Insurance Appraisers, Auto Damage
Median $78,240
Occupation · SOC 13-1031
Claims Adjusters, Examiners, and Investigators: pay and where the jobs are
What claims adjusters, examiners, and investigators earn in the U.S., how pay varies across workers and states, and tools to plan around it.
National pay, May 2025
$78,000 median annual wage
- Mean (average) annual wage
- $80,470
- Median hourly wage
- $37.50
- Mean hourly wage
- $38.69
- Employment
- 324,230
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 13-1031.
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See where your pay falls among claims adjusters, examiners, and investigators nationally and in your state. Nothing you type leaves your browser.
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How much do claims adjusters, examiners, and investigators make?
The median annual wage for claims adjusters, examiners, and investigators was $78,000 in May 2025, so half of workers earned more and half earned less. The lowest-paid 10% earned less than $48,850 and the highest-paid 10% more than $117,040. As an hourly rate, the median is $37.50. About 324,230 people work in this occupation nationwide. The highest state medians are in District of Columbia ($101,150), New Jersey ($95,690) and Maryland ($95,560). After taxes and local prices, though, a median paycheck goes furthest in South Dakota.
Pay ladder
What each step of the pay range for claims adjusters, examiners, and investigators looks like per month. Take-home here includes federal tax, Social Security and Medicare for a single filer; add your state in the paycheck calculator.
| Step | Annual | Hourly | Monthly gross | Monthly after federal tax & FICA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $48,850 | $23.48 | $4,071 | $3,453 |
| 25th percentile | $61,160 | $29.40 | $5,097 | $4,277 |
| Median | $78,000 | $37.50 | $6,500 | $5,309 |
| 75th percentile | $98,030 | $47.13 | $8,169 | $6,483 |
| 90th percentile | $117,040 | $56.27 | $9,753 | $7,597 |
Claims Adjusters, Examiners, and Investigators: pay by state
54 states and territories have a published median, sorted from highest to lowest. The last two columns are our estimates: the median after 2026 federal and state taxes, and that take-home restated in national-average prices.
1
$72,626 take-home in national prices
2
$69,828 take-home in national prices
3
$69,348 take-home in national prices
Where a median claims adjusters, examiners, and investigator paycheck goes furthest after 2026 taxes and BEA price levels.
| State | Employment | Median | 10th pct. | 90th pct. | Median after tax* | In national prices† |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| District of Columbia | 360 | $101,150 | $70,240 | $144,680 | $74,360 | $67,661 |
| New Jersey | 9,650 | $95,690 | $61,780 | $129,720 | $71,650 | $65,852 |
| Maryland | Not published | $95,560 | $53,190 | $135,040 | $71,883 | $68,487 |
| California | 24,290 | $91,790 | $60,020 | $124,990 | $67,920 | $61,344 |
| Connecticut | 3,190 | $88,330 | $63,090 | $129,740 | $66,420 | $64,106 |
| Alaska | 220 | $87,670 | $62,200 | $132,200 | $70,235 | $68,616 |
| New York | 17,330 | $87,130 | $51,560 | $130,370 | $65,610 | $60,795 |
| Rhode Island | 1,150 | $86,520 | $60,290 | $130,480 | $66,117 | $64,644 |
| Vermont | 280 | $83,970 | $62,360 | $118,500 | $64,865 | $66,217 |
| New Hampshire | 880 | $83,890 | $59,580 | $120,430 | $67,847 | $65,134 |
| Massachusetts | 5,070 | $83,740 | $58,650 | $123,260 | $63,389 | $59,938 |
