How To Become A Logistician
Plans how products, parts and people move and where they are stored, and holds carriers and subcontractors to the plan.
Logistician Salary Data
Logistician Salary: What BLS Data Shows
Logisticians earn a median of $82,320 a year, and BLS projects the occupation to grow faster than any other supply chain job on this site. The figures here cover all 251,040 logisticians in the May 2025 wage survey, logistics analysts included.
By the Supply Chain Degree Programs editorial team Updated
The Pay Figures At A Glance
- The median is $82,320. That is for logisticians; the average is $89,730.
- The 10th to 90th percentiles run $50,890 to $133,160. Hourly, the median works out to $39.58.
- Washington pays the highest state median, $107,250. Nebraska pays the lowest, $65,370.
- The best-paying industry has a median of $106,090. The best-paying metro is Lexington Park, MD, at $131,600.
- Projected change through 2035: 17.6%. Annual openings: about 26,600.
How Much Does A Logistician Make?
Half of all logisticians earn more than $82,320 a year and half earn less. The average, $89,730, sits above the median, and the full range runs from $50,890 at the 10th percentile to $133,160 at the 90th. On an hourly basis the median works out to $39.58.
The middle half of the occupation earns between $64,440 and $106,190, a gap of $41,750. The sections below show how far location, industry and employer type each move the number.
| Percentile | Annual Pay |
|---|---|
| 10th | $50,890 |
| 25th | $64,440 |
| Median | $82,320 |
| 75th | $106,190 |
| 90th | $133,160 |
Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025, logisticians, national. Logisticians include logistics analysts, the O*NET group that lists supply chain analyst among its job titles. BLS publishes one wage for the whole occupation. Read 2026-09-23.
Who BLS Counts As A Logistician
The logisticians occupation holds two O*NET groups. The first is logisticians proper, with titles like client services administrator, logistician, production planner and supply management specialist. The second is logistics analysts (13-1081.02), whose titles include global logistics analyst, logistics analyst, logistics management analyst and material supply planner.
OEWS publishes one wage for the whole code. That makes this one of the cleaner figures in supply chain pay: the title in the headline and the occupation in the data are the same thing, which is not true of the supply chain manager figure.
Supply Chain Analyst Salary
There is no BLS series for supply chain analysts. O*NET lists supply chain analyst as a job title under logistics analysts, and logistics analysts are counted inside the logisticians occupation. So the closest federal figure for a supply chain analyst salary is the logistician median of $82,320, with the middle half earning $64,440 to $106,190.
The supply chain analyst salary page sets that figure across the industries analysts work in. Read it as the pay of the occupation analysts belong to, not as an analyst-only number. A separate supply chain analyst salary on another site is either this same BLS figure or a job-board estimate built from posted pay.
Logistician Salary By State
22 of the 51 states in the table pay a median above the national $82,320. Washington has the highest median, $107,250, on 5,670 jobs. The lowest state median is $65,370, in Nebraska, so the top and bottom states sit $41,880 apart.
The biggest markets are California, with 32,940 jobs and a median of $92,890, and Texas, with 21,030 jobs at $75,480.
| State | Median | 10th Percentile | 90th Percentile | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Washington | $107,250 | $68,860 | $163,950 | 5,670 |
| District of Columbia | $104,770 | $64,080 | $169,060 | 1,350 |
| Maryland | $102,700 | $64,090 | $156,750 | 6,840 |
| Massachusetts | $100,360 | $67,100 | $160,320 | 5,250 |
| Hawaii | $100,340 | $63,790 | $143,020 | 570 |
| Virginia | $98,920 | $64,000 | $156,750 | 10,540 |
| Alabama | $98,450 | $61,320 | $142,670 | 5,190 |
| New Mexico | $98,430 | $63,190 | $146,850 | 850 |
| Colorado | $96,090 | $63,060 | $145,350 | 4,490 |
| Delaware | $96,090 | $67,380 | $139,590 | 520 |
