How to compare a job offer with BLS wages

Match the work, not the job title

Titles drift between employers, so find the occupation whose duties look like the job you're being offered rather than the one whose name matches.

Then check the area and the data year. County links here use the published metropolitan or nonmetropolitan estimate that covers that county, which is usually broader than the county itself.

Get both numbers onto the same footing

OEWS measures gross straight-time wages. Some commissions and incentive pay count. Overtime and stock don't.

So if an offer leans on equity or a bonus, comparing the whole package to a wage median overstates it. Write out base pay, equity, bonus, benefits, and expected hours separately.

Say the offer is $88,000 against an $80,000 median. That's $8,000 more, about 10%. It says nothing about the health plan, the commute, or what you'll owe in taxes.

• What OEWS wage estimates include

The middle of the range is more useful than the median alone

The median is the midpoint: half the workers in that occupation earn less. The 25th and 75th percentiles mark the middle half, which gives you a sense of the spread.

What these figures don't do is tell you where you belong in that range. They describe workers in the occupation, not your experience level.

Two things to watch. A plus sign means the published figure is a floor, not the real number. A blank means there's no reliable estimate. Doing percentage math against either one produces a number that looks precise and isn't.

• Browse Washington wage data

Turn it into a question you can ask

The table is most useful as preparation. Something like: where does this role sit in your pay band, and what moves someone through it?

That gets you further than quoting a median across the table, and it leaves room for the things the data can't see: your responsibilities, your hours, and how the employer structures pay.