| Oregon | 2,950 | $81,640 | $56,320 | $117,380 | $60,233 | $58,274 |
| Washington | 6,180 | $80,700 | $50,080 | $122,840 | $64,483 | $60,257 |
| Alabama | 4,040 | $79,710 | $49,190 | $106,370 | $61,596 | $69,347 |
| Hawaii | 900 | $79,080 | $51,830 | $106,690 | $59,866 | $54,448 |
| South Dakota | 1,030 | $78,900 | $58,160 | $104,190 | $64,336 | $72,626 |
| Michigan | 6,640 | $78,850 | $48,210 | $109,000 | $61,201 | $63,607 |
| Texas | 29,220 | $78,800 | $46,560 | $116,610 | $64,266 | $66,214 |
| Maine | 1,650 | $78,590 | $60,180 | $104,490 | $60,098 | $61,925 |
| Minnesota | 5,530 | $78,350 | $58,110 | $106,270 | $59,800 | $60,636 |
| Wisconsin | 8,760 | $78,160 | $50,570 | $103,620 | $60,684 | $64,493 |
| Tennessee | 6,390 | $78,010 | $47,310 | $108,890 | $63,710 | $69,348 |
| Colorado | 5,680 | $77,620 | $59,550 | $123,360 | $60,387 | $58,599 |
| Idaho | 1,320 | $77,340 | $49,940 | $117,100 | $60,248 | $63,091 |
| Kansas | 4,570 | $77,290 | $48,980 | $112,710 | $59,690 | $66,273 |
| Pennsylvania | 13,270 | $77,290 | $46,360 | $119,980 | $60,777 | $62,289 |
| Mississippi | Not published | $77,100 | $48,680 | $100,850 | $60,718 | $69,828 |
| Illinois | 14,210 | $77,010 | $48,620 | $118,810 | $59,339 | $59,364 |
| Florida | 28,100 | $76,920 | $47,030 | $105,150 | $62,943 | $60,865 |
| Wyoming | 180 | $76,400 | $48,790 | $126,440 | $62,577 | $67,512 |
| Missouri | 6,200 | $75,840 | $48,900 | $111,070 | $59,556 | $65,578 |
| Nebraska | 3,160 | $75,830 | $50,170 | $102,250 | $59,606 | $66,153 |
| South Carolina | 4,130 | $75,370 | $46,640 | $104,050 | $59,171 | $63,116 |
| North Carolina | 9,880 | $75,310 | $48,200 | $108,630 | $59,314 | $62,882 |
| Virginia | 7,860 | $74,240 | $49,140 | $109,970 | $57,603 | $56,974 |
| Arkansas | 2,660 | $73,920 | $46,490 | $103,420 | $58,585 | $67,388 |
| Kentucky | 3,670 | $73,840 | $52,600 | $100,400 | $58,310 | $64,674 |
| Indiana | 4,340 | $73,560 | $48,660 | $101,270 | $58,439 | $62,616 |
| Georgia | Not published | $73,320 | $51,000 | $103,080 | $57,500 | $59,714 |
| Iowa | 3,930 | $72,640 | $50,360 | $102,900 | $57,824 | $65,887 |
| Delaware | Not published | $72,370 | $51,430 | $116,710 | $56,017 | $56,125 |
| Oklahoma | 4,140 | $71,260 | $47,440 | $100,240 | $56,300 | $64,092 |
| Utah | 2,440 | $69,000 | $46,120 | $100,970 | $54,607 | $55,234 |
| Ohio | 13,650 | $67,990 | $47,950 | $104,870 | $55,235 | $59,537 |
| New Mexico | 1,280 | $67,930 | $40,620 | $101,520 | $54,592 | $59,202 |
| West Virginia | 1,340 | $67,290 | $45,650 | $106,330 | $53,976 | $60,310 |
| North Dakota | 750 | $65,460 | $47,960 | $97,470 | $54,760 | $61,556 |
| Louisiana | 3,340 | $65,220 | $42,160 | $102,240 | $53,014 | $60,102 |
| Arizona | 13,830 | $65,110 | $47,990 | $100,590 | $53,262 | $52,904 |
| Montana | 1,230 | $63,860 | $46,080 | $101,390 | $51,244 | $54,144 |
| Nevada | Not published | $62,730 | $43,800 | $98,920 | $52,584 | $52,595 |
| Virgin Islands | 30 | $60,050 | $34,280 | $115,920 | — | — |
| Guam | 80 | $50,560 | $34,860 | $86,260 | — | — |
| Puerto Rico | 2,730 | $45,970 | $31,110 | $84,740 | — | — |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 13-1031. *Our estimate for a single filer paid biweekly with no pre-tax deductions or local tax, 2026 federal and state rules. †Take-home ÷ BEA Regional Price Parity × 100 (2024 price levels).
Sources
- OEWS May 2025 (oesm25nat.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.
- OEWS May 2025 (oesm25st.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.