| California | $92,890 | $57,720 | $153,220 | 32,940 |
| New Jersey | $92,280 | $63,740 | $136,590 | 6,280 |
| New York | $88,240 | $60,370 | $136,940 | 6,930 |
| Alaska | $87,280 | $57,960 | $133,090 | 530 |
| Oklahoma | $86,600 | $46,880 | $127,070 | 3,830 |
| Wyoming | $85,550 | $65,170 | $133,490 | 120 |
| Connecticut | $85,450 | $61,490 | $126,880 | 2,200 |
| Vermont | $83,560 | $63,350 | $107,520 | 260 |
| Ohio | $83,460 | $52,000 | $131,120 | 8,990 |
| Utah | $83,300 | $51,540 | $125,440 | 3,760 |
| Michigan | $83,200 | $52,810 | $132,900 | 10,270 |
| Oregon | $83,180 | $52,610 | $133,840 | 3,170 |
| Minnesota | $82,320 | $54,730 | $130,440 | 3,450 |
| Montana | $81,270 | $57,260 | $117,650 | 280 |
| New Hampshire | $81,270 | $51,310 | $130,580 | 690 |
| North Carolina | $80,780 | $55,810 | $128,180 | 7,860 |
| South Carolina | $80,330 | $49,460 | $123,640 | 5,250 |
| Illinois | $80,100 | $48,020 | $128,070 | 14,170 |
| South Dakota | $80,020 | $56,660 | $136,990 | 210 |
| Nevada | $79,600 | $51,020 | $117,320 | 1,290 |
| Pennsylvania | $79,340 | $50,960 | $122,560 | 9,980 |
| Iowa | $78,740 | $53,530 | $110,240 | 2,480 |
| Arkansas | $78,400 | $45,780 | $134,910 | 2,220 |
| Missouri | $78,350 | $49,040 | $124,390 | 3,440 |
| Maine | $77,780 | $50,420 | $108,320 | 570 |
| Indiana | $77,670 | $49,310 | $122,910 | 3,890 |
| Arizona | $77,620 | $52,170 | $124,740 | 4,800 |
| Georgia | $77,570 | $46,200 | $115,840 | 12,580 |
| Florida | $76,410 | $45,370 | $122,930 | 15,020 |
| Rhode Island | $76,180 | $47,010 | $129,630 | 550 |
| Texas | $75,480 | $45,310 | $123,790 | 21,030 |
| Louisiana | $75,230 | $50,550 | $129,230 | 1,710 |
| Mississippi | $75,160 | $47,560 | $112,830 | 1,560 |
| Idaho | $73,920 | $50,120 | $135,220 | 570 |
| Wisconsin | $73,180 | $52,620 | $118,710 | 5,140 |
| North Dakota | $72,800 | $56,120 | $101,830 | 310 |
| West Virginia | $71,590 | $48,290 | $108,360 | 590 |
| Tennessee | $71,280 | $42,730 | $127,700 | 4,990 |
| Kansas | $69,520 | $46,400 | $114,090 | 1,780 |
| Kentucky | $68,420 | $48,960 | $106,280 | 2,590 |
| Nebraska | $65,370 | $40,230 | $121,600 | 1,500 |
Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025, by state, sorted by median. Read 2026-09-23.
Logistician Salary By Metro Area
BLS publishes a median for logisticians in 347 metropolitan areas, and 81 of them have at least 500 jobs in the occupation, enough for the median to describe a real local market. Among those, Lexington Park, MD pays the most, at $131,600, followed by Huntsville, AL at $117,060.
| Metro Area | Median | Jobs |
|---|---|---|
| Lexington Park, MD | $131,600 | 1,350 |
| Huntsville, AL | $117,060 | 2,780 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | $115,570 | 3,440 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | $108,920 | 4,420 |
| Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA | $108,340 | 1,030 |
| Dayton-Kettering-Beavercreek, OH | $105,060 | 1,460 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | $104,330 | 8,020 |
| Colorado Springs, CO | $103,480 | 640 |
| Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD | $102,700 | 3,230 |
| Urban Honolulu, HI | $101,750 | 540 |
The largest markets are a different list. Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA has the most jobs, 10,950, at a median of $81,730, and the five biggest metros together hold 45,470 jobs, 18% of the occupation. The metros where the occupation is most concentrated relative to the local workforce are Warner Robins, GA (location quotient 13.46), Lexington Park, MD (location quotient 11.85) and Huntsville, AL (location quotient 6.46).
Treat the metro figures as nominal pay. OEWS wages are not adjusted for local living costs, so a high median in an expensive metro and a lower one in a cheaper metro can leave a worker with similar purchasing power. Housing and other costs vary enough between metros that the ranking above is a ranking of paychecks, not of standards of living.
Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025, metropolitan area estimates. Ranked only among metros with at least 500 jobs in the occupation. A location quotient compares the occupation's share of local jobs with its share of jobs nationally. Read 2026-09-24.
