SALARY DATA — SOC 43-9021
Data Entry Keyers
43-0000 Office and Administrative Support Occupations
The 90/10 ratio for Data Entry Keyers is 1.88× — the national median is $41,340 but top decile earns $58,790. The spread exists; it's concentrated in geography, specialization, and industry sector. Knowing which end of the band you're on is the whole negotiation.
BLS OEWS reference period: May 2025. Employment: 127,080.
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 | $31,200 | -25% | ~$15 |
| 25th pct — lower quartile | $35,760 | -13% | ~$17 |
| Median — 50th pct | $41,340 | — | $19.88/hr |
| Mean — average | $43,310 | +5% | $20.82/hr |
| 75th pct — upper quartile | $48,410 | +17% | ~$23 |
| 90th pct — top decile | $58,790 | +42% | ~$28 |
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 Data Entry Keyers in 297 metro areas; the 10 with the most jobs are below, ranked by employment.
| Metro | Jobs | Median | 10th pct | 90th pct |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ | 10,110 | $45,350 | $33,870 | $62,550 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | 5,900 | $47,040 | $38,320 | $63,890 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | 5,610 | $43,110 | $31,750 | $59,860 |
| Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX | 4,430 | $39,520 | $27,440 | $58,900 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN | 4,270 | $44,650 | $31,200 | $61,660 |
| Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ | 2,650 | $44,160 | $34,470 | $54,900 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD | 2,340 | $41,280 | $32,670 | $56,250 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL | 2,290 | $40,160 | $31,430 | $53,800 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA | 1,810 | $43,610 | $35,760 | $61,350 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | 1,620 | $42,840 | $31,750 | $64,220 |
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 171 detailed industries with a publishable estimate, the 5 that employ the most Data Entry Keyers are below, with the median wage each one pays.
| Industry | NAICS | Jobs | Median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employment Services | 561300 | 11,940 | $38,640 |
| Accounting, Tax Preparation, Bookkeeping, and Payroll Services | 541200 | 6,530 | $37,440 |
| Computer Systems Design and Related Services | 541500 | 6,110 | $41,130 |
| Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services | 518200 | 5,260 | $35,340 |
| Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services | 541600 | 5,260 | $41,710 |
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 Data Entry Keyers 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: Los Angeles ranks #4 of 50 on the paycheck and #29 once you spend it.
| Metro | Nominal | Prices | Real | Rank shift |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Francisco | $51,250 | 106.2 | $48,265 | — |
| Salt Lake City | $47,560 | 100.3 | $47,405 | +1 |
| Sacramento | $46,970 | 100.3 | $46,844 | +3 |
| Nashville | $44,490 | 95.1 | $46,795 | +9 |
| Raleigh | $45,620 | 98.2 | $46,460 | +4 |
| Boston | $47,640 | 103.6 | $45,967 | -4 |
| Louisville/Jefferson County | $43,570 | 95.0 | $45,884 | +10 |
| Riverside | $46,210 | 101.3 | $45,632 | — |
| Denver | $44,910 | 99.4 | $45,196 | +2 |
| Atlanta | $43,610 | 96.7 | $45,093 | +6 |
Top 10 of 50 metros by real wage. Rank shift = places gained or lost against the nominal ranking. Cleveland gains 15 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 Data Entry Keyers to move from 131,800 to 98,200 over 2025–2035 — -25.5% , with about 7,700 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 Data Entry Keyers?
- The median annual salary for Data Entry Keyers is $41,340, and the mean is $43,310 (BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025).
- What is the salary range for Data Entry Keyers?
- Most Data Entry Keyers earn between $31,200 and $58,790 a year. The wage gap inside the occupation is a 1.88× ratio — workers at the 90th percentile earn 1.88 times those at the 10th (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
- Where does pay for Data Entry Keyers fall the most after adjusting for cost of living?
- Local prices reorder the ranking. Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA ranks #4 by nominal pay but #29 of 50 metros once local prices are applied (BEA Regional Price Parities).
- Is employment for Data Entry Keyers growing or shrinking?
- BLS projects Data Entry Keyers employment to shrink 25.5% over the 2025–2035 window, with about 7,700 openings a year once retirements and career changes are counted (BLS Employment Projections, 2025–2035).
- How many Data Entry Keyers jobs are there in the US?
- BLS counts about 127,080 workers in Data Entry Keyers nationally (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
Figures from this page's OEWS / Employment Projections / BEA data, above. Methodology at /methodology#oews-salaries.
Related occupations
Other Office and Administrative Support Occupations whose national median wage is closest to that of Data Entry Keyers: same SOC major group, nearest median first.
- Office Machine Operators, Except Computer $40,960
- Telephone Operators $41,740
- Tellers $43,030
- Mail Clerks and Mail Machine Operators, Except Postal Service $39,280
- Couriers and Messengers $39,200
- File Clerks $43,600
- Switchboard Operators, Including Answering Service $38,630
- Reservation and Transportation Ticket Agents and Travel Clerks $44,390
The national wage distribution and the metro and industry tables above are BLS OEWS May 2025 estimates for Data Entry Keyers (SOC 43-9021): 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.
Methodology · About Office Blues · Meeting Tax Calculator · Daily Pulse
Raw JSON: /salaries/data-entry-keyers-43-9021.json · License: CC BY 4.0 · Source: BLS OEWS · Cite as: Office Blues OEWS Salary Data, Data Entry Keyers, officeblues.net/salaries/data-entry-keyers-43-9021
The Salary Negotiation Script at /products/salary-negotiation-script uses frameworks like these to build a case — this is the data layer.