Chief Operating Officer (COO) salary, United States
Healthcare Headhunters recruits healthcare professionals for employers. No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire.
This is what we do all day: recruit healthcare professionals.
The median annual wage for General and Operations Managers (the closest BLS occupation to Chief Operating Officer (COO)) in the United States was $105,770 in BLS OEWS May 2025, and the middle half of workers earned between $72,320 and $167,280.
What does the published band tell you about a COO offer?
The published annual P25 to P75 band for COO in the United States is $72,320 to
How does COO pay in the United States compare with the nation?
BLS reports
What does New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ add to this COO comparison?
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ reports
What does Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX add to this COO comparison?
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX reports
Which published industries help you read COO pay?
For COO, Hospitals, NAICS 622000, reports a national median of
What changed between releases for COO in the United States?
COO in the United States had a annual median of
What belongs beside base pay in your COO offer?
COO wages in the United States include base rates and guaranteed or production pay under the BLS definition. Price the COO shift separately when you discuss differentials or extra cover. For this COO brief, overtime, shift differentials and on-call pay sit outside the OEWS wage. A non-production sign-on payment for COO is also outside that the United States figure. We discuss those COO terms without inventing an amount to add.
What else should you ask about this pay table?
COO maps to SOC 11-1021, General and Operations Managers. The the United States annual median is
Does the United States publish a separate wage for COO?
COO maps to SOC 11-1021, General and Operations Managers. The the United States annual median is
Where should you place a COO offer inside the the United States band?
The published annual P25 to P75 band for COO in the United States is $72,320 to
Can the COO figure in the United States stand in for the whole package?
COO pay in this the United States table is not total compensation. For COO in the United States, shift differential, on-call pay and non-production sign-on payments are excluded by the OEWS definition. For COO in the United States, write those terms separately before comparing offers.
Which markets can you compare with the United States for COO?
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ and Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX have published rows for General and Operations Managers. For COO in the United States, they are employment-based comparison markets, not a claim about nearest locations. Each linked COO table names its own area and SOC.
Is the COO change in the United States a forecast?
COO in the United States had a annual median of
The COO national comparison markets use published employment, not geographic proximity. Read the geography and wage definitions.
BLS occupation: General and Operations Managers.
BLS reports General and Operations Managers as one occupation. It does not publish a separate estimate for Chief Operating Officer (COO), its setting or its engagement terms.
What does this occupation pay nationally?
BLS publishes five national pay points for General and Operations Managers, SOC 11-1021, in BLS OEWS May 2025: the 10th, 25th, 50th, 75th and 90th percentiles. The range bar and table below show each published point. Percentiles describe the spread of pay across workers, not experience levels. Read the median as a midpoint, not an offer for your vacancy.
- P10 to P90 published range
- P25 to P75 middle range
- P50 median
| Point | Annual wage |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $50,090 |
| 25th percentile | $72,320 |
| Median | $105,770 |
| 75th percentile | $167,280 |
| 90th percentile | $253,390 |
| Mean (average) | $134,940 |
For General and Operations Managers in the United States, BLS reports a median of $105,770; the middle half of workers earned between $72,320 and $167,280 (BLS OEWS May 2025).
- P10 to P90 published range
- P25 to P75 middle range
- P50 median
| Point | Hourly wage |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $24.08 |
| 25th percentile | $34.77 |
| Median | $50.85 |
| 75th percentile | $80.42 |
| 90th percentile | $121.82 |
| Mean (average) | $64.87 |
For General and Operations Managers in the United States, BLS reports a median of $50.85; the middle half of workers earned between $34.77 and $80.42 (BLS OEWS May 2025).
What BLS wages include and exclude
Included
- Base rates
- Commissions
- Cost-of-living allowances
- Deadheading pay
- Guaranteed pay
- Hazard pay
- Incentive pay
- Longevity pay
- Over-the-road pay (Mileage)
- Piece rates
- Portal-to-portal rates
- Production bonuses
- Tips
Excluded
- Attendance bonuses
- Back pay
- Clothing allowances
- Discount
- Draw
- Holiday bonus
- Holiday premium pay
- Jury duty pay
- Meal and lodging payments
- Merchandise discounts
- Non-production bonuses
- On-call pay
- Overtime pay
- Perquisites
- Profit-sharing payments
- Relocation allowances
- Severance pay
- Shift differentials
- Stock bonuses
- Tool/equipment allowances
- Tuition repayment
- Uniform allowance
- Weekend premium pay
- Year-end bonuses
Employment: 3,503,020 jobs nationally.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, BLS OEWS May 2025. SOC 11-1021 General and Operations Managers, United States. BLS page for this occupation. CSV
How has published pay changed since the last BLS release?
