SALARY DATA — SOC 53-3011
Ambulance Drivers and Attendants, Except Emergency Medical Technicians
53-0000 Transportation and Material Moving Occupations
The 90/10 ratio for Ambulance Drivers and Attendants, Except Emergency Medical Technicians is 1.68× — this is a compressed-comp occupation where the wage band is narrow. Top decile earns $45,960, bottom decile $27,350. In flat-comp professions, title and tenure define the ceiling more than negotiation does. Push title, not pay.
BLS OEWS reference period: May 2025. Employment: 12,630.
Wage distribution — the receipts
National OEWS annual wage percentiles. "vs. median" column shows each percentile relative to the occupation's own national median — this is where your position in the band lives. Source and series IDs: methodology page.
| Percentile | Annual wage | vs. median | Hourly (est.) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10th pct — bottom decile | $27,350 | -23% | ~$13 |
| 25th pct — lower quartile | $30,750 | -13% | ~$15 |
| Median — 50th pct | $35,450 | — | $17.04/hr |
| Mean — average | $36,210 | +2% | $17.41/hr |
| 75th pct — upper quartile | $38,410 | +8% | ~$18 |
| 90th pct — top decile | $45,960 | +30% | ~$22 |
Source: BLS OEWS national estimates. Annual wage ÷ 2,080 hrs = hourly estimate. Hourly-median is direct from OEWS when available; others are estimates only.
Pay by metro area
BLS publishes May 2025 wage estimates for Ambulance Drivers and Attendants, Except Emergency Medical Technicians in 39 metro areas; the 10 with the most jobs are below, ranked by employment.
| Metro | Jobs | Median | 10th pct | 90th pct |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD | 590 | $35,580 | $31,200 | $48,850 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | 560 | $37,510 | $34,320 | $45,640 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ | 540 | $37,620 | $36,170 | $47,920 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN | 520 | $36,730 | $34,090 | $43,600 |
| San Juan-Bayamon-Caguas, PR | 320 | $23,020 | $22,860 | $24,860 |
| Pittsburgh, PA | 230 | $31,220 | $24,820 | $36,290 |
| Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD | 200 | $37,900 | $36,260 | $44,420 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA | 190 | $35,960 | $30,590 | $40,800 |
| Greenville-Anderson-Greer, SC | 170 | $30,830 | $25,110 | $35,570 |
| Cleveland, OH | 160 | $35,290 | $31,250 | $38,250 |
Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 — metropolitan area estimates (oesm25ma/MSA_M2025_dl.xlsx). Jobs are rounded to the nearest ten and exclude the self-employed; a dash means BLS suppressed that percentile.
Pay by industry
Across 7 detailed industries with a publishable estimate, the 5 that employ the most Ambulance Drivers and Attendants, Except Emergency Medical Technicians are below, with the median wage each one pays.
| Industry | NAICS | Jobs | Median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Other Ambulatory Health Care Services | 621900 | 9,030 | $34,620 |
| Local Government, excluding Schools and Hospitals (OEWS Designation) | 999300 | 2,110 | $36,730 |
| General Medical and Surgical Hospitals | 622100 | 870 | $39,200 |
| Other Transit and Ground Passenger Transportation | 485900 | 290 | $37,840 |
| Outpatient Care Centers | 621400 | 70 | $37,660 |
Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 — national 4-digit NAICS industry estimates (oesm25in4/nat4d_M2025_dl.xlsx), all ownerships combined. Industries where BLS suppresses the wage are omitted rather than shown as zero.
What it pays vs. what it buys
The wage is only half the number. Below, the metro median for Ambulance Drivers and Attendants, Except Emergency Medical Technicians is divided by that metro's BEA Regional Price Parity — the federal measure of what a dollar actually buys there. Nominal is what the job pays. Real is what it buys at local prices. Which reorders the answer: New York ranks #5 of 24 on the paycheck and #18 once you spend it.
