Human Resources Managers: salary, outlook & degrees
Plan, direct, or coordinate human resources activities and staff of an organization.
Middle half $111,110–$199,290. 220,660 jobs.
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025
79% hold a bachelor's or higher. Those with one: $89,205.
Census ACS 2020-2024 microdata, workers with at least a high school diploma; EducationGuide calculation
About 16,800 openings a year, including replacements.
BLS Employment Projections 2025-35
Considerable preparation (usually a bachelor's).
BLS; O*NET 31.0 job zone
Degrees that lead to this career
What workers ages 25-34 in this job studied, among those with a bachelor's or higher. This is what people actually did, not a requirement.
| Field of bachelor's degree | Share | Degree pages |
|---|---|---|
| Business Management And Administration | 14% | Business Administration |
| Human Resources And Personnel Management | 11% | Human Resources |
| Psychology | 11% | Psychology |
| Communications | 6% | Communications · Communication, Journalism, and Related Programs, Other |
| General Business | 5% | Business |
| Political Science And Government | 3% | Political Science |
| Sociology | 2% | Sociology |
| Marketing And Marketing Research | 2% | Marketing · Specialized Sales, Merchandising and Marketing Operations |
| Criminal Justice And Fire Protection | 2% | Criminal Justice · Security / Homeland Security |
| English Language And Literature | 2% | English |
Census ACS 2020-2024 microdata (ages 25-34, employed, bachelor's or higher; top 10 fields); EducationGuide calculation.
Education workers say the job requires
O*NET 31.0 survey of workers (“required level of education”); small samples, so treat shares as approximate.
Pay by state and metro
| State | Median wage |
|---|---|
| District of Columbia | $184,350 |
| Massachusetts | $181,780 |
| New York | $176,650 |
| New Jersey | $172,440 |
| California | $170,080 |
| Rhode Island | $167,110 |
| Colorado | $166,400 |
| Virginia | $165,980 |
| Connecticut | $165,930 |
| Washington | $165,530 |
| Delaware | $153,890 |
| Minnesota | $153,770 |
| Maryland | $152,770 |
| Illinois | $151,370 |
| Georgia | $150,700 |
| North Carolina | $142,990 |
| Oregon | $140,570 |
| Arizona | $139,820 |
| North Dakota | $139,050 |
| Michigan | $138,930 |
| Florida | $137,790 |
| Texas | $136,500 |
| New Hampshire | $135,000 |
| Kansas | $134,470 |
| Wisconsin | $133,490 |
| Pennsylvania | $133,060 |
| Vermont | $132,050 |
| Tennessee | $131,760 |
| Utah | $131,380 |
| Missouri | $130,680 |
| Ohio | $130,480 |
| Indiana | $130,340 |
| Maine | $129,720 |
| Alaska | $129,570 |
| Nebraska | $129,460 |
| Hawaii | $128,910 |
| Nevada | $128,550 |
| Wyoming | $127,520 |
| Iowa | $126,370 |
| South Carolina | $124,290 |
| Kentucky | $121,460 |
| West Virginia | $120,020 |
| Idaho | $119,990 |
| New Mexico | $118,070 |
| South Dakota | $117,930 |
| Oklahoma | $116,080 |
| Montana | $115,280 |
| Alabama | $113,210 |
| Arkansas | $108,580 |
| Louisiana | $107,880 |
| Mississippi | $106,100 |
| PR | $78,370 |
| VI | $77,490 |
| GU | $77,180 |
Florida metro areas
- Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach$142,940
- Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater$140,400
- Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford$136,230
- Jacksonville$133,950
- Tallahassee$101,210
- North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota$132,620
- Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville$156,300
- Cape Coral-Fort Myers$131,570
Virginia metro areas
- Washington-Arlington-Alexandria$177,960
- Richmond$152,190
- Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk$140,410
- Roanoke$137,510
- Charlottesville$155,290
- Kingsport-Bristol$132,680
- Lynchburg$136,100
- Winchester$139,390
California metro areas
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim$168,400
- San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont$209,340
- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara$220,460
- San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad$163,190
- Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario$139,010
- Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom$155,360
- Fresno$143,180
- Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura$162,230
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025: median annual wage, all workers in the job. Metro areas: the largest by employment.
What the work takes
Top skills
- Active Listening
- Reading Comprehension
- Speaking
- Writing
- Critical Thinking
Knowledge used
- Personnel and Human Resources
- English Language
- Administration and Management
- Customer and Personal Service
- Education and Training
Work styles
- Integrity
- Dependability
- Leadership Orientation
- Social Orientation
- Cooperation
People in this job tend to have Enterprising (leading), Conventional (organizing), Social (helping) interests.
O*NET 31.0 (U.S. Department of Labor, CC BY 4.0): skills and knowledge by importance; work styles; interest high points.
Human Resources Managers: questions
How much do human Resources Managers make?
Human Resources Managers earn a U.S. median $149,280 a year; the middle half earn $111,110 to $199,290 (BLS, May 2025). Workers ages 25-34 in this job earn a median $81,555 (Census ACS 2020-2024).
Is human Resources Managers a growing field?
BLS projects growth of 5.5% from 2025 to 2035, with about 16,800 openings a year, including replacements.
What degree do you need to be a human Resources Manager?
BLS lists the typical entry education as bachelor's degree. In O*NET's survey, 95% of workers say a bachelor's or higher is required. Among workers ages 25-34 with a bachelor's, the most common field of degree is business Management And Administration (14%).
How much do human Resources Managers make in Florida?
The median in Florida is $137,790 a year (BLS, May 2025), compared with $149,280 nationally.
Sources: Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2025-35); O*NET 31.0 (U.S. Department of Labor, CC BY 4.0); U.S. Census Bureau ACS microdata. SOC 11-3121. Method
Data: JSON · Markdown · all careers
Cite this: “Human Resources Managers: salary, outlook and degrees,” EducationGuide.com, https://educationguide.com/careers/human-resources-managers.