How much does a trader make?

The average trader salary in the United States is $90,179. Trader salaries typically range between $56,000 and $144,000 yearly. The average hourly rate for traders is $43.36 per hour. Trader salary is impacted by location, education, and experience. Traders earn the highest average salary in New York.

Trader salary

Q: What state pays Traders the most?

New York pays Traders the most in the United States, with an average salary of $120,415 per year, or $57.89 per hour.

Q: How do I know if I'm being paid fairly as a trader?

You know if you are being paid fairly as a trader if your pay is close to the average pay for the state you live in. For example, if you live in New Hampshire you should be paid close to $113,348 per year.

Q: How much do entry-level traders make?

Entry-level traders make anywhere from $45,507 to $195,929 per year. The average salary for an entry-level trader is $96,476 a year. Factors such as location and company impact how much an entry-level trader can make.

Q: How much do traders earn?

Traders earn $102,048 a year, on average. However, there is a considerable range in the earning potential of a trader, starting from as little as $55,000 a year to as much as $190,000 a year. A select few traders earn over a million a year. Factors such as location and company impact how much a trader can earn.

Q: How much does a professional forex trader make?

Professional foreign exchange (forex) traders make an average of $178,916 per year. The salary of this position varies greatly with specific job titles, companies, locations, and a variety of other factors. The top 10% of forex traders earn over $800,000 annually.

Q: How much does the average Wall Street trader earn?

The average Wall Street trader earns $134,571 a year, but there's a vast range of salaries ranging from $17,415 to $458,570 a year. Where you fall along this very large pay scale as a Wall Street trader largely depends on the number of years of experience you have.

Q: How much does the average professional trader make?

The average professional trader makes $61,225 a year ($29 an hour). However, there is a considerable range and how much a professional trader can make, starting from as little as $34,000 a year to as much as $190,000 a year. Factors such as location and position impact how much a professional trader can make.

Average trader salary

$90,179

$43.36 hourly rate

Entry-level trader salary

$56,000 yearly salary

Updated January 8, 2025

Trader Salary Overview

The average salary for a Trader in the United States is $90,179 per year, translating to approximately $43 per hour. This figure encompasses various trading roles, including equities, commodities, and forex trading. Factors such as experience, education, and location significantly influence salary levels.

How Experience Affects Salary

Entry-level traders can expect to earn less, with salaries rising significantly as experience increases. For instance, traders with five years of experience often command higher salaries, while those with over ten years may see even greater earnings. Additionally, specialized roles, such as quantitative traders or risk managers, typically offer higher compensation.

State-by-State Salary Variations

Salaries also vary by state, with traders in locations such as New York and California often earning more due to the higher cost of living and concentration of financial institutions. For example, New York remains a leader in trading salaries, driven by its status as a financial hub.

Conclusion

Understanding the factors that affect trader salaries can help professionals make informed career decisions. Whether you're starting your career or considering a move, knowing the salary landscape is crucial.

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Where can a Trader earn more?

Compare salary by location

143k

123k

103k

83k

63k

43k

Columbus, OH$121,527

Coral Gables, FL$72,540

Compare salary by company

171k

151k

131k

111k

91k

The Citadel$156,135

The Vanguard Group$121,287

Trader salary estimates from across the web

Based on the latest salary information compiled by Zippia, Salary.com, Indeed, Glassdoor and Comparably, the average salary for a trader typically falls between $55,303 and $230,000.

zippia

$90,179yearly

glassdoor[1]

$112,112yearly

indeed[2]

$90,434yearly

comparably[3]

$230,000yearly

Salary.com[4]

$55,303yearly

Average trader salary by state

The average trader salary in New York, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island are the highest in the U.S. The lowest average trader salary states are Florida, Nebraska, and Wisconsin.

State view
County view

Average salary:

Highest paying states for traders

Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
1	New York	$120,415	$57.89
2	Delaware	$107,010	$51.45
3	West Virginia	$90,058	$43.30
4	Rhode Island	$113,200	$54.42
5	Connecticut	$102,420	$49.24
6	Nevada	$112,738	$54.20
7	District of Columbia	$103,407	$49.71
8	Ohio	$89,916	$43.23
9	New Hampshire	$113,348	$54.49
10	New Jersey	$96,942	$46.61
11	Texas	$88,516	$42.56
12	Hawaii	$100,098	$48.12
13	Wyoming	$84,359	$40.56
14	Georgia	$88,364	$42.48
15	Michigan	$92,295	$44.37
16	New Mexico	$93,556	$44.98
17	Louisiana	$87,575	$42.10
18	Oklahoma	$88,084	$42.35
19	Alaska	$83,638	$40.21
20	Vermont	$81,956	$39.40
21	Montana	$85,129	$40.93
22	South Carolina	$83,039	$39.92
23	Arkansas	$79,553	$38.25
24	Missouri	$86,748	$41.71
25	Illinois	$81,159	$39.02
26	South Dakota	$78,977	$37.97
27	Massachusetts	$84,436	$40.59
28	Kentucky	$83,061	$39.93
29	Maine	$82,051	$39.45
30	North Carolina	$77,969	$37.49
31	Utah	$82,933	$39.87
32	Minnesota	$83,991	$40.38
33	Mississippi	$74,647	$35.89
34	Iowa	$77,439	$37.23
35	Maryland	$80,492	$38.70
36	Nebraska	$70,580	$33.93
37	California	$83,061	$39.93
38	Pennsylvania	$76,596	$36.83
39	Tennessee	$73,209	$35.20
40	North Dakota	$72,873	$35.04
41	Oregon	$79,142	$38.05
42	Kansas	$75,899	$36.49
43	Idaho	$72,125	$34.68
44	Arizona	$75,465	$36.28
45	Florida	$71,535	$34.39
46	Alabama	$61,319	$29.48
47	Virginia	$73,331	$35.26
48	Washington	$75,529	$36.31
49	Colorado	$65,140	$31.32
50	Indiana	$65,288	$31.39
51	Wisconsin	$66,176	$31.82

Top trader jobs near you

Highest paying cities for traders

The highest-paying cities for traders are White Plains, NY, Las Vegas, NV, and Stamford, CT.

