SalaryExplorer

SOC 33-2011 · May 2025 · BLS OEWS

Firefighters — Amarillo

Amarillo, TX · 10 metro areas compared

$48,420 /year
$23.28per hour
240jobs in area
−18.3%vs US median

Median pay for this occupation in Amarillo, TX is $48,420 a year, trailing the national median of $59,280 by 18.3%.

Wage distribution · annual

Shaded band holds the middle 50% of earners

US MEDIAN $59,28010TH$37,860MEDIAN$48,42075TH$54,95090TH$56,410

How pay has moved

$74,070$43,290201920202022202320242025$48,420
$62,630 in 2019 to $48,420 in 2025, -22.7% before inflation. BLS states that OEWS estimates are not designed for comparison across years: the occupational classification, the sampling frame and the survey method have all changed inside this window. Read the direction, not the exact difference.

The next ten years

Projected to grow about as fast as average

Change in jobs, 2024 to 2034
+3.4%
Openings per year
27,100
Typical entry-level education
Postsecondary nondegree award
On-the-job training
Long-term on-the-job training

Includes jobs opened by workers leaving the occupation, not only new positions.

Projections are published nationally only. This is the outlook for the occupation across the United States, not a measurement for Amarillo, TX.

Projections are based on 2024 employment and run to 2034. The wages above are from the May 2025 survey, a separate BLS programme on a different release cycle, so the two are not two views of one dataset.

Salary overview

Median pay for this occupation in Amarillo, TX is $48,420 a year, trailing the national median of $59,280 by 18.3%. Half of workers earn between $48,420 and $54,950. Beyond that band, the tenth percentile sits at $37,860 and the ninetieth at $56,410.

The area has 240 jobs in this occupation, giving a location quotient of 0.87 — a measure of how concentrated the occupation is here relative to the country as a whole. Abilene leads the state's metro areas for this occupation, at $78,380. Set against every other occupation measured in the same area, it ranks 187th of 337 by median pay.

Percentile breakdown

Annual wages by percentile · Amarillo, TX · May 2025
PercentileAnnualvs US median
10th$37,860−36.1%
25th$48,420−18.3%
Median (50th)$48,420−18.3%
75th$54,950−7.3%
90th$56,410−4.8%
Mean$49,840−15.9%

Why the average earner is usually not a typical earner

Other metro areas in Texas

Median annual wage for Firefighters, by metro area
#Metro areaMedianJobsRelative
1Abilene$78,380210
2Lubbock$77,290410
3Dallas$64,9008,780
4Beaumont$64,540380
5San Antonio$63,3602,910
6Waco$62,650210
7Sherman$60,650160
8Houston$59,1205,780
9Laredo$59,100430
10Austin$58,8302,300

What the pay is worth locally

Prices in Amarillo run 8.2% below the national average, so the median of $48,420 goes as far as $52,745 would elsewhere in the country. Measured that way it compares to the national median at 11.0% below the national median in real terms.

Published median

$48,420as reported by BLS

Local price level

91.8US average = 100 · BEA 2024

Adjusted for local prices

$52,745US average = 100 · BEA 2024

Why the state that pays most is usually not where pay goes furthest

Key takeaways

  • Median pay is $48,420 a year, 18.3% below the national median.
  • Published pay spans $37,860 to $56,410 between the tenth and ninetieth percentiles.
  • The area has 240 jobs in this occupation.
  • The highest-paying metro area covered is Abilene, at $78,380.

Frequently asked questions

What is the median wage for Firefighters in Amarillo, TX?

The median annual wage is $48,420, or $23.28 per hour, as of May 2025. Half of the workers in this occupation earn more than that and half earn less.

Is that higher than the national average?

The national median for this occupation is $59,280, so pay in Amarillo, TX is 18.3% lower. These figures are medians, not averages: half of workers fall on each side.

What do the top earners make?

The top tenth of this occupation in Amarillo, TX earns more than $56,410 per year. The ninetieth percentile is the highest figure the survey publishes.

What is the starting range?

The tenth percentile wage is $37,860 per year. The survey measures wages actually paid rather than experience level, so this reflects the lowest-paid tenth rather than entry-level pay specifically.

Which area nearby pays the most?

The highest median for this occupation among the metro areas covered is in Abilene, at $78,380 per year.

How many jobs are there in this occupation here?

The survey estimates 240 jobs in this occupation in Amarillo, TX. Self-employed workers are not included.

Source and methodology

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 Wages are for wage-and-salary workers; self-employed workers are not included. Salary Explorer is an independent project. It is not affiliated with, or endorsed by, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics or any government agency. Full methodology.