
Highest paying jobs in Evansville for high school graduates
Highest paying jobs in Evansville for high school graduates
The average college graduate in 2019 earned $78,000 a year, while the average high school graduate takes home just $45,000, according to research from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. To put it in perspective, the average annual wage for workers in the U.S. that same year was $51,916.27.
Of course, college isn’t for everyone. There are many reasons high-school graduates may choose to not continue on to college, not the least of which being cost. Average tuition costs continue to rise each year, the exception being the 2020-2021 school year, due to the coronavirus pandemic. Average tuition at a public, in-state university coming in at $9,687; tuition for out-of-state students at public schools, and for everyone at private universities, is significantly higher at $21,874 and $35,087, respectively.
Just because you decide higher education isn’t in the cards doesn’t mean you have to resign yourself to a lifetime of low-paying jobs. You just need to be strategic about the career you choose. Stacker compiled a list of the highest and lowest paying jobs for high school graduates in Evansville, IN-KY using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Jobs are ranked by 2019 annual mean wage.
As this BLS data reflects the 2019 calendar year, the wages listed do not reflect any economic changes caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Keep reading to see which jobs in your city pay the most for high school graduates.
#49 (tie). Mixing and blending machine setters, operators, and tenders
- Annual mean salary: $43,100
- #53 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 420
National
- Annual mean salary: $39,920
- Employment: 125,340
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Shreveport-Bossier City, LA ($69,030)
--- Decatur, AL ($54,420)
--- Vallejo-Fairfield, CA ($53,460)
#49 (tie). First-line supervisors of housekeeping and janitorial workers
- Annual mean salary: $43,100
- #143 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 140
National
- Annual mean salary: $44,160
- Employment: 155,550
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Merced, CA ($65,070)
--- New Haven, CT ($64,530)
--- Lima, OH ($61,580)
#48. Coating, painting, and spraying machine setters, operators, and tenders
- Annual mean salary: $43,250
- #87 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 200
National
- Annual mean salary: $41,260
- Employment: 146,350
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Bremerton-Silverdale, WA ($63,530)
--- Mount Vernon-Anacortes, WA ($59,030)
--- Salinas, CA ($58,310)

#47. Structural metal fabricators and fitters
- Annual mean salary: $43,310
- #73 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 50
National
- Annual mean salary: $43,000
- Employment: 76,890
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Longview, WA ($66,750)
--- Buffalo-Cheektowaga-Niagara Falls, NY ($58,680)
--- Providence-Warwick, RI-MA ($55,550)
#46. Title examiners, abstractors, and searchers
- Annual mean salary: $43,490
- #107 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 80
National
- Annual mean salary: $52,050
- Employment: 52,890
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Coeur d'Alene, ID ($77,130)
--- Tyler, TX ($72,760)
--- Eugene, OR ($71,230)

#45. Property, real estate, and community association managers
- Annual mean salary: $43,590
- #278 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 110
National
- Annual mean salary: $71,720
- Employment: 220,750
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Charleston-North Charleston, SC ($110,010)
--- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA ($107,190)
--- San Juan-Carolina-Caguas, PR ($103,530)

#44. Inspectors, testers, sorters, samplers, and weighers
- Annual mean salary: $43,610
- #148 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 1,240
National
- Annual mean salary: $43,000
- Employment: 576,950
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Fairbanks, AK ($79,700)
--- Anchorage, AK ($78,400)
--- Odessa, TX ($75,850)

#43. Welders, cutters, solderers, and brazers
- Annual mean salary: $43,640
- #187 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 710
National
- Annual mean salary: $45,190
- Employment: 410,750
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Wheeling, WV-OH ($85,310)
--- Kahului-Wailuku-Lahaina, HI ($74,280)
--- Fairbanks, AK ($71,220)
#42. Lathe and turning machine tool setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic
- Annual mean salary: $44,040
- #32 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: data not available
National
- Annual mean salary: $41,990
- Employment: 28,070
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT ($72,890)
--- Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT ($70,300)
--- New Haven, CT ($66,130)

#41. Machinists
- Annual mean salary: $44,460
- #212 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 610
National
- Annual mean salary: $46,120
- Employment: 383,470
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Manchester, NH ($69,820)
--- Anchorage, AK ($67,000)
--- Urban Honolulu, HI ($66,940)
#40. Dental laboratory technicians
- Annual mean salary: $44,550
- #64 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 30
National
- Annual mean salary: $44,330
- Employment: 34,460
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Ocala, FL ($94,800)
--- Idaho Falls, ID ($64,810)
--- Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, VA-NC ($61,560)

#39. Security and fire alarm systems installers
- Annual mean salary: $44,660
- #126 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 200
National
- Annual mean salary: $50,210
- Employment: 71,600
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH ($67,650)
--- Worcester, MA-CT ($66,170)
--- Anchorage, AK ($65,830)
#38. Travel agents
- Annual mean salary: $44,740
- #44 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 50
National
- Annual mean salary: $44,690
- Employment: 66,670
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Charlottesville, VA ($62,060)
--- Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA ($57,200)
--- Reno, NV ($56,120)

