W2 Salary
$90.5K - $98K
8% of jobs
$98K - $105.5K
12% of jobs
$109.2K is the 25th percentile. Wages below this are outliers.
$105.5K - $113K
10% of jobs
$113K - $120.5K
5% of jobs
$120.5K - $128K
6% of jobs
$128K - $135.5K
1% of jobs
The median wage is $140.4K / yr.
$135.5K - $143K
12% of jobs
$143K - $150.5K
20% of jobs
$150.8K is the 75th percentile. Wages above this are outliers.
$150.5K - $158K
9% of jobs
$158K - $165.5K
9% of jobs
$165.5K - $173K
8% of jobs
$90.5K
$143.5K
$175K
$136,199
/year
$65.48
/hour
W2 Salary Comparison by Location
Nationwide
United States
$136,199
Columbus
Ohio
$131,555
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How much does a W2 make?
As of Sep 8, 2026, the average annual pay for a W2 in the United States is $136,199 a year.
Just in case you need a simple salary calculator, that works out to be approximately $65.48 an hour. This is the equivalent of $2,619/week or $11,349/month.
While ZipRecruiter is seeing annual salaries as high as $175,000 and as low as $90,500, the majority of W2 salaries currently range between $109,000 (25th percentile) to $155,000 (75th percentile) with top earners (90th percentile) making $170,000 annually across the United States. The average pay range for a W2 varies little (about 46000), which suggests that regardless of location, there are not many opportunities for increased pay or advancement, even with several years of experience.
A W2 in your area makes on average $131,555 per year, or $4,644 (3.410%) less than the national average annual salary of $136,199. Ohio ranks number 30 out of 50 states nationwide for W2 salaries.
To estimate the most accurate annual salary range for W2 jobs, ZipRecruiter continuously scans its database of millions of active jobs published locally throughout America.
Find your next high paying job as a W2 on ZipRecruiter today.
What are Top 10 Highest Paying Cities for W2 Jobs
We've identified 10 cities where the typical salary for a W2 job is above the national average. Topping the list is Berkeley, CA, , with Sitka, AK, and San Jose, CA, close behind in the second and third positions. San Jose, CA, beats the national average by $25,055 (18.4%), and Berkeley, CA, furthers that trend with another $30,569 (22.4%) above the $136,199 average.
With these 10 cities having average salaries higher than the national average, the opportunities for economic advancement by changing locations as a W2 appears to be exceedingly fruitful.
Finally, another factor to consider is the average salary for these top 10 cities varies very little at 6% between Berkeley, CA, and Oakland, CA, , reinforcing the limited potential for much wage advancement. The possibility of a lower cost of living may be the best factor to use when considering location and salary for a W2 role.
City | Annual Salary | Hourly Wage |
|---|---|---|
Berkeley, CA | $166,768 | $80.18 |
Sitka, AK | $164,077 | $78.88 |
San Jose, CA | $161,254 | $77.53 |
Santa Clara, CA | $160,849 | $77.33 |
San Francisco, CA | $160,467 | $77.15 |
Sunnyvale, CA | $159,851 | $76.85 |
Daly City, CA | $157,814 | $75.87 |
Santa Cruz, CA | $157,265 | $75.61 |
Arlington, VA | $156,692 | $75.33 |
Oakland, CA | $156,422 | $75.20 |
What are Top 5 Best Paying Related W2 Jobs in the U.S.
Analyzing some similar jobs related to the W2 job category, we found that Mis Engineer jobs have average salaries similar than W2 jobs.
Job Title | Annual Salary | Hourly Wage |
|---|---|---|
Mis Engineer | $129,678 | $62.35 |
Appian | $126,408 | $60.77 |
Software Deployment Engineer | $121,615 | $58.47 |
Principal User Experience Designer | $106,224 | $51.07 |
Computer Information Technology | $47,150 | $22.67 |
About Our Data
ZipRecruiter salary estimates, histograms, trends and comparisons are derived from both employer job postings and third party data sources.
