prediction for any person; the Census Bureau has not endorsed this presentation. MajorPays does not provide advice.

Wages by occupation

Occupation	Jobs	Median annual wage	Mean annual wage	Jobs per 1,000 jobs here	Concentration vs. U.S.
Accountants and Auditors	310	$72,550	$77,980	7.49	0.80
Administrative Services Managers	50	$103,640	$110,240	1.20	0.71
Amusement and Recreation Attendants	80	$27,210	$25,690	2.02	0.79
Animal Caretakers	100	$29,680	$31,980	2.55	1.48
Architectural and Engineering Managers	60	$131,760	$140,110	1.59	1.12
Automotive and Watercraft Service Attendants	60	$33,680	$34,580	1.49	2.27
Automotive Body and Related Repairers	40	$48,230	$55,140	1.00	1.04
Automotive Service Technicians and Mechanics	250	$50,400	$54,980	6.15	1.36
Bakers	100	$39,840	$38,270	2.46	1.62
Bartenders	250	$22,430	$27,280	6.00	1.23
Billing and Posting Clerks	90	$45,960	$46,740	2.16	0.83
Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks	340	$46,650	$47,880	8.32	0.94
Bus and Truck Mechanics and Diesel Engine Specialists	110	$59,340	$60,350	2.67	1.43
Bus Drivers, School	170	$49,760	$46,440	4.27	1.65
Bus Drivers, Transit and Intercity	30	$46,910	$44,270	0.74	0.72
Butchers and Meat Cutters	30	$37,040	$39,660	0.82	0.94
Buyers and Purchasing Agents	150	$64,980	$71,120	3.63	1.15
Carpenters	260	$91,970	$79,860	6.30	1.46
Cashiers	1,040	$28,520	$28,750	25.46	1.28
Cement Masons and Concrete Finishers	70	$63,830	$65,400	1.69	1.27
Chemical Equipment Operators and Tenders	80	$50,690	$56,820	1.86	2.07
Child, Family, and School Social Workers	80	$49,970	$52,370	2.06	0.82
Childcare Workers	70	$28,970	$29,650	1.74	0.52
Civil Engineers	70	$72,720	$82,280	1.81	0.77
Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment	90	$30,880	$34,510	2.28	0.93
Coating, Painting, and Spraying Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders	90	$46,300	$45,970	2.19	2.14
Computer and Information Systems Managers	50	$121,750	$127,960	1.27	0.29
Computer Network Support Specialists	50	$73,130	$74,670	1.28	1.36
Computer Numerically Controlled Tool Operators	140	$47,100	$50,400	3.52	3.23
Computer Systems Analysts	40	$80,500	$95,350	0.92	0.28
Computer User Support Specialists	120	$47,260	$53,450	2.95	0.64
Construction and Building Inspectors	30	$59,910	$65,130	0.83	0.88
Construction Laborers	430	$58,240	$57,160	10.43	1.48
Construction Managers	70	$100,320	$107,840	1.83	0.75
Cooks, Institution and Cafeteria	120	$36,100	$35,410	3.01	1.06
Cooks, Restaurant	490	$29,860	$32,800	11.96	1.32
Cooks, Short Order	40	$28,390	$28,550	0.99	1.11
Cost Estimators	60	$69,000	$72,650	1.43	0.99
Counter and Rental Clerks	80	$36,380	$37,630	1.86	0.72
Court, Municipal, and License Clerks	40	$46,170	$47,290	0.90	0.78
Customer Service Representatives	420	$41,880	$43,310	10.34	0.62
Cutting, Punching, and Press Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic	90	$44,410	$43,560	2.30	2.09
Dental Assistants	80	$48,920	$48,930	1.92	0.77
Dental Hygienists	60	$80,640	$83,070	1.47	1.03
Detectives and Criminal Investigators	50	$60,100	$60,300	1.20	1.62
Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers	130	$26,020	$26,420	3.08	0.88
Dishwashers	130	$28,330	$28,790	3.07	1.00
Dispatchers, Except Police, Fire, and Ambulance	40	$50,840	$49,730	0.88	0.67
Driver/Sales Workers	190	$29,270	$34,600	4.64	1.76
Education Administrators, Kindergarten through Secondary	110	$96,590	$96,930	2.73	1.29
Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors	130	$46,640	$50,600	3.21	1.41
Electrical Engineers	60	$102,630	$101,890	1.53	1.20
Electrical, Electronic, and Electromechanical Assemblers, Except Coil Winders, Tapers, and Finishers	180	$43,390	$43,710	4.39	2.76
Electricians	130	$65,270	$70,690	3.27	0.67
Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education	470	$59,480	$58,470	11.47	1.29
Executive Secretaries and Executive Administrative Assistants	40	$59,330	$62,720	0.88	0.30
Exercise Trainers and Group Fitness Instructors	40	$35,770	$39,880	1.00	0.48
Extruding, Forming, Pressing, and Compacting Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders	40	$47,360	$45,820	1.07	2.84
Facilities Managers	70	$102,620	$108,300	1.62	1.61
Fast Food and Counter Workers	1,520	$28,250	$28,490	37.14	1.50
Financial Managers	110	$128,900	$137,680	2.60	0.48
Firefighters	160	$65,230	$64,660	4.03	1.81
First-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers	220	$79,130	$82,830	5.27	1.01
First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers	380	$45,230	$45,750	9.25	1.18
First-Line Supervisors of Housekeeping and Janitorial Workers	40	$49,320	$51,350	0.88	0.76
First-Line Supervisors of Landscaping, Lawn Service, and Groundskeeping Workers	30	$62,390	$61,900	0.80	0.95
First-Line Supervisors of Mechanics, Installers, and Repairers	190	$75,840	$78,830	4.54	1.14
First-Line Supervisors of Non-Retail Sales Workers	40	$77,590	$87,520	0.98	0.71
First-Line Supervisors of Office and Administrative Support Workers	240	$61,840	$67,040	5.79	0.63
First-Line Supervisors of Police and Detectives	50	$77,890	$79,940	1.28	1.29
First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers	470	$63,240	$67,310	11.40	2.63
First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers	390	$45,240	$48,310	9.43	1.31
First-Line Supervisors of Transportation and Material Moving Workers, Except Aircraft Cargo Handling Supervisors	180	$58,520	$61,250	4.34	1.08
Food Batchmakers	460	$43,390	$42,010	11.37	10.13
Food Preparation Workers	240	$28,640	$30,030	5.79	1.01
Food Service Managers	60	$70,540	$73,140	1.43	0.93
General and Operations Managers	580	$95,370	$116,990	14.19	0.63
Graphic Designers	30	$54,290	$54,300	0.79	0.62
Grinding and Polishing Workers, Hand	30	$35,480	$37,240	0.80	11.88
Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, and Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic	170	$39,050	$44,390	4.11	9.53
Hairdressers, Hairstylists, and Cosmetologists	90	$30,820	$35,190	2.16	1.10
Healthcare Social Workers	30	$64,100	$69,100	0.76	0.63
Heating, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Mechanics and Installers	90	$60,810	$62,100	2.30	0.87
Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers	620	$58,240	$57,540	15.12	1.14
Helpers--Production Workers	40	$43,720	$42,070	0.89	0.84
Highway Maintenance Workers	160	$48,780	$48,380	3.95	3.96
Home Health and Personal Care Aides	930	$35,170	$35,040	22.68	0.82
Hosts and Hostesses, Restaurant, Lounge, and Coffee Shop	150	$25,720	$26,490	3.58	1.29
Hotel, Motel, and Resort Desk Clerks	60	$28,830	$31,380	1.47	0.88
Human Resources Specialists	160	$67,690	$70,870	4.01	0.68
Industrial Engineers	130	$97,360	$95,150	3.27	1.39
Industrial Machinery Mechanics	280	$62,690	$66,650	6.91	2.44
Industrial Production Managers	140	$106,380	$119,010	3.31	2.09
Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators	170	$46,990	$48,690	4.11	0.83
Information and Record Clerks, All Other	40	$40,940	$40,110	0.88	1.02
Inspectors, Testers, Sorters, Samplers, and Weighers	380	$45,370	$47,580	9.28	2.41
Insurance Claims and Policy Processing Clerks	40	$50,120	$51,170	0.91	0.66
Insurance Sales Agents	70	$58,000	$76,770	1.61	0.52
Janitors and Cleaners, Except Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners	700	$34,880	$35,710	17.05	1.20
Kindergarten Teachers, Except Special Education	30	$58,990	$55,700	0.81	1.15
Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand	870	$37,820	$38,990	21.27	1.12
Landscaping and Groundskeeping Workers	340	$37,130	$39,410	8.36	1.37