These are separate BLS estimates, not a wage growth forecast. Survey coverage and area boundaries can change. The table places the published median for General and Operations Managers in United States from BLS OEWS May 2024 next to BLS OEWS May 2025. A top-coded value is a floor, not an exact median.
| Pay basis | BLS OEWS May 2024 | BLS OEWS May 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| annual | $102,950 | $105,770 |
| hourly | $49.50 | $50.85 |
Prior release: 2024-05, published 2025-04-02. Current release: 2025-05, published 2026-05-15. A top-coded value is a floor, not an exact median.
What does this pay include, and what does it leave out?
OEWS counts base rates, guaranteed pay and production incentives. It describes pay reported for employees, not an offer for this vacancy. Benefits and self-employed earnings are outside these wage estimates. Compare the regular pay for the duties you need covered.
A BLS occupation can include different settings, shifts and levels; it does not price your exact schedule.
Overtime, shift differentials and on-call pay are excluded. If this job has a call rota or extra shifts, spell out those payments rather than treating the BLS median as the whole package.
Meal and lodging payments and relocation allowances are excluded. A travel per diem for those costs is not part of this wage. Keep it separate from the pay comparison.
Non-production bonuses are excluded. A sign-on or retention payment that is not tied to production should be discussed separately. BLS does not publish an amount to add for that payment.
BLS pay definitions. These notes do not add an estimated bonus or premium.
How does clinical pay compare with management pay here?
These duties map to different BLS occupations. A manager's median is not a promised raise for a clinician. Read the mapping on each page. Each link below opens a related occupation with its own SOC code, published percentiles and source line. Compare the duties before comparing medians, because a title change can mean a different occupation.
Which metro areas publish pay for this occupation?
This table lists every metro area where BLS published a median for General and Operations Managers in BLS OEWS May 2025. Each row shows the median, the middle half of pay from the 25th to the 75th percentile, employment and the location quotient. Metros without a published median are left out rather than estimated.
| Metro area | Median | 25th to 75th | Employment | Location quotient |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ | $157,000 | $100,040 to $226,350 | 177,850 | 0.83 |
| Northern New Jersey market: New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ. Shared metro, not New Jersey-only. | $157,000 | $100,040 to $226,350 | 177,850 | 0.83 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | $156,460 | $99,840 to $201,010 | 112,530 | 1.59 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | $149,990 | $98,890 to $220,200 | 43,520 | 0.81 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | $146,030 | $103,780 to $206,710 | 29,370 | 0.62 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH | $133,800 | $89,650 to $210,290 | 70,950 | 1.16 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | $125,830 | $83,200 to $187,480 | 104,610 | 0.74 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD | $121,630 | $79,740 to $176,820 | 68,730 | 1.05 |
| Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX | $119,600 | $74,060 to $191,470 | 97,320 | 1.31 |
| Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX | $117,850 | $74,120 to $181,260 | 42,190 | 1.45 |
| Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD | $117,040 | $78,670 to $169,780 | 44,960 | 1.47 |
| Raleigh-Cary, NC | $114,940 | $77,590 to $176,080 | 9,520 | 0.57 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA | $111,410 | $76,980 to $171,900 | 69,320 | 1.06 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | $111,010 | $71,040 to $173,250 | 125,090 | 1.37 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN | $109,390 | $76,900 to $175,170 | 122,930 | 1.21 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL | $105,640 | $71,390 to $162,400 | 74,960 | 1.18 |
| Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI | $104,010 | $71,550 to $165,740 | 37,250 | 0.87 |
| Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL | $103,670 | $70,790 to $167,250 | 35,700 | 1.10 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI | $103,570 | $72,320 to $163,540 | 44,890 | 1.02 |
| Columbus, OH | $102,590 | $68,340 to $164,030 | 29,070 | 1.17 |
| Pittsburgh, PA | $100,840 | $70,300 to $154,500 | 31,020 | 1.24 |
| Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN | $100,670 | $65,590 to $160,530 | 29,330 | 1.18 |
| Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL | $100,440 | $65,800 to $156,260 | 27,430 | 0.86 |
| San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX | $99,790 | $61,430 to $159,120 | 30,560 | 1.20 |
| Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ | $98,610 | $64,830 to $157,230 | 81,520 | 1.52 |
| Cleveland, OH | $97,750 | $63,630 to $154,250 | 29,510 | 1.27 |
| St. Louis, MO-IL | $93,140 | $61,400 to $134,690 | 46,410 | 1.54 |
| Kansas City, MO-KS | $90,490 | $61,410 to $140,870 | 31,080 | 1.26 |
How do you find pay for a state or nonmetro area?
