how much does the average american lawyer make

by Deborah Jones 7 min read

about $148,910 a year

Full Answer

What is the average starting salary for a lawyer?

  • District of Columbia – $192,530
  • California – $171,550
  • New York – $167,110
  • Massachusetts – $165,610
  • Connecticut – $153,640
  • Illinois – $152,980
  • Texas – $150,250
  • Colorado – $147,560
  • Arizona – $145,750
  • Virginia – $139,180

More items...

What is the average yearly income of an attorney?

What is the average lawyer salary?

  • Bimodal salary distribution. The average annual earnings is a significant draw for many who consider the legal profession. ...
  • Low salary range. Keeping the bimodal distribution scale in mind, you might consider the lower end of the lawyer’s salary scale to be around $60,000.
  • High salary range. ...

How much minimum wage does a lawyer make?

Within United States, employees must be paid no less than the minimum wage as specified by the Federal and the local governments. Starting July 2009, the U.S. federal government allows a nationwide minimum wage per hour of $7.25, while depending by each state’s policy employers may be requested to pay higher rates.

How much do lawyers really make?

Much of what we say is wrong ... Public officials sometimes like to pretend that it does. When Twitter or Facebook evicts them or deletes one of their posts, they make noise about censorship and free speech. Occasionally, they even file frivolous lawsuits ...

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What is the highest paying lawyer?

Highest paid lawyers: salary by practice areaTax attorney (tax law): $122,000.Corporate lawyer: $115,000.Employment lawyer: $87,000.Real Estate attorney: $86,000.Divorce attorney: $84,000.Immigration attorney: $84,000.Estate attorney: $83,000.Public Defender: $63,000.More items...•

Do lawyers make good money in America?

Law careers have always been some of the most lucrative in the United States. Depending on their location and specialty, lawyers can make as much as $200,000+ a year, which is considerably more than people make in most other professions.

How much do the top 1 percent of lawyers make?

How much do attorneys make? Well, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median income for attorneys in the US is less than $120K. The top 10% make over $208K. However, the top 1% of attorneys make $500K or more per year.

How can a lawyer make 7 figures?

4 Keys to Achieving a 7-Figure IncomeRun your law firm like a business. You studied the law as a noble profession, but to break the seven-figure barrier, you must run your law firm like a business. ... Focus on a niche. ... Identify your ideal target market. ... Pay attention to your firm's finances.

Can you be rich as a lawyer?

Lawyers and attorneys often earn substantially over the average salary in the country they practice and while for many this will simply lead to a very comfortable upper-middle life, for some who make it to the elite sphere of law, it can lead to vast wealth.

How much do Harvard lawyers make?

Harvard Law School Jobs by SalaryJob TitleRangeAverageAttorney / LawyerRange:$18k - $203kAverage:$95,855Law Firm PartnerRange:$254k - $491kAverage:$425,000Corporate LawyerRange:$100k - $250kAverage:$130,000Senior CounselRange:$159k - $203kAverage:$182,0003 more rows•May 21, 2022

What is the highest paying job in the world?

anesthesiologistThe highest-paying job in the world, in a traditional sense, holds the number one spot in this article: anesthesiologist. They are also the only job listed above $300,000 a year. The list, however, does not take into account mega-CEOs like Warren Buffett and Jeff Bezos, who make considerably more than that.

What is the lowest paid type of lawyer?

Different Types of LawyerPersonal Injury Lawyer Salary: $73,000. ... Corporate Lawyer Salary: $66,000-$170,000. ... Immigration Lawyer Salary: $80,000-$85,000. ... General Practice Lawyer Salary: $118,000. ... Workers Compensation Lawyer Salary: $72,000. ... Tax Attorney Salary: $96,000. ... Family Lawyer Salary: $48,000-$80,000.

How much does a Lawyer make?

The average annual pay for a Lawyer in Chicago is $101,654 an year. Just in case you need a simple salary calculator, that works out to be approxim...

