Sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing: how women's and men's pay compare
Among full-time, year-round sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing in the United States, women had a median of $75,812 in 2024 and men had $87,669. Women's median was 86.5% of men's (margin of error ±3.5%). The $11,857 difference is larger than its margin of error (±$3,386), so it is statistically distinguishable from zero at the 90% level the Census Bureau uses. That is a narrower ratio than the 83.1% for all full-time, year-round workers ($55,678 vs $66,965, Census table B20017).
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2024 1-year, tables B24122/B24123/B24125/B24126. Full-time, year-round civilian workers 16+, 2024 dollars. Retrieved 2026-10-09. ± values are 90% margins of error.
Where this occupation sits
About 272,011 women and 740,678 men worked full-time, year-round in this occupation, so women were 26.9% of the group (±0.7%). That makes it a majority-men occupation, ranked #33 of 40 in this set by women's share.
Among the 40 large occupations in this set, it ranks #20 for the smallest gap (women's median as a share of men's; #1 is closest to equal), #14 for women's median earnings, and #18 for the largest dollar difference.
Occupations with a similar share of women
| Occupation | Women | Men | Women/men | Women's share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Computer and information systems managers | $124,239 | $141,858 | 87.6% | 26% |
| Security guards and gambling surveillance officers | $40,033 | $42,103 | 95.1% | 24% |
| Chief executives | $151,010 | $191,756 | 78.8% | 30% |
Occupations with a similar pay ratio
| Occupation | Women | Men | Women/men | Women's share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand | $35,770 | $41,307 | 86.6% | 22% |
| Maids and housekeeping cleaners | $30,634 | $35,373 | 86.6% | 84% |
| Office clerks, general | $42,637 | $49,227 | 86.6% | 81% |
What this number does and doesn't tell you
- These are unadjusted medians for people who worked full-time, year-round. They do not control for hours beyond full-time, years of experience, seniority, employer, location, or the specific jobs inside the occupation group.
- A gap here is a description, not proof of discrimination, and the absence of a gap does not prove equal treatment. Estimates come from a sample survey, which is why every figure has a margin of error.
- The Census Bureau groups jobs into detailed occupations; "Sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing" is the Bureau's category and may combine jobs you think of as different.
- For a specific state, see the state pay-gap pages. To compare any two jobs, use the pay-gap lookup tool. For how we work with data, see our methodology.