How Much Do Operations Managers Make?

Having a clear understanding of earnings potential is important, especially if you are researching career paths or considering changing jobs. If you're one of those people, and you're curious what kind of salary operations managers make, you've come to the right place.

Using data from Lightcast,™ the Best Adult Colleges and Careers Guide has compiled rich information about salary for operations managers and related jobs, including details about average compensation, salary trends and job growth. We've also gathered advertised salaries from actual job postings to provide insight into what employers of operations managers are offering as compensation.

Keep reading to learn more about how much operations managers can expect to make in the United States.

At a Glance: Salary & Jobs for Operations Managers

According to data from 2023, there were about 3,646,429 positions for operations managers in the United States. In terms of salary, the national median salary for operations managers was reported to be $101,275. Additionally, when examining job demand, employers across the country posted 600,543 job postings related to positions for operations managers.

How Much Money Do Operations Managers Make?

Median salary is just one data point. To build a better understanding of how much money operations managers and related positions can expect to make in the United States, it can be helpful to look at the full range of compensation for those jobs.

Let's look more deeply at data that was reported to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) for detail into the lowest and highest salary earnings for operations managers.

Annual Salary for Operations Managers

According to the BLS, the lowest earners for operations managers and related professions earned about $46,342 per year in 2023. Meanwhile, at the other end of the spectrum, the highest earners made about $232,107 annually.

As mentioned previously, the median salary for operations managers in the United States in 2023 was $101,275.

Hourly Salary for Operations Managers

The BLS also breaks down compensation for operations managers by hourly salary, and the median average hourly pay for operations managers in 2023 was $49. Lowest hourly earners took home $22 while the highest reported hourly salaries for operations managers was $112.

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Degree Options for Operations Managers

Advertised Compensation for Operations Managers

Data from the BLS is one way to dig into compensation for operations managers, but another way to build a more real-time understanding of salary is to look at actual job postings and see what compensation organizations are currently providing to fill open positions for operations managers.

Keep in mind that salary data is not included in every job posting, so the information compiled here is reflective of the data available through Lightcast.™

Annual Salary from Job Postings for Operations Managers

During a review of 536,978 job postings related to operations managers, advertised salary was included in 184,066 of them, which was 34%. Based on those postings, the median advertised salary for operations managers was $66,432 per year.

Hourly Salary from Job Postings for Operations Managers

A similar analysis of job postings provides insight into advertised hourly salary for operations managers. Based on 31% of postings with advertised compensation, the median hourly salary for open positions for operations managers in the United States is about $32.

Salary Trend for Operations Managers

If you're thinking about pursuing a career in the field, you may want to understand how compensation has changed over time for operations managers. The chart below provides a snapshot of advertised salaries over the past three years.

Based on compensation data that was included in job postings for operations managers dating back to September 2020, advertised salaries for operations managers have increased 26%.

What's the Job Growth for Operations Managers?

Another data point that someone thinking about a career path should consider is whether or not jobs are expected to see growth in the future. The chart below looks at projected employment for operations managers over the next 10 years.

According to the data obtained through Lightcast,™ there were 3,649,908 jobs for operations managers in the United States in 2023. By 2033, it is expected that about 350,710 jobs will be added. That's a 9.6% increase over the next 10-year period.

Additional Links

Ready to dig deeper into career information about operations managers? Visit our other pages focused on salary and education for operations managers.

What do operations managers do?
Operations Managers: How do you become one?

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