Choose a state, metro or nonmetropolitan area below to open the published figures for General and Operations Managers. If BLS did not publish a median, the guide shows the state or national estimate with a clear fallback label. It does not create a salary page for that missing combination. Every area page names its source row.
Does this pay differ by healthcare industry?
National industry estimates for General and Operations Managers, SOC 11-1021. Industry names are the names published by BLS. These are not local industry wages. Each row uses the pay basis BLS published for that industry, from the 10th to the 90th percentile, with employment. Cells BLS did not publish stay blank rather than estimated.
| Industry / NAICS | Basis | P10 | P25 | Median | P75 | P90 | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offices of Physicians NAICS 621100 | annual | $67,590 | $86,180 | $108,990 | $169,240 | $248,590 | 21,490 |
| Offices of Dentists NAICS 621200 | annual | $65,000 | $76,620 | $92,540 | $133,710 | $179,990 | 5,580 |
| Offices of Other Health Practitioners NAICS 621300 | annual | $49,200 | $63,920 | $85,990 | $126,400 | $183,750 | 16,190 |
| Outpatient Care Centers NAICS 621400 | annual | $56,440 | $78,060 | $112,280 | $159,250 | $214,050 | 11,510 |
| Medical and Diagnostic Laboratories NAICS 621500 | annual | $61,750 | $82,850 | $131,970 | $195,710 | $282,810 | 4,590 |
| Home Health Care Services NAICS 621600 | annual | $57,560 | $77,740 | $108,400 | $152,100 | $200,140 | 12,370 |
| Other Ambulatory Health Care Services NAICS 621900 | annual | $52,840 | $74,440 | $101,020 | $154,230 | $230,510 | 7,710 |
| Hospitals NAICS 622000 | annual | $81,110 | $107,000 | $160,020 | $229,170 | $369,400 | 14,310 |
| Nursing and Residential Care Facilities NAICS 623000 | annual | $57,540 | $75,510 | $101,990 | $135,930 | $179,540 | 30,770 |
| Nursing Care Facilities (Skilled Nursing Facilities) NAICS 623100 | annual | $70,270 | $98,810 | $127,340 | $161,340 | $203,120 | 6,950 |
| Residential Intellectual and Developmental Disability, Mental Health, and Substance Abuse Facilities NAICS 623200 | annual | $52,930 | $65,430 | $96,270 | $136,490 | $176,890 | 8,310 |
| Continuing Care Retirement Communities and Assisted Living Facilities for the Elderly NAICS 623300 | annual | $58,050 | $75,240 | $98,140 | $127,720 | $165,200 | 12,770 |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, BLS OEWS May 2025. National industry-specific estimates. A value marked “or more” is top-coded.
Where is published pay highest and lowest for this occupation?
