Average Salary in Georgia and Cost of Living

Average and median wage in Georgia

Half of the 4,889,170 workers in Georgia earn less than $48,170 a year, the median wage, while the average pay is $65,920, or $31.69 an hour. The lowest-paid 10% make $27,930 or less and the top 10% $122,470 or more. The average is 6% less than the U.S. average ($69,770) and the median 6% less than the U.S. median ($50,980).

$28K10th
$36K25th
$48KMedian
$78K75th
$122K90th

median average · bar = middle 50% of workers · how to read it

Pay level	Georgia per year	Per hour*	U.S. per year
Average	$65,920	$31.69	$69,770
Median	$48,170	$23.16	$50,980
10th percentile	$27,930	$13.43	$31,200
25th percentile	$35,700	$17.16	$37,590
75th percentile	$77,570	$37.29	$80,520
90th percentile	$122,470	$58.88	$128,560

*Hourly figures assume 2,080 paid hours a year. Statewide figures include every employer in the state, metro and rural. Median vs. average salary · reading percentiles.

Average salary by city in Georgia

Atlanta$71,900
Warner Robins$60,270
Augusta$60,020
Gainesville$59,000
Savannah$58,750
Macon$56,400
Columbus$55,130
Brunswick$55,010
Rome$54,910
Albany$54,250
Hinesville$54,160
Dalton$53,820
Athens$53,670
Valdosta$49,850

Map of Georgia metro areas

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Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Salary, take-home pay and cost of living by city

City	Average	Median	Take-home*	Cost of living	Home value
Atlanta	$71,900	$51,170	$56,572	100	$382,938
Warner Robins	$60,270	$48,600	$48,348	94	$253,414
Augusta	$60,020	$45,990	$48,160	92	$253,524
Gainesville	$59,000	$45,900	$47,391	97	$393,150
Savannah	$58,750	$47,240	$47,203	95	$348,054
Macon	$56,400	$45,160	$45,432	89	$200,228
Columbus	$55,130	$43,540	$44,474	89	$209,527
Brunswick	$55,010	$41,940	$44,384	88	$323,770
Rome	$54,910	$42,670	$44,309	90	$235,303
Albany	$54,250	$43,620	$43,811	88	$168,362
Hinesville	$54,160	$46,670	$43,743	94	$259,056
Dalton	$53,820	$42,210	$43,487	90	$250,372
Athens	$53,670	$41,220	$43,374	93	$373,118
Valdosta	$49,850	$39,110	$40,495	88	$226,628

*Average salary after federal and state income tax and payroll taxes for a single filer. Cost of living: BEA price parity, U.S. = 100.

Highest-paying jobs in Georgia

Surgeons, All Other · Atlanta$502,110
Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers · Atlanta$477,580
Anesthesiologists · Augusta$373,730
Physicians, All Other · Savannah$359,740
Physicians, All Other · Rome$356,280
Emergency Medicine Physicians · Athens$348,400
Family Medicine Physicians · Rome$345,490
Ophthalmologists, Except Pediatric · Atlanta$340,040
General Internal Medicine Physicians · Macon$338,240
Chief Executives · Atlanta$326,650

Most common jobs in Georgia

Job	Jobs statewide	Average	Median	Highest city average
Fast Food and Counter Workers	145,030	$27,290	$26,920	$28,340
Retail Salespersons	143,120	$33,980	$30,840	$35,140
Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand	137,580	$40,450	$38,480	$44,580
General and Operations Managers	111,060	$132,660	$103,730	$141,560
Registered Nurses	100,950	$95,080	$93,550	$99,760
Customer Service Representatives	97,850	$42,940	$39,630	$44,870
Cashiers	97,540	$29,040	$29,070	$30,470
Stockers and Order Fillers	86,660	$37,790	$35,620	$38,980
Waiters and Waitresses	76,470	$26,610	$18,700	$29,060
Office Clerks, General	75,390	$42,400	$40,590	$44,300

Jobs, average and median: BLS statewide estimates. Highest city average: best-paid metro area we cover in the state.

Average salary by job family in Georgia

Job family	Average	Median	Jobs
Management	$140,120	$122,980	328,970
Legal	$139,990	$90,160	42,750
Computer and Mathematical	$111,760	$104,720	170,620
Healthcare Practitioners and Technical	$106,250	$83,590	305,500
Architecture and Engineering	$98,500	$88,730	66,760
Business and Financial Operations	$90,590	$79,270	389,510
Life, Physical, and Social Science	$87,190	$78,730	33,250
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media	$74,750	$60,670	57,620
Educational Instruction and Library	$61,890	$61,090	279,870
Community and Social Service	$61,670	$56,680	59,710
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair	$60,570	$57,840	206,500
Construction and Extraction	$56,400	$49,790	155,470
Transportation and Material Moving	$53,160	$41,690	525,530
Sales and Related	$52,100	$36,260	464,210
Protective Service	$51,520	$46,290	118,360
Office and Administrative Support	$47,920	$44,990	561,230
Production	$47,030	$43,260	308,310
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry	$42,330	$37,220	8,970
Healthcare Support	$38,630	$37,080	160,030
Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance	$37,020	$35,760	120,460
Personal Care and Service	$36,280	$30,540	87,880
Food Preparation and Serving Related	$30,910	$28,810	437,650

Georgia income tax and take-home pay

Take-home figures on these pages apply Georgia's 2026 income tax rules for a single filer with the standard deduction, plus federal income tax (2026 brackets), Social Security and Medicare.

Georgia paycheck calculator

Cost of living: Georgia vs other states

Georgia at a glance

$882 billionstate GDP (BEA, 2024)

10,822,590population (Census, 2023)

1,560reported crimes per 100,000 residents (FBI, statewide)

Average salary in other states

Salary in Georgia: questions

What is the average salary in Georgia?

$65,920 a year across all jobs, according to BLS statewide estimates (OEWS, May 2025). That is 6% less than the U.S. average ($69,770).

What is the median salary in Georgia?

$48,170 a year: half of Georgia workers earn more and half earn less. The median is lower than the average because a minority of high earners lifts the average.

What is the average hourly wage in Georgia?

$31.69 an hour on average, and $23.16 at the median (BLS, May 2025).

Which city in Georgia pays the most?

Atlanta, with an average of $71,900 a year among the metro areas we cover.

Is Georgia expensive to live in?

BEA puts Georgia prices 4% below the U.S. average (price parity 96.3). Within the state, Atlanta 100, Gainesville 97, Savannah 95 are the most expensive metros.

Sources and how to read this page

Statewide figures: BLS OEWS state estimates, May 2025, all occupations and every employer in the state (metro and rural areas).
Wages: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 estimates for metropolitan areas. City figures: the metro areas we cover in Georgia.
Cost of living: Bureau of Economic Analysis regional price parities (RPP), 2024; 100 = U.S. average.
Population and median household income: Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2023.
Crime: FBI Crime Data Explorer, violent and property crimes reported by agencies statewide, latest 12 months available.

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