2027 Salary Guide · Sales & Customer Success
BLS reports a median of $52,830 for real estate sales agents in May 2025, about $56,000 in 2027 terms. That figure covers only agents on an employer's payroll: about 54% of agents are self-employed, and BLS wage data does not include them. For most agents, income is a share of the commission on each closed sale, so local home prices and the number of deals a year matter more than any median.
About this data
Read the numbers on this page knowing which agents they describe.
BLS wage figures come from data employers report about their workers. It does not cover the self-employed or owners and partners of unincorporated firms, and the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook says about 54% of real estate sales agents are self-employed. Many agents work as independent contractors affiliated with a brokerage, and they are not in the percentiles above.
What remains are agents who are employees, paid through an employer's payroll. BLS counts commissions as wages, so their commission income is included. The median is a reasonable guide for salaried or employee-agent roles and only a rough guide for independent agents, whose income can be well above or below it.
Pay distribution
This range is for wage and salary agents only, including commissions they were paid through an employer. Independent-contractor agents are outside the data, and their earnings are not published by BLS.
Typical for the Real Estate Agent title: $40,040 to $82,020 (25th to 75th percentile of Real Estate Sales Agents)
| Percentile | BLS, May 2025 | 2027 planning estimate |
|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $32,970 | $35,000 |
| 25th percentile | $40,040 | $42,500 |
| Median | $52,830 | $56,000 |
| 75th percentile | $82,020 | $87,000 |
| 90th percentile | $123,590 | $131,500 |
Local pay
New York has the highest median among the metros with data, $103,550, almost twice the national figure. Dallas-Fort Worth is lowest at $44,580. Miami has the most payroll agents relative to its workforce, and its spread is unusually wide: $42,230 at the 25th percentile and $118,540 at the 75th. BLS does not publish a Boston figure, and small samples (Buffalo has about 120 payroll agents) make some medians less stable.
| Metro area | Median | 10th – 90th | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| New York City | $103,550 +96% | $48,350 – $179,500 | 8,320 |
| Buffalo | $93,750 +77% | $44,330 – $167,340 | 120 |
| Seattle | $79,990 +51% | $49,310 – $114,090 | 3,790 |
| Washington, DC | $78,160 +48% | $38,030 – $123,770 | 3,250 |
| Albany | $73,560 +39% | $44,410 – $140,050 | 160 |
| San Francisco Bay Area | $70,990 +34% | $47,270 – $125,610 | 2,100 |
| Portland | $65,380 +24% | $37,100 – $105,970 | 1,410 |
| Charlotte | $63,930 +21% | $30,960 – $158,660 | 3,190 |
| San Diego | $62,680 +19% | $40,060 – $106,130 | 1,350 |
| Chicago | $61,790 +17% | $37,490 – $73,970 | 5,100 |
| Metro area | Median | 10th – 90th | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Phoenix | $60,890 +15% | $35,660 – $116,240 | 3,930 |
| Providence | $58,580 +11% | $40,130 – $120,070 | 450 |
| Detroit | $57,090 +8% | $32,740 – $106,410 | 930 |
| Pittsburgh | $55,190 +4% | $44,720 – $104,290 | 1,000 |
| Philadelphia | $54,710 +4% | $30,590 – $104,150 | 2,780 |
| Nashville | $52,250 -1% | $35,960 – $92,010 | 1,080 |
| Baltimore | $51,390 -3% | $37,160 – $119,000 | 1,490 |
| Raleigh | $49,970 -5% | $27,940 – $120,090 | 2,150 |
| Houston | $49,250 -7% | $30,040 – $139,990 | 5,320 |
| Tampa | $48,540 -8% | $29,710 – $104,540 | 4,210 |
| Miami | $47,080 -11% | $36,360 – $153,200 | 9,160 |
| Los Angeles | $47,020 -11% | $38,760 – $102,170 | 7,340 |
| Atlanta | $46,730 -12% | $33,120 – $141,150 | 6,960 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul | $46,410 -12% | $36,220 – $108,040 | 1,980 |
| Austin | $45,740 -13% | $29,540 – $122,780 | 2,580 |
| Hartford | $45,590 -14% | $39,820 – $113,990 | — |
| Denver | $45,100 -15% | $37,040 – $121,090 | — |
| Dallas-Fort Worth | $44,580 -16% | $28,610 – $105,900 | 6,950 |
BLS metro estimates, May 2025. Percent compares the metro median with the national median. "Jobs" is BLS estimated employment in the metro; blank where BLS does not publish it.
