Sources, occupation matching and update schedule
Every job description on The Job Explorer follows the same process, so you can see where each number comes from and how far to trust it.
Each job title is matched to one Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) code, the system U.S. government statistics use to group jobs. Matches are checked by hand. When a job title is narrower than any BLS occupation, the page says so and labels the pay as the wider group's figures rather than the job's own.
Pay comes from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program, May 2025 estimates. Pages show national percentiles (10th, 25th, median, 75th and 90th) and the median in each state where BLS publishes one. These are estimates for the whole occupation. What a given employer pays depends on location, industry, experience and the job itself.
Outlook figures come from BLS Employment Projections for 2025 to 2035: the expected change in employment and the average number of openings each year.
These sections use the O*NET 30.1 database from the U.S. Department of Labor. O*NET surveys people working in each occupation about their conditions, such as time on their feet, safety gear or deadlines, and the education they say the job needs. It also lists the tools and software used, the skills rated most important, typical interests, the preparation level (Job Zone) and related occupations. Percentages on our pages are the share of surveyed workers giving that answer.
The duties, skills and education sections describe the typical version of each job. Individual employers combine duties differently, so read a real job posting alongside the description.
Each page shows the date its content last changed. Pay figures are refreshed when BLS publishes new wage estimates each spring, and outlook figures when new projections come out. To report an error, use the contact page. We correct it and update the page date.
This site includes information from the O*NET 30.1 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. The Job Explorer has modified some of the information; USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed or tested these modifications. The Job Explorer is owned and operated by Aurum Services LLC.
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