DOL Filings vs BLS Survey
What Employers File with DOL
This figure comes from 7,033 employer filings with the US Department of Labor under legal obligation. Employers file this salary when sponsoring workers for PERM green cards or H-1B visas.
What BLS Says the Market Pays
This figure comes from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey of 219,530 establishments. This is an independent survey-based estimate of what all workers in this occupation earn.
Salary Distribution
Top Paying Employers for Cost Estimators
Ranked by median salary from DOL filingsSalary by Metro Area
| Metro Area | Median | vs National | Filings | Employers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thousand Oaks, CA | $125,000 | +108.3% | 11 | 5 |
| South San Francisco, CA | $105,000 | +75% | 13 | 5 |
| Fremont, CA | $100,000 | +66.7% | 11 | 6 |
| Anchorage, AK | $97,773 | +63% | 16 | 6 |
| San Francisco, CA | $86,500 | +44.2% | 157 | 52 |
| Palo Alto, CA | $83,000 | +38.3% | 11 | 3 |
| Sunnyvale, CA | $80,371 | +34% | 15 | 8 |
| Aliso Viejo, CA | $79,700 | +32.8% | 10 | 3 |
| Overland Park, KS | $78,749 | +31.2% | 14 | 3 |
| Tampa, FL | $72,150 | +20.2% | 12 | 8 |
| San Jose, CA | $72,093 | +20.2% | 20 | 16 |
| New York, NE | $72,000 | +20% | 149 | 85 |
| San Diego, CA | $71,490 | +19.2% | 27 | 19 |
| JERSEY CITY, NJ | $70,739 | +17.9% | 12 | 6 |
| Oakland, CA | $70,720 | +17.9% | 27 | 10 |
| Auburn Hills, MI | $70,260 | +17.1% | 20 | 11 |
| Los Angeles, CA | $70,000 | +16.7% | 98 | 49 |
| Redmond, WA | $70,000 | +16.7% | 11 | 6 |
| MERCERVILLE, NJ | $69,992 | +16.7% | 11 | 1 |
| Seattle, WA | $69,000 | +15% | 18 | 16 |
| Rockville, MA | $68,341 | +13.9% | 10 | 7 |
| Irvine, CA | $67,500 | +12.5% | 20 | 14 |
| Milpitas, CA | $66,040 | +10.1% | 14 | 9 |
| Boston, MA | $65,478 | +9.1% | 36 | 13 |
| New York, NY | $65,229 | +8.7% | 504 | 183 |
| Hicksville, NY | $65,000 | +8.3% | 51 | 4 |
| BROOKLYN, NE | $65,000 | +8.3% | 38 | 22 |
| Edison, NJ | $65,000 | +8.3% | 15 | 6 |
| Curtis Bay, MD | $65,000 | +8.3% | 11 | 2 |
| Houston, TX | $64,822 | +8% | 286 | 132 |
Salary by State
| State | Median | vs National | Filings |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska | $96,408 | +41.1% | 17 |
| Wyoming | $95,000 | +26.9% | 4 |
| Kansas | $78,749 | +8.5% | 15 |
| Delaware | $73,429 | -2.6% | 2 |
| Michigan | $68,900 | -9.4% | 103 |
| Washington | $68,555 | -17.3% | 65 |
| North Dakota | $66,800 | -4.9% | 1 |
| Colorado | $65,562 | -20% | 47 |
| Nebraska | $65,000 | -6% | 357 |
| Massachusetts | $63,646 | -38% | 124 |
| Arizona | $63,253 | -20.3% | 45 |
| New York | $62,525 | -24.6% | 982 |
| Oregon | $61,859 | -21.7% | 41 |
| Arkansas | $60,029 | -4.5% | 23 |
| Maine | $60,000 | -17.9% | 1 |
| Virginia | $60,000 | -21% | 101 |
| California | $60,000 | -29.1% | 981 |
| Hawaii | $60,000 | -23.7% | 19 |
| Connecticut | $60,000 | -22.2% | 20 |
| Missouri | $60,000 | -18.2% | 13 |
| Texas | $58,926 | -21.4% | 557 |
| Maryland | $57,593 | -29.3% | 87 |
| Tennessee | $57,551 | -22.8% | 12 |
| New Jersey | $57,335 | -29.1% | 240 |
| District of Columbia | $57,117 | -32.3% | 30 |
| Indiana | $56,400 | -21.2% | 25 |
| Illinois | $56,000 | -29.9% | 192 |
| Louisiana | $55,200 | -19.4% | 21 |
| Utah | $55,000 | -30.5% | 2 |
| Pennsylvania | $55,000 | -26.3% | 41 |
| North Carolina | $53,300 | -26.2% | 40 |
| West Virginia | $53,051 | -24.9% | 4 |
| Minnesota | $52,000 | -35% | 10 |
| Florida | $52,000 | -27.7% | 257 |
| Wisconsin | $52,000 | -27.7% | 15 |
| New Hampshire | $52,000 | -33.1% | 1 |
| Mississippi | $51,750 | -22.1% | 6 |
| Rhode Island | $51,455 | -32.3% | 4 |
| Georgia | $50,856 | -30.2% | 105 |
| South Carolina | $49,559 | -26.5% | 22 |
| Ohio | $49,500 | -34.4% | 47 |
| Iowa | $43,340 | -43.2% | 4 |
| Alabama | $41,821 | -38.5% | 62 |
| Nevada | $39,175 | -51.2% | 2 |
| Oklahoma | $37,523 | -41.2% | 7 |
| Kentucky | $35,139 | -49.4% | 10 |
Salary Trend - DOL Data
Education Requirements
From PERM filingsFor Cost Estimators positions, 67% of PERM filings required a Bachelor's degree, 24% required a Master's degree, and 7% required no formal degree.
Education by Top Employer
Most common minimum education from PERM filings| Employer | Most Common Education | Median Salary |
|---|---|---|
| AECOM Technical Services Inc | Master's | $66,783 |
| CUMMING CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT INC. | Not specified | $79,999 |
| FAITHFUL+GOULD, INC. | Not specified | $89,013 |
| VJ ASSOCIATES INC. OF SUFFOLK | Master's | $68,000 |
| SMS InfoComm Corporation | Master's | $40,500 |
| Rider Levett Bucknall Ltd | Master's | $65,478 |
| JT Magen & Co. Inc. | Bachelor's | $75,000 |
| Turner & Townsend, Inc. | Bachelor's | $100,000 |
| Navillus Tile, Inc. | Bachelor's | $65,000 |
| Cockram Construction Inc. | Bachelor's | $125,000 |
Salary by Industry
Same occupation, different industries (NAICS)The highest-paying industry for Cost Estimators is Mining, Quarrying, Oil and Gas at $82,806. The lowest-paying industry with significant hiring is Other Services at $45,477.
Frequently Asked Questions
Based on 7,033 DOL filings, the median salary for a Cost Estimators is $60,000, ranging from $48,339 to $75,540.
The 90th percentile salary is $128,640 according to BLS data.
Based on DOL filings, Thousand Oaks, CA offers the highest median at $125,000.
DOL filing data covers positions where the employer filed for PERM green card sponsorship or an H-1B visa. These filings represent a subset of all Cost Estimators positions. We compare this data against BLS OEWS data which covers all workers in this occupation.
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