What are Top 10 Highest Paying Cities for Lawyer Jobs?

San Francisco, CA($128,399)Fremont, CA($124,987)San Jose, CA($120,275)Jackson, WY($119,072)Oakland, CA($119,046)Hayward, CA($116,776)Vallejo, CA($1...

What are Top 5 Best Paying Related Lawyer Jobs in the U.S.?

Corporate Lawyer($149,875)Family Lawyer($124,766)Commercial Lawyer($109,253)Technology Lawyer($105,896)Business Lawyer($102,297)

Most common benefits

The average salary for a lawyer is $5,233 per month in the United States. 291 salaries reported, updated at February 18, 2022.

How much should you be earning?

Get an estimated calculation of how much you should be earning and insight into your career options. See more details

Common questions about salaries for a Lawyer

If you’re unsure about what salary is appropriate for a lawyer, visit Indeed's Salary Calculator to get a free, personalized pay range based on your location, industry and experience.

10 States Where Lawyers Earn the Most Money

The national average annual wage of an lawyer is $144,230, according to the BLS, which is not far from being three-times the average annual salary for all occupations, $51,960. However, that average salary is for the U.S. overall, which hides significant differences depending on geography, such as the state you reside in.

10 States Where Lawyers Earn the Least Money

The bottom-10 states where lawyers make the least money tend to be ones less densely populated, and either in the South or the Mountain states of the West. Check them out below, with No. 1 being the lowest-paying state:

How Much Do Lawyers Make in Each State

Below you’ll find the average annual wage for lawyers in all 50 states from 2013 to 2018. Unfortunately, there was no 2018 data available for the average lawyer salary in Delaware from the BLS. The rank is included, as well as the five-year change in average annual wage in percent.

How much do lawyers make?

Becoming a lawyer can be a long and grueling process, but the career can be rewarding in more ways than one. But how much do lawyers make? According to Salary.com, the average annual salary can range from $82,897 to $237,296, depending on your experience and skill level.

Is law school right for you?

Even if you're expecting to earn a high salary as a lawyer, you'll want to run the numbers on the cost of law school to determine if it's the right move for you.

How to pay for law school

If you're looking forward to a lucrative career as a lawyer, but you're concerned about paying for law school, here are some potential options to consider:

The bottom line

If you're thinking about a career in law, it's important to know what you're getting yourself into, not only in terms of what you'll earn but also how much it's going to cost you to establish your career.

How much do lawyers make an hour?

On average, lawyers make about $49.10 an hour, meaning that if a lawyer works a regular 40-hour workweek, they can make about $2,325 a week. According to Payscale lawyers in the lower 10% make about $20.37 an hour, a median wage of $49.10 an hour, and the highest 10% make about $266.67 an hour.

What states have the highest earning lawyers?

According to the BLS, the top-paying states where lawyers have the most earning potential are the District of Columbia ($192,530), California ($171,550), New York ($167,110), Massachusetts ($165,610), and Connecticut ($153,640).

How much do legal secretaries make?

They handle a lot of legal paperwork and correspondence. They make a similar salary to paralegals with a median income of $50,040 per year.

What are some jobs related to being a lawyer?

Related Jobs. BLS also has some information about jobs related to being a lawyer. Besides becoming a lawyer you could also become a paralegal, legal assistant, or legal secretary. Paralegals and legal assistants do all kinds of work, research, and writing to help lawyers do their jobs.

What do lawyers need to know about research?

They need to know how to search databases to find all the laws and regulations that apply to their case. They also need to know how to research similar cases.

How do I get into law school?

After you've graduated college it's time to get into a law school. But before you can get into a law school you'll have to take and pass the Law School Admission Test (LSAT). This test will determine whether you have the skills necessary to succeed in law school. 3. Go to Law School.

What do you study in law school?

While in law school you will study topics like constitutional law, contracts, property law, civil procedure, and legal writing. But you can also specialize in subjects like tax law, labor laws, and corporate law. 4. Pass the Bar Exam.

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