Top-Paying Industries For Logisticians
BLS publishes the occupation's pay in 182 industries. Among those employing at least 1,000 logisticians, the highest median is in computing infrastructure providers, data processing, web hosting, and related services, at $106,090, which is $23,770 above the national figure.
| Industry | Median | Jobs |
|---|---|---|
| Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services | $106,090 | 1,170 |
| Federal Executive Branch | $104,350 | 33,470 |
| Scientific Research and Development Services | $103,630 | 6,280 |
| Aerospace Product and Parts Manufacturing | $101,510 | 8,290 |
| Semiconductor and Other Electronic Component Manufacturing | $101,430 | 2,520 |
| Motor Vehicle Manufacturing | $101,060 | 1,560 |
Where The Jobs Are, And Where The Pay Is
The industries that pay the most are mostly not the ones that hire the most. The six top-paying industries above employ 53,290 logisticians between them, 21% of the occupation. The five largest employers hold 93,200, or 37%. One industry is on both lists: federal executive branch.
| Largest Employers | Jobs | Median |
|---|---|---|
| Federal Executive Branch | 33,470 | $104,350 |
| Management of Companies and Enterprises | 29,300 | $94,170 |
| Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services | 13,320 | $76,110 |
| Computer Systems Design and Related Services | 8,560 | $89,490 |
| Freight Transportation Arrangement | 8,550 | $57,720 |
The single largest employer, federal executive branch, pays a median of $104,350. It is also one of the top-paying industries, $1,740 below the highest, so for this occupation the biggest employer and good pay coincide.
Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025, national industry-specific estimates, by industry. Each figure is the median for logisticians working in that industry. Top-paying industries are ranked only among those with at least 1,000 jobs in the occupation. Read 2026-09-23.
What Moves Logistician Pay
Logisticians work across very different settings, from a manufacturer’s own logistics department to freight-shipping firms to the federal government, which is one of the occupation’s largest employers. The industry and ownership tables show how far apart those settings pay.
Employer Type
Logisticians at private employers earn a median of $80,100, and private employers hold 85% of the occupation's jobs. Among government employers, the federal government pays the highest median, $103,790, which is $23,690 above private pay.
| Employer | Median | Jobs |
|---|---|---|
| Private employers | $80,100 | 213,360 |
| Federal government | $103,790 | 34,620 |
| State government | $84,210 | 960 |
| Local government | $72,630 | 2,100 |
Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025, national ownership estimates. State and local government include their schools and hospitals, and the federal row includes the Postal Service, as BLS defines them.
Location
The top and bottom states sit $41,880 apart at the median. Among metros with at least 500 jobs, the gap between the highest and lowest median is $78,230, wider than the state gap. Neither figure is adjusted for living costs.
Degree Level
BLS lists a bachelor's degree as the typical entry education for logisticians. That is an entry requirement, not a pay effect: the wage survey measures occupations, not degrees. For what a degree costs, see the rankings of bachelor’s in supply chain management, online supply chain management degrees and master’s in supply chain management.
Certification
The certifications that fit this work, and what each one requires, are covered in the logistician career guide and supply chain analyst career guide.
How Logistician Pay Compares With Other Supply Chain Jobs
A supply chain degree leads to more than one occupation, and they don't pay the same. Of the 9 BLS occupations below, logisticians have the fifth-highest median. The highest is purchasing managers, at $148,080.
| Occupation | Median | 10th To 90th | Typical Entry | Growth 2025-35 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Purchasing Managers | $148,080 | $92,490 to $223,280 | Bachelor's degreeplus 5 years or more experience | 4% |
| Industrial Production Managers | $126,060 | $78,000 to $205,520 | Bachelor's degreeplus 5 years or more experience | 2.6% |
| Transportation, Storage, and Distribution Managers | $107,230 | $65,120 to $194,900 | High school diploma or equivalentplus 5 years or more experience | 6.1% |
| Operations Research Analysts | $88,940 | $57,060 to $159,910 | Bachelor's degree | 11.9% |
| Logisticians | $82,320 | $50,890 to $133,160 | Bachelor's degree | 17.6% |
| Compliance Officers | $80,730 | $48,220 to $133,720 | Bachelor's degree | 3.8% |
| Buyers and Purchasing Agents | $77,710 | $48,380 to $128,870 | Bachelor's degree | 6% |
| Production, Planning, and Expediting Clerks | $59,650 | $40,080 to $86,000 | High school diploma or equivalent | -1.3% |
| Cargo and Freight Agents | $52,260 | $38,340 to $79,810 | High school diploma or equivalent | 6.2% |
The spread follows seniority more than subject. The 3 highest medians belong to the 3 management occupations, and BLS says each of them typically needs 5 years or more of related work experience to enter. The other 6 are specialist occupations that BLS lists with no experience requirement at entry. The management jobs are also the ones the specialists move into: buyers become purchasing managers, and logisticians become supply chain managers, according to the Occupational Outlook Handbook.
Sources: BLS OEWS, May 2025 (pay); BLS Employment Projections, 2025-35 (growth); EP Table 1.2 (typical entry education and experience).
Job Outlook For Logisticians
BLS projects employment of logisticians to grow from 255,100 to 300,000 over 2025 to 2035, a change of 17.6%. That's 14.1 points faster than the 3.5% projected for all occupations.