Lawyers	70	$116,060	$147,810	1.67	0.34
Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses	150	$65,250	$64,690	3.61	0.87
Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers	40	$30,960	$33,010	0.86	0.85
Light Truck Drivers	250	$46,490	$50,810	6.22	0.98
Loan Officers	60	$59,700	$71,410	1.47	0.83
Machinists	140	$51,700	$53,640	3.48	1.88
Magnetic Resonance Imaging Technologists	30	$98,740	$91,980	0.79	2.83
Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners	110	$29,730	$31,650	2.61	0.47
Maintenance and Repair Workers, General	530	$47,050	$50,770	12.86	1.31
Management Analysts	60	$101,460	$101,560	1.39	0.24
Managers, All Other	60	$69,320	$75,610	1.42	0.35
Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists	120	$59,500	$64,380	2.94	0.51
Meat, Poultry, and Fish Cutters and Trimmers	60	$37,020	$37,530	1.48	1.58
Mechanical Engineers	110	$93,060	$98,430	2.75	1.44
Medical and Health Services Managers	120	$100,620	$114,410	2.92	0.76
Medical Assistants	240	$44,520	$43,240	5.92	1.13
Medical Secretaries and Administrative Assistants	220	$39,640	$42,160	5.47	0.89
Merchandise Displayers and Window Trimmers	30	$37,170	$42,720	0.83	0.78
Metal-Refining Furnace Operators and Tenders	70	$46,960	$50,010	1.76	16.27
Middle School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education	170	$59,640	$59,720	4.21	1.05
Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators	850	$41,060	$43,610	20.87	2.31
Mixing and Blending Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders	130	$42,980	$46,900	3.15	5.15
Mobile Heavy Equipment Mechanics, Except Engines	50	$62,770	$68,990	1.23	1.08
Molding, Coremaking, and Casting Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic	300	$45,600	$48,840	7.43	7.67
Network and Computer Systems Administrators	30	$84,450	$90,290	0.85	0.42
Nurse Practitioners	100	$124,520	$125,410	2.42	1.17
Nursing Assistants	340	$38,400	$40,440	8.38	0.90
Occupational Health and Safety Specialists	50	$77,840	$81,540	1.33	1.47
Office Clerks, General	750	$41,480	$43,240	18.28	1.15
Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators	170	$98,120	$84,420	4.26	1.39
Opticians, Dispensing	40	$38,070	$39,600	0.97	2.06
Order Clerks	30	$43,260	$47,540	0.85	1.77
Packaging and Filling Machine Operators and Tenders	390	$37,790	$40,570	9.49	3.89
Packers and Packagers, Hand	160	$35,490	$34,230	3.80	1.06
Painters, Construction and Maintenance	40	$49,430	$53,940	1.01	0.69
Paralegals and Legal Assistants	40	$49,090	$53,510	0.97	0.38
Parts Salespersons	100	$37,190	$41,480	2.44	1.41
Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks	40	$50,150	$50,420	1.03	1.05
Personal Financial Advisors	60	$60,490	$106,370	1.45	0.85
Pharmacists	60	$148,110	$134,990	1.56	0.75
Pharmacy Technicians	140	$45,290	$44,900	3.44	1.13
Physical Therapist Assistants	30	$51,000	$54,150	0.78	1.08
Physical Therapists	50	$98,420	$96,760	1.18	0.69
Physicians, All Other	50	$354,700	$359,220	1.25	0.57
Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters	90	$82,200	$77,450	2.08	0.70
Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers	200	$66,460	$68,010	4.84	1.12
Postal Service Mail Carriers	110	$60,550	$62,440	2.62	1.24
Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education	50	$36,840	$39,240	1.34	0.43
Production, Planning, and Expediting Clerks	90	$58,820	$61,360	2.11	0.84
Project Management Specialists	70	$89,790	$94,070	1.65	0.24
Property, Real Estate, and Community Association Managers	50	$48,000	$60,550	1.26	0.63
Public Relations Specialists	30	$54,450	$58,360	0.74	0.41
Radiologic Technologists and Technicians	70	$75,280	$71,980	1.65	1.11
Receptionists and Information Clerks	200	$36,390	$35,860	4.84	0.83
Recreation Workers	170	$35,990	$35,390	4.18	1.96
Registered Nurses	790	$82,300	$88,470	19.29	0.89