#37. Brokerage clerks
- Annual mean salary: $44,810
- #105 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 30
National
- Annual mean salary: $55,190
- Employment: 47,990
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA ($69,070)
--- Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT ($65,450)
--- Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA ($63,270)

#36. Chefs and head cooks
- Annual mean salary: $45,620
- #200 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 40
National
- Annual mean salary: $56,310
- Employment: 128,190
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Urban Honolulu, HI ($91,770)
--- Kahului-Wailuku-Lahaina, HI ($84,240)
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($83,490)

#35. Postal service mail sorters, processors, and processing machine operators
- Annual mean salary: $46,020
- #168 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 150
National
- Annual mean salary: $51,190
- Employment: 102,390
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- New Haven, CT ($55,700)
--- Wausau, WI ($55,630)
--- Lansing-East Lansing, MI ($54,450)

#34. Chemical equipment operators and tenders
- Annual mean salary: $46,290
- #70 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 840
National
- Annual mean salary: $51,540
- Employment: 87,120
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Billings, MT ($78,670)
--- Hattiesburg, MS ($70,540)
--- Tuscaloosa, AL ($69,990)
#33. Pest control workers
- Annual mean salary: $46,530
- #23 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 140
National
- Annual mean salary: $39,910
- Employment: 79,450
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Odessa, TX ($66,450)
--- Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN ($61,690)
--- Santa Rosa, CA ($59,370)

#32. Advertising sales agents
- Annual mean salary: $48,400
- #194 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 170
National
- Annual mean salary: $64,660
- Employment: 129,740
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Gainesville, GA ($93,860)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($92,720)
--- Tulsa, OK ($92,380)

#31. Mobile heavy equipment mechanics, except engines
- Annual mean salary: $49,840
- #206 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 200
National
- Annual mean salary: $54,840
- Employment: 147,800
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Fairbanks, AK ($80,010)
--- Urban Honolulu, HI ($77,660)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($75,510)

#30. Industrial machinery mechanics
- Annual mean salary: $50,220
- #271 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 820
National
- Annual mean salary: $55,320
- Employment: 387,630
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Norwich-New London-Westerly, CT-RI ($84,670)
--- San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles-Arroyo Grande, CA ($82,010)
--- Manhattan, KS ($81,810)

#29. Carpenters
- Annual mean salary: $51,030
- #103 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 650
National
- Annual mean salary: $52,850
- Employment: 734,170
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Urban Honolulu, HI ($78,650)
--- Salinas, CA ($74,350)
--- Atlantic City-Hammonton, NJ ($74,280)
#28. Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants
- Annual mean salary: $51,130
- #276 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 160
National
- Annual mean salary: $62,920
- Employment: 542,690
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT ($85,420)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($82,480)
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($82,240)

#27. Postal service clerks
- Annual mean salary: $51,490
- #141 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 70
National
- Annual mean salary: $50,610
- Employment: 81,170
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Flagstaff, AZ ($56,540)
--- Florence, SC ($56,080)
--- Monroe, MI ($55,650)

#26. Postal service mail carriers
- Annual mean salary: $51,670
- #194 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 360
National
- Annual mean salary: $52,180
- Employment: 339,650
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($56,610)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($56,220)
--- Urban Honolulu, HI ($54,930)
#25. Farm equipment mechanics and service technicians
- Annual mean salary: $52,970
- #7 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 40
National
- Annual mean salary: $43,630
- Employment: 36,290
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Las Cruces, NM ($70,380)
--- Yuma, AZ ($58,140)
--- Bloomington, IL ($57,820)

#24. Food service managers
- Annual mean salary: $53,970
- #228 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 150
National
- Annual mean salary: $59,820
- Employment: 235,470
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Ocean City, NJ ($91,790)
--- Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT ($90,830)
--- Kahului-Wailuku-Lahaina, HI ($89,760)

#23. Production, planning, and expediting clerks
- Annual mean salary: $54,450
- #58 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 350
National
- Annual mean salary: $50,640
- Employment: 370,380
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Norwich-New London-Westerly, CT-RI ($73,910)
--- Parkersburg-Vienna, WV ($68,320)
--- Lake Charles, LA ($67,050)
#22. First-line supervisors of office and administrative support workers
- Annual mean salary: $54,520
- #210 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 1,680
National
- Annual mean salary: $60,130
- Employment: 1,487,870
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA ($73,300)
--- Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA ($73,050)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($71,190)
#21. Glaziers
- Annual mean salary: $54,900
- #35 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: data not available
National
- Annual mean salary: $49,810
- Employment: 52,400
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Olympia-Tumwater, WA ($77,040)
--- St. Louis, MO-IL ($76,550)
--- Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD ($75,120)
#20. Meter readers, utilities
- Annual mean salary: $55,650
- #17 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 70
National
- Annual mean salary: $46,250
- Employment: 30,450
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($76,620)
--- Vallejo-Fairfield, CA ($72,950)
--- Sacramento--Roseville--Arden-Arcade, CA ($72,520)