Rank	City	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
1	White Plains, NY	$121,527	$58.43
2	Las Vegas, NV	$112,415	$54.05
3	Stamford, CT	$101,860	$48.97
4	Jersey City, NJ	$97,299	$46.78
5	San Antonio, TX	$90,008	$43.27
6	San Francisco, CA	$88,158	$42.38
7	Atlanta, GA	$88,103	$42.36
8	Saint Louis, MO	$87,776	$42.20
9	Cincinnati, OH	$84,972	$40.85
10	Boston, MA	$84,642	$40.69
11	Minneapolis, MN	$83,955	$40.36
12	Salt Lake City, UT	$82,284	$39.56
13	Evanston, IL	$81,816	$39.33
14	Baltimore, MD	$80,995	$38.94
15	Raleigh, NC	$79,543	$38.24
16	Portland, OR	$78,349	$37.67
17	Philadelphia, PA	$77,426	$37.22
18	Seattle, WA	$76,101	$36.59
19	Richmond, VA	$72,657	$34.93
20	Coral Gables, FL	$72,540	$34.88

Traders are the most in-demand in these five cities:

Trader salary details

A trader's salary ranges from $56,000 a year at the 10th percentile to $144,000 at the 90th percentile.

Average trader salary graph, trends, and summary

What is a trader's salary?

Percentile	Annual salary	Monthly salary	Hourly rate
90th Percentile	$144,000	$12,000	$69
75th Percentile	$115,000	$9,583	$55
Average	$90,179	$7,515	$43
25th Percentile	$70,000	$5,833	$34
10th Percentile	$56,000	$4,667	$27

Highest paying trader jobs

The highest paying types of traders are hedge fund trader, energy derivatives trader, and day trader.

Job title	Annual salary	Monthly salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
Finance Service Advisor	$50,706	$4,225	$24.38	118,612
Finance Representative	$41,765	$3,480	$20.08	124,645
Foreign Exchange Trader	$115,133	$9,594	$55.35	17,829
Hedge Fund Trader	$117,549	$9,796	$56.51	12,689
Commodity Trader	$93,220	$7,768	$44.82	10,906
Options Trader	$110,139	$9,178	$52.95	1,433

Top companies hiring traders now:

Which companies pay traders the most?

Trader salaries at The Citadel and CITGO Petroleum are the highest-paying according to our most recent salary estimates. In addition, the average trader salary at companies like Neuberger Berman and Jane Street are highly competitive.

Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate
1	The Citadel	$156,135	$75.06
2	CITGO Petroleum	$137,508	$66.11
3	Neuberger Berman	$136,727	$65.73
4	Jane Street	$136,089	$65.43
5	BP America Inc	$134,304	$64.57
6	Hess	$130,046	$62.52
7	D. E. Shaw group	$129,822	$62.41
8	First Republic Bank	$129,731	$62.37
9	MFS Investment Management	$129,482	$62.25
10	Putnam Investments	$129,006	$62.02
11	Phillips 66	$125,885	$60.52
12	BNY Mellon	$125,789	$60.48
13	ConocoPhillips	$124,942	$60.07
14	Town Square Financial	$124,715	$59.96
15	Wellington Management	$124,073	$59.65
16	CTC	$123,531	$59.39
17	Invesco	$123,346	$59.30
18	Citi	$122,313	$58.80
19	AQR Capital Management	$121,825	$58.57
20	The Vanguard Group	$121,287	$58.31

Wage gap by gender, race and education

$86,000$84,200$82,400$80,600$78,800$77,000

MaleFemale

Trader salary trends

The average trader salary has fallen by $-10,150 over the last ten years. In 2014, the average trader earned $100,329 annually, but today, they earn $90,179 a year. That works out to a -4% change in pay for traders over the last decade.

Compare trader salaries for cities or states with the national average over time.

Average trader salary over time

Compare trader salaries for individual cities or states with the national average.

Trader salary by year

Year	Avg. salary	Hourly rate	% Change
2025	$90,200	$43.36	+3.9%
2024	$86,700	$41.68	-3.0%
2023	$89,300	$42.92	+0.5%
2022	$88,800	$42.69	-5.5%
2021	$93,700	$45.06	-6.3%

Recently added trader salaries

Company	Job	Location	Date added	Salary
Draftkings	Sports Trader	Las Vegas, NV	06/30/2025	$50,568
Neuberger Berman	Trader	Chicago, IL	06/30/2025	$110,000
Ntrs	Trader, Liquidity Management	Chicago, IL	06/30/2025	$80,800
Wieland Chase	Trader	Granite City, IL	06/29/2025	$102,000
Sig	Quantitative Systematic Trader-PHD: 2026	New York, NY	06/29/2025	$300,000
Natwest Group	Emfx Trader	Stamford, CT	06/28/2025	$190,000
Susquehanna International Group, LLP	Quantitative Systematic Trader-PHD: 2026	New York, NY	06/28/2025	$300,000
Chase Brass	Trader	Granite City, IL	06/28/2025	$102,000
Janus Henderson Group	Fixed Income Trader	Denver, CO	06/27/2025	$160,000
Capital Advisors, Inc.	Trader-Cash Management	Frisco, TX	06/27/2025	$90,000