| Metro | Nominal | Prices | Real | Rank shift |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Richmond | $45,490 | 98.6 | $46,136 | — |
| Washington | $44,620 | 102.3 | $43,626 | — |
| Indianapolis | $42,330 | 99.1 | $42,712 | — |
| Nashville | $37,040 | 95.1 | $38,959 | +5 |
| Memphis | $36,730 | 95.4 | $38,506 | +6 |
| Charlotte | $37,420 | 98.2 | $38,089 | +1 |
| Cleveland | $35,290 | 93.9 | $37,573 | +11 |
| Baltimore | $37,900 | 101.5 | $37,358 | -4 |
| Atlanta | $35,960 | 96.7 | $37,183 | +5 |
| Hartford | $37,200 | 100.8 | $36,888 | -2 |
Top 10 of 24 metros by real wage. Rank shift = places gained or lost against the nominal ranking. Cleveland gains 11 places. Sources: BLS OEWS May 2025 metropolitan estimates; BEA Regional Price Parities (national = 100). Metros where BLS suppresses the estimate are omitted rather than shown as zero. Full data at /salaries-metro.json.
Is this job growing or dying?
BLS projects employment in Ambulance Drivers and Attendants, Except Emergency Medical Technicians to move from 14,300 to 14,100 over 2025–2035 — -1.3% , with about 1,400 openings a year once retirements and career changes are counted . Typical entry requirement: high school diploma or equivalent.
Source: BLS Employment Projections, Table 1.2 (2025–2035). Openings count growth and replacement need together, which is why a shrinking occupation can still hire. Full data at /employment-projections.json.
Salary FAQ
- What is the median salary for Ambulance Drivers and Attendants, Except Emergency Medical Technicians?
- The median annual salary for Ambulance Drivers and Attendants, Except Emergency Medical Technicians is $35,450, and the mean is $36,210 (BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025).
- What is the salary range for Ambulance Drivers and Attendants, Except Emergency Medical Technicians?
- Most Ambulance Drivers and Attendants, Except Emergency Medical Technicians earn between $27,350 and $45,960 a year. The wage gap inside the occupation is a 1.68× ratio — workers at the 90th percentile earn 1.68 times those at the 10th (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
- Where does pay for Ambulance Drivers and Attendants, Except Emergency Medical Technicians fall the most after adjusting for cost of living?
- Local prices reorder the ranking. New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA ranks #5 by nominal pay but #18 of 24 metros once local prices are applied (BEA Regional Price Parities).
- Is employment for Ambulance Drivers and Attendants, Except Emergency Medical Technicians growing or shrinking?
- BLS projects Ambulance Drivers and Attendants, Except Emergency Medical Technicians employment to shrink 1.3% over the 2025–2035 window, with about 1,400 openings a year once retirements and career changes are counted (BLS Employment Projections, 2025–2035).
- How many Ambulance Drivers and Attendants, Except Emergency Medical Technicians jobs are there in the US?
- BLS counts about 12,630 workers in Ambulance Drivers and Attendants, Except Emergency Medical Technicians nationally (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
Figures from this page's OEWS / Employment Projections / BEA data, above. Methodology at /methodology#oews-salaries.
Related occupations
Other Transportation and Material Moving Occupations whose national median wage is closest to that of Ambulance Drivers and Attendants, Except Emergency Medical Technicians: same SOC major group, nearest median first.
- Automotive and Watercraft Service Attendants $35,670
- Parking Attendants $35,150
- Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment $35,830
- Packers and Packagers, Hand $36,280
- Motor Vehicle Operators, All Other $37,180
- Shuttle Drivers and Chauffeurs $37,290
- Stockers and Order Fillers $37,330
- Passenger Attendants $37,720
The national wage distribution and the metro and industry tables above are BLS OEWS May 2025 estimates for Ambulance Drivers and Attendants, Except Emergency Medical Technicians (SOC 53-3011): percentiles from the OEWS API series, metro and industry rows from the published bulk tables — how they are fetched, what OEWS leaves out (equity, bonuses, benefits) and how the 90/10 ratio is read are documented at /methodology#oews-salaries and #oews-breakdown. The other sections keep their own sources and periods: the cost-adjusted metro table divides OEWS metro medians by BEA Regional Price Parities (/methodology#burnout-index); the outlook and its FAQ entry are BLS Employment Projections for 2025–2035.
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