Salary Range

• The average salary for meteorologists as of May 2009 was $40.94 per hour, or $85,160 per year, according to the BLS. The middle 50 percent of meteorologists on the earnings scale were making $28.21 to $50.25 per hour, or $58,680 to $104,520 per year. The bottom 10 percent had annual salaries at or below $40,560, and the top 10 percent were earning yearly pay at or above $127,250.
  
  

Types of Employment

• The largest number of meteorologists worked for the federal government in 2009, making $94,210 per year on average. This was the highest-paying employment sector for these scientists. Meteorologists working for scientific research and development services were making $87,180 per year; for other professional, scientific and technical services $63,200; for colleges, universities and professional schools $80,870; and in radio and television broadcasting $85,760.
  
  

High Pay by State and District

• The District of Columbia was the highest-paying location by state or district for meteorologists in 2009, with an average salary of $114,070 per year. Rounding out the top five on the list were Maryland, with an average annual salary for meteorologists of $109,530, New Jersey at $107,060, Oklahoma at $93,870 and
  
  Pennsylvania at $93,850.
  
  

High-Paying Metro Area

• The highest-paying metropolitan area for meteorologists in 2009 was the Baltimore-Towson region of Maryland, where they earned $133,980 per year on average. Ranking second was the greater Washington, D.C. region, including parts of Virginia, Maryland and West Virginia, at an average salary of $104,020 per year. Other metro areas in the top five for meteorologist pay were the greater Los Angeles area, at $102,970 per year on average; the greater Sacramento area of California at $100,870; and Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, at $99,920.