Flight attendants

Detailed Occupation

Add Comparison
2023 Workforce
112k
Average Age
45.8
Estimated Job Growth
9.9%
10-year projection
Average Salary
$56,684
Average Male Salary
$64,136
Average Female Salary
$54,053

About

Flight attendants are most often employed by the Air transportation industry. The average yearly wage for Flight attendants was $56,684 in 2023.

Photo by Alexander Mueller
Production, Transportation, & Material Moving OccupationsTransportation & Material Moving OccupationsTransportation Occupations

Employment

Employment and salary information for the Flight attendants workforce. Flight attendants workforce in 2023 was 111,801 people, of which 73.9% were women and 26.1% were men. Flight attendants are paid most in Atlantic County (Outside Somers Point City)--West to Hammonton Town PUMA, NJ but are relatively concentrated in Atlanta Regional Commission (South Central)--Fayette County PUMA, GA.

Employment Over Time

Metric
Grouping
29,169
Male Workforce
± 4.19k
82,632
Female Workforce
± 7.06k

The Flight attendants workforce in 2023 was 111,801 people (73.9% women and 26.1% men). This implies an average annual growth of 19.4% between 2014 (93,616) and 2023 (111,801).

View Data
Save Image

Employment by Location

Level
Metric

This map shows the states in the United States shaded by average wage for Flight attendants.

During 2023, the states that concentrated the best average annual wage were Wisconsin ($71,368), Rhode Island ($68,861), and Alaska ($67,255).

View Data
Save Image

Yearly Wage Ranking

$56,684
AVERAGE WAGE
#283 in the ranking (2023)
$67,727
NATIONAL AVERAGE WAGE
For all occupations across the US

In 2023, Flight attendants earned an average of $56,684, $11,043 less than the average national salary of $67,727

The graph shows the ranking of Flight attendants in relation to all Detailed Occupation in 2023.

View Data
Save Image

Wage Distribution

Gender
0.311
WAGE GINI

In 2023, Flight attendants had a wage GINI coefficient of 0.311, which is lower than the national average of 0.476. In other words, wages are distributed more evenly for Flight attendants (shown in red) than for the overall labor force (shown in gray).

The graphic shows the distribution of average salaries by buckets for Flight attendants compared to the entire workforce in the country.

View Data
Save Image

Industry

Information on the industries that employ Flight attendants and on wages for those in the field. Air transportation is the industry that employs the most Flight attendants, both by share and by number, though the highest paid industry for Flight attendants, by average wage, is Air transportation ($56,780).

Occupations by Industries

Metric
Value
112k
2023 Workforce
± 8,206
1.66%
1 YEAR GROWTH
± 10.3%

This graphic shows the share of Flight attendants employed by various industries. Air transportation employs the largest share of Flight attendants at 99.3%, followed by Services incidental to transportation with 0.466% and uninformed with 0.234%.

View Data
Save Image

Diversity

Demographic information on Flight attendants in the US. The workforce of Flight attendants in 2023 was 111,801 people, with 73.9% woman, and 26.1% men. The average age of male Flight attendants in the workforce is 44.5 and of female Flight attendants is 46.3, and the most common race/ethnicity for Flight attendants is White.

Gender and Age

Metric

The workforce of Flight attendants in 2023 was 111,801 people, with 73.9% woman, and 26.1% men.

The age ranges that concentrated the largest workforce were 55 to 59 years (16,759 people), 50 to 54 years (14,332  people), and 30 to 34 years (13,783 people). Among them they concentrated 40.2% of the total workforce.

View Data
Save Image
View Data
Save Image

Ethnicity

Gender

In 2023, 14.8% of Flight attendants workers were Hispanic and 85.2% non-Hispanic.

The treemap shows the distribution of Hispanic workers according to their origin, highlighting Mexican (34.8%), Puerto Rican (19.1)%, and Cuban (7.04)%

You can review this information by gender using the selectors above.

View Data
Save Image
View Data
Save Image

Races

In 2023, 62.8% of the Flight attendants workforce were White, of which 77.6% were women and 22.4% men. Other races that concentrated a significant number of workers were Black (13.8%) and Two or More Races (10.6%).

View Data
Save Image
View Data
Save Image

Education & Skills

Data on higher education choices for Flight attendants from The Department of Education and Census Bureau. The most common major for Flight attendants is Business but the most specialized major according to RCA in 2023 were Language & Linguistics.

Among the necessary skills for Flight attendants, Speaking stands, but the revealed comparative advantage (RCA) shows that Flight attendants need more than the average amount of Service Orientation.

Majors

ACS PUMS data only shows the major for bachelor's degrees. However, we can filter the data based on highest degree obtained.
Type of Majors
Degree

The most common majors achieved by Flight attendants in 2023 (counting all academic degrees) were Business (11,627 people), Communications (4,458 people), and Education (3,916 people).

You can review this information for different academic grades by modifying the option selected in the selector above.

View Data
Save Image

Education Levels

Metric

The main educational levels achieved by the Flight attendants workers were Bachelors Degree (38,399 people), Some college (34,979 people), and High School or Equivalent (14,840 people).

The graphic shows the Flight attendants workforce by gender and educational level.

View Data
Save Image

Skills

Chart
Value

Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for Flight attendants from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Flight attendants need many skills, but most especially Speaking, Service Orientation, Monitoring.

View Data
Save Image

Projections

Projections on job growth for Flight Attendants from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The 10-year national workforce is projected to grow 4.02%, but Flight Attendants are expected to see a growth of 9.9% over the same period. This occupation is expected to grow more than the national average.

Job Growth

9.9%
Estimated Job Growth
10-year Projection
4.02%
National Growth
10-year Projection

This line chart shows the projected 10-year growth in the number of jobs for Flight attendants. This profession is expected to grow more than than 4.02%, the average rate of national job growth.

View Data
Save Image