Getting licensed
Every state requires real estate agents to be licensed. Details such as course hours and fees are set by each state's real estate commission; these are the common minimums the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook lists.
| Requirement | Typical minimum | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Age | At least 18 | Set by state law. |
| Education | High school diploma or equivalent | BLS lists this as the typical entry education for agents. |
| Prelicensing course | Required | Course length varies by state; check your state real estate commission. |
| Licensing exam | Required | Usually covers real estate principles and state law. |
| Working under a broker | Common | Sales agents generally work with or for a licensed broker and earn a portion of each sale's commission. |
Source: BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, Real Estate Brokers and Sales Agents. State-specific requirements and costs vary and are not shown here.
Outlook
BLS projects slower than average growth: about 427,000 jobs in 2025, including self-employed agents, rising to about 434,500 by 2035. Around 32,600 openings a year are expected, mostly from agents leaving the field.
BLS Employment Projections via O*NET OnLine. Projections cover Real Estate Sales Agents as a whole.
What moves income
Because most agent income is commission, these factors explain more of the gap between agents than experience alone.
BLS notes that commissions vary by the type and value of the property. The same number of sales pays very differently in a high-price and a low-price market.
Income tracks closed transactions, not listings or showings. New agents often have a slow first year while they build a pipeline of referrals.
Agents usually keep only a portion of each commission. The split, plus any desk or franchise fees, can change take-home pay as much as an extra sale.
BLS says most agents work full time and many work evenings and weekends; some work part time. BLS annual figures assume a full-time, year-round schedule, so a part-time agent's yearly income will be lower than the percentiles suggest.
Compare
Loan officers, who work the financing side of the same transactions, have a median about $23,860 higher than payroll real estate agents. Sales managers, whose O*NET description includes directing real estate sales, earn far more.
| Role | BLS median | 2027 estimate | Outlook |
|---|---|---|---|
| Real Estate Agent | $52,830 | $56,000 | Slower than average |
| Loan Officer | $76,690 | $81,500 | Slower than average |
| Sales Manager | $148,270 | $157,500 | Faster than average |
| Account Executive | $69,990 | $74,500 | Average |
FAQ
Real estate sales agents on payrolls earned a median of $52,830 in May 2025, BLS reports, with the middle half between $40,040 and $82,020 and the top tenth above $123,590. Those figures cover agents on an employer's payroll only. About 54% of agents are self-employed, and their earnings are not included in BLS wage data.
Most do not. BLS says agents earn most of their income from commissions, and many work on contract, earning a portion of each sale's commission. Agents who are employees rather than independent contractors may receive a salary or a salary plus commission; those payroll agents are the ones the BLS wage figures describe.
Payroll real estate sales agents had a median hourly wage of $25.40 in May 2025, according to BLS. Commission-based agents do not have an hourly rate in practice; their effective hourly pay depends on deals closed and hours worked, including evenings and weekends.
First-year agent income is not measured by BLS. The 10th percentile for payroll agents was $32,970 and the 25th percentile $40,040 in May 2025. Independent agents in their first year often earn less than established agents, because commission income lags while they build listings and referrals.
Among the metros in this guide with BLS data, New York had the highest median for payroll agents at $103,550 in May 2025, followed by Buffalo ($93,750, from a small sample), Seattle ($79,990) and Washington, DC ($78,160).
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