Highest and lowest published numeric medians for General and Operations Managers, SOC 11-1021. Top-coded medians cannot be ranked exactly and are not placed in this list. The table shows up to ten metros at each end, with employment and location quotient. Location quotient describes employment concentration, not pay. A metro missing here may still publish a capped value.
| Metro | Median | Employment | Location quotient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trenton-Princeton, NJ | $181,450 | 3,100 | 0.57 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | $163,860 | 17,230 | 0.67 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ | $157,000 | 177,850 | 0.83 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | $156,460 | 112,530 | 1.59 |
| Boulder, CO | $152,100 | 2,750 | 0.63 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | $149,990 | 43,520 | 0.81 |
| Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT | $148,080 | 13,370 | 0.99 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | $146,030 | 29,370 | 0.62 |
| Sioux Falls, SD-MN | $142,730 | 1,730 | 0.43 |
| Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO | $142,330 | 22,940 | 0.63 |
| Owensboro, KY | $73,460 | 1,200 | 1.08 |
| Guayama, PR | $71,460 | 50 | 0.19 |
| Bowling Green, KY | $71,170 | 2,010 | 1.08 |
| Fort Smith, AR-OK | $70,330 | 2,320 | 1.08 |
| Jonesboro, AR | $69,370 | 1,470 | 1.08 |
| Aguadilla, PR | $67,030 | 360 | 0.33 |
| Ponce, PR | $64,000 | 370 | 0.26 |
| Hot Springs, AR | $62,810 | 1,080 | 1.24 |
| Arecibo, PR | $60,110 | 210 | 0.26 |
| Mayaguez, PR | $54,140 | 330 | 0.28 |
How does this pay compare with all wages in each metro?
We divide this occupation's median by the all-occupations median for the same area and pay basis. This is simple arithmetic on BLS rows. It is not a cost-of-living adjustment or a percentile. Location quotient is shown separately. A ratio above one means this occupation's median is higher than the area's all-occupations median.
| Metro | Occupation median | All-occupations median | Median ratio | Location quotient |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sioux Falls, SD-MN | $142,730 | $47,970 | 2.98 times | 0.43 |
| Trenton-Princeton, NJ | $181,450 | $63,490 | 2.86 times | 0.57 |
| Guayama, PR | $71,460 | $25,260 | 2.83 times | 0.19 |
| Rapid City, SD | $130,410 | $46,270 | 2.82 times | 0.42 |
| Atlantic City-Hammonton, NJ | $131,810 | $47,520 | 2.77 times | 0.42 |
| Vineland, NJ | $130,180 | $48,190 | 2.70 times | 0.39 |
| Jackson, MS | $114,190 | $42,850 | 2.66 times | 0.50 |
| Auburn-Opelika, AL | $103,380 | $39,070 | 2.65 times | 0.56 |
| Huntsville, AL | $136,340 | $51,740 | 2.64 times | 0.67 |
| Daphne-Fairhope-Foley, AL | $100,260 | $38,520 | 2.60 times | 0.70 |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, BLS OEWS May 2025. SOC 11-1021 General and Operations Managers, metropolitan areas listed above. BLS page for this occupation. CSV
What do we see when recruiting for this role?
Read the Chief Operating Officer (COO) brief alongside the occupation mapping. Required credentials, current duties and the work setting can differ within General and Operations Managers. A BLS wage is a description of surveyed workers, not an offer recommendation. Compare the actual responsibilities and the candidate's preferences before changing the brief.
Qualitative view from our search work. Not BLS data.
What is the median pay for General and Operations Managers?
$105,770 nationally (BLS OEWS May 2025). 50% of workers in this occupation earned less than this and 50% earned more. The median covers every setting BLS surveyed, so it is a midpoint of reported pay, not an offer benchmark for your vacancy. Read the mapping note and the percentile range before you set pay.
How much do the best-paid workers earn?
10% of workers in this occupation earned more than $253,390, and 10% earned less than $50,090.
Is this the pay for Chief Operating Officer (COO) exactly?
No. BLS reports General and Operations Managers as one occupation. It does not publish a separate estimate for Chief Operating Officer (COO), its setting or its engagement terms. Treat these figures as the closest published evidence, not an exact-title benchmark.
What is the hourly equivalent?
The BLS median hourly wage is $50.85. BLS converts hourly to annual with 2,080 hours a year, so the annual median is $105,770.
Where is the median highest?
Among the metro areas listed on this page, Trenton-Princeton, NJ has the highest published median at $181,450.
How many people work in this occupation?
BLS estimates 3,503,020 jobs nationally (BLS OEWS May 2025).