Rehabilitation Counselors	30	$46,890	$46,010	0.75	1.24
Residential Advisors	30	$30,730	$37,700	0.75	1.37
Respiratory Therapists	50	$82,990	$83,140	1.31	1.46
Retail Salespersons	1,460	$29,840	$33,430	35.83	1.43
Rolling Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic	50	$37,130	$40,060	1.11	6.83
Sales Managers	100	$140,630	$147,540	2.49	0.61
Sales Representatives of Services, Except Advertising, Insurance, Financial Services, and Travel	190	$54,940	$64,720	4.57	0.57
Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products	440	$74,430	$80,990	10.85	1.36
School Bus Monitors	30	$28,910	$28,760	0.78	1.54
Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education	330	$61,690	$68,910	8.02	1.17
Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive	280	$44,100	$43,350	6.77	0.62
Securities, Commodities, and Financial Services Sales Agents	60	$59,730	$86,370	1.40	0.44
Security Guards	120	$38,370	$41,590	2.98	0.36
Sewing Machine Operators	40	$31,200	$32,310	0.97	1.44
Sheet Metal Workers	50	$93,350	$82,370	1.29	1.67
Shipping, Receiving, and Inventory Clerks	380	$45,880	$45,760	9.28	1.77
Shuttle Drivers and Chauffeurs	60	$34,090	$33,500	1.35	0.85
Social and Human Service Assistants	90	$39,860	$40,710	2.16	0.77
Software Developers	70	$98,510	$105,000	1.64	0.15
Special Education Teachers, Kindergarten and Elementary School	60	$58,960	$60,640	1.47	0.87
Special Education Teachers, Secondary School	40	$60,550	$66,130	1.09	1.04
Speech-Language Pathologists	30	$79,250	$83,600	0.74	0.63
Stockers and Order Fillers	790	$34,540	$35,030	19.46	1.07
Substance Abuse, Behavioral Disorder, and Mental Health Counselors	100	$60,430	$65,810	2.36	0.75
Substitute Teachers, Short-Term	270	$31,530	$36,620	6.54	1.94
Surgical Technologists	40	$62,980	$66,430	0.92	1.22
Teaching Assistants, Except Postsecondary	350	$30,480	$32,430	8.67	0.95
Tellers	110	$38,200	$39,220	2.80	1.32
Tool and Die Makers	90	$67,650	$66,570	2.32	6.35
Training and Development Specialists	60	$52,870	$61,800	1.41	0.48
Transportation, Storage, and Distribution Managers	40	$97,920	$111,350	0.96	0.68
Veterinarians	30	$126,500	$129,240	0.77	1.43
Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers	70	$35,880	$34,820	1.64	2.02
Veterinary Technologists and Technicians	30	$47,230	$48,290	0.76	0.91
Waiters and Waitresses	680	$28,260	$30,490	16.64	1.14
Water and Wastewater Treatment Plant and System Operators	80	$53,340	$54,990	1.86	2.25
Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers	220	$53,420	$55,070	5.47	2.04

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025, metropolitan area estimates (cross-industry, all ownerships). Wages are pay for all workers in an occupation in this area, not any one person or employer; a dash means BLS does not publish the figure (often to protect privacy or because the estimate is unreliable), and “or more” marks a wage at or above BLS’s top reporting limit. Concentration is the BLS location quotient: the occupation's share of jobs in this area divided by its share nationally (1.00 = the same share as the U.S.; above 1.00 = a larger share); it says nothing about pay or openings. Jobs per 1,000 is the occupation's jobs per 1,000 jobs of all kinds in this area. Occupations that BLS reports only as hourly wages are not listed, and BLS shows some wages above its top limit as plain numbers while others read “or more”. Occupations are listed alphabetically; click a heading to sort. MajorPays does not rank places or occupations. MajorPays selected and reorganized these figures; the Bureau of Labor Statistics has not approved or endorsed this presentation. MajorPays does not provide advice. See Data sources.

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