Growth is the smaller part of the hiring. BLS expects about 26,600 openings a year, and it splits them three ways: people leaving the labor force, mostly to retire; people moving into a different occupation; and new jobs from growth.
| Source Of Openings, Per Year | Openings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Workers leaving the labor force | 6,200 | 23% |
| Workers moving to other occupations | 15,900 | 60% |
| New jobs from growth | 4,500 | 17% |
| Total openings | 26,600 | 100% |
Replacement demand dominates: 83% of openings come from people leaving the occupation, not from new positions. Transfers outnumber retirements, so more of the openings come from logisticians moving on to other jobs than from people leaving work. Each year BLS expects 8% of the occupation to leave it, against 9.7% across all occupations. About 1.2% of workers in the occupation are self-employed, which is why EP's employment count runs higher than OEWS's.
What Drives Demand
The Handbook ties growth to e-commerce making logistics more dynamic and complex: more inventory, more supply chains to manage, and delivery speed that stays a priority for companies.
BLS's own stated reasons behind the projection, from its industry-occupation matrix:
- Demand change - share increases as the growth of e-commerce makes logistics more dynamic and complex. (total, all industries; freight transportation arrangement; warehousing and storage)
- Demand change - share increases as expanded pipeline networks, more complex transportation schedules, and volatility in oil markets boost demand for logisticians in pipeline transportation. (other pipeline transportation)
- Demand change - share increases as an increasingly globalized economy will continue to make logistics more dynamic and complex. (federal government, excluding postal service)
Sources: BLS Employment Projections, 2025-35; EP tables 1.10 (separations and openings) and 1.12 (factors affecting occupational utilization). The growth row is total openings minus separations. Read 2026-09-23.
Does A Supply Chain Degree Raise Your Salary?
BLS reports what an occupation pays, not what a degree pays, so there's no federal figure for "logistician salary with a master's." Use the numbers above as the pay for the job you're aiming at. A degree matters to the extent that it gets you hired into the occupation, or promoted within it.
Cost is the part of a degree you can pin down. These rankings list tuition read from each school’s own page, so you can set a real price against the salary range here: bachelor’s in supply chain management, online supply chain management degrees and master’s in supply chain management.
FAQ
How Much Does A Logistician Make?
The median is $82,320 a year for logisticians, the BLS occupation behind this page (May 2025). The middle half of the occupation earns between $64,440 and $106,190.
What Is The Hourly Pay For Logisticians?
The median hourly wage for logisticians is $39.58 (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
How Much Do The Top-Paid Logisticians Make?
The 90th percentile for logisticians is $133,160 a year, so one in ten earns more than that. The 75th percentile is $106,190.
Which State Pays Logisticians The Most?
Washington has the highest state median, $107,250, on 5,670 jobs.
Which City Pays Logisticians The Most?
Among metro areas with at least 500 jobs in the occupation, Lexington Park, MD has the highest median, $131,600. The figure is not adjusted for living costs.
Which Industry Pays Logisticians The Most?
Among industries employing at least 1,000 logisticians, computing infrastructure providers, data processing, web hosting, and related services pays the highest median, $106,090.
Do Government Logisticians Earn More Than Private-Sector Ones?
Logisticians in the federal government earn a median of $103,790, against $80,100 at private employers (BLS OEWS, May 2025). Federal pay is higher at the median, but 85% of the occupation works for private employers.
Is The Logistician Job Market Growing?
BLS projects employment of logisticians to grow 17.6% from 2025 to 2035, against 3.5% for all occupations, with about 26,600 openings a year.
How Much Does A Supply Chain Analyst Make?
BLS has no wage series for supply chain analysts. O*NET files the title under logistics analysts, part of the logisticians occupation, whose median is $82,320 (May 2025). That figure covers every logistician, not analysts alone.
Keep Reading
How To Become A Supply Chain Analyst
Works the data behind the supply chain: tracking product flow, monitoring carriers and turning logistics records into decisions.
Bachelor’s In Supply Chain Management, Ranked
Programs read from each school’s own page, with tuition where the school states it.
Online Supply Chain Management Degrees, Ranked
Programs read from each school’s own page, with tuition where the school states it.
Sources
- 1 BLS OEWS, May 2025: Logisticians (SOC 13-1081), national and state profile Read .
- 2 BLS OEWS, May 2025: metropolitan area estimates Read .
- 3 BLS OEWS, May 2025: national industry-specific and ownership estimates Read .
- 4 BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics home
- 5 BLS Employment Projections, National Employment Matrix, 2025-35 Read .
- 6 BLS Employment Projections, occupation tables 1.2, 1.10 and 1.12, 2025-35 Read .
- 7 O*NET OnLine, 13-1081.00 Logisticians Read .
- 8 O*NET OnLine, 13-1081.02 Logistics Analysts Read .