Compared with the local labor market
Economist pay vs. the New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ area
Across all employers in the New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ area, the median wage for Economists — about 850 people — is $176,090. Department of Transportation pays a median base salary of $86,350 for this role, 51% below that figure — below the 10th percentile of local pay for the occupation.
Where Department of Transportation sits in the local pay range
$86,930
$121,830
$176,090
$229,570
$297,870
Department of Transportation median · $86,350
The bar is the range of annual wages for Economists across every employer in the New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ area, from the 10th to the 90th percentile, with the middle 50% highlighted. The marker shows Department of Transportation’s median base salary for this role. Both figures are base pay only.
And across the country
Nationwide, the median wage for Economists — about 17,790 people — is $124,720. Department of Transportation’s median base salary is 31% below that national figure, about the 23rd percentile of pay for the occupation nationally.
$67,360
$89,330
$124,720
$174,720
$238,060
Department of Transportation median · $86,350
Local and national wages differ for reasons beyond how well a job pays — cost of living, the mix of employers, and local demand for the occupation all move the New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ range relative to the national one.
Median total compensation for this role at Department of Transportation is $94,156, which includes overtime and employer-paid benefits. The benchmark above excludes both, so total compensation is deliberately not compared against it.
Benchmark: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2025). BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) covers all employers in the area — private, non-profit, and government alike — so this is a comparison against the whole local labor market for the occupation, not against private-sector pay. OEWS wages are straight-time pay and exclude overtime, shift differentials, and employer-paid benefits, so the government figure shown here is base pay on the same basis. Total compensation is not comparable to it. Job titles are matched to the closest standard occupation, so the comparison is between similar work rather than an identical job classification.
Compare jurisdictions
Economist beyond New York City
This role is reported in 5 jurisdictions. In New York City, the median of $79,810 ranks #3 of 5. See Economist across all of New York City →
Highest-paying jurisdictions for this role
Median total compensation for comparable Economistroles in other jurisdictions. Titles are matched by normalized name across sources, not identical job classification, and pay is not cost-of-living adjusted. Each bar links to that jurisdiction’s page for the role.