#19. Occupational health and safety technicians
- Annual mean salary: $55,760
- #46 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 50
National
- Annual mean salary: $56,470
- Employment: 20,580
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Knoxville, TN ($87,490)
--- Baton Rouge, LA ($76,990)
--- Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA ($75,550)

#18. Electricians
- Annual mean salary: $56,900
- #162 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 1,000
National
- Annual mean salary: $60,370
- Employment: 688,620
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($100,400)
--- Trenton, NJ ($84,950)
--- Mount Vernon-Anacortes, WA ($84,810)
#17. Separating, filtering, clarifying, precipitating, and still machine setters, operators, and tenders
- Annual mean salary: $57,190
- #10 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 100
National
- Annual mean salary: $45,370
- Employment: 51,160
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Kankakee, IL ($73,100)
--- Columbus, OH ($67,770)
--- Napa, CA ($61,180)

#16. Sheet metal workers
- Annual mean salary: $57,360
- #80 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 160
National
- Annual mean salary: $54,480
- Employment: 131,300
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Fairbanks, AK ($96,050)
--- Pittsfield, MA ($83,850)
--- Urban Honolulu, HI ($81,270)

#15. Claims adjusters, examiners, and investigators
- Annual mean salary: $59,980
- #222 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 70
National
- Annual mean salary: $68,940
- Employment: 287,960
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT ($103,440)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($88,480)
--- Hammond, LA ($86,880)

#14. First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers
- Annual mean salary: $61,870
- #306 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 750
National
- Annual mean salary: $70,550
- Employment: 485,700
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($94,180)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($89,740)
--- Fairbanks, AK ($88,950)

#13. Plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters
- Annual mean salary: $62,650
- #86 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 870
National
- Annual mean salary: $59,800
- Employment: 442,870
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI ($89,470)
--- Kankakee, IL ($88,790)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($87,230)

#12. Brickmasons and blockmasons
- Annual mean salary: $63,050
- #38 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 110
National
- Annual mean salary: $56,470
- Employment: 60,650
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA ($87,010)
--- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA ($79,640)
--- Pittsfield, MA ($79,000)

#11. Electrical power-line installers and repairers
- Annual mean salary: $65,910
- #150 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 110
National
- Annual mean salary: $71,960
- Employment: 111,660
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Redding, CA ($116,900)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($111,740)
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($106,670)

#10. Sales representatives of services, except advertising, insurance, financial services, and travel
- Annual mean salary: $66,670
- #73 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 990
National
- Annual mean salary: $66,760
- Employment: 1,039,670
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Beaufort, SC ($94,480)
--- Walla Walla, WA ($88,980)
--- Kahului-Wailuku-Lahaina, HI ($88,360)

#9. First-line supervisors of production and operating workers
- Annual mean salary: $67,440
- #110 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 1,270
National
- Annual mean salary: $65,220
- Employment: 631,100
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX ($100,350)
--- Longview, WA ($96,560)
--- Baton Rouge, LA ($95,410)

#8. First-line supervisors of non-retail sales workers
- Annual mean salary: $67,800
- #253 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 180
National
- Annual mean salary: $86,180
- Employment: 249,090
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Durham-Chapel Hill, NC ($116,640)
--- Raleigh, NC ($112,570)
--- Lake Charles, LA ($110,260)

#7. Sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing, except technical and scientific products
- Annual mean salary: $68,290
- #153 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 1,800
National
- Annual mean salary: $71,110
- Employment: 1,344,530
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Santa Fe, NM ($94,880)
--- Kingston, NY ($91,660)
--- Portsmouth, NH-ME ($90,850)
#6. First-line supervisors of police and detectives
- Annual mean salary: $70,110
- #257 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 60
National
- Annual mean salary: $94,950
- Employment: 121,340
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($189,800)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($180,940)
--- Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA ($178,670)

#5. Operating engineers and other construction equipment operators
- Annual mean salary: $70,180
- #39 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 680
National
- Annual mean salary: $54,210
- Employment: 405,750
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA ($92,640)
--- Kankakee, IL ($87,470)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($86,240)

#4. First-line supervisors of construction trades and extraction workers
- Annual mean salary: $71,690
- #107 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 710
National
- Annual mean salary: $71,440
- Employment: 626,180
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($108,140)
--- Mount Vernon-Anacortes, WA ($104,640)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($99,580)

#3. Control and valve installers and repairers, except mechanical door
- Annual mean salary: $77,240
- #13 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: data not available
National
- Annual mean salary: $59,920
- Employment: 52,270
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Norwich-New London-Westerly, CT-RI ($91,020)
--- Glens Falls, NY ($86,890)
--- Madison, WI ($85,750)

#2. Insurance sales agents
- Annual mean salary: $81,660
- #24 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 320
National
- Annual mean salary: $67,780
- Employment: 410,050
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($109,960)
--- New Bedford, MA ($103,050)
--- Birmingham-Hoover, AL ($97,130)
#1. Transportation, storage, and distribution managers
- Annual mean salary: $82,380
- #254 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 90
National
- Annual mean salary: $103,320
- Employment: 132,040
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR-MO ($151,260)
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($144,220)
--- Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT ($139,860)


