Radio employment spans on-air work, sales, production, office administration, and technical operations. In 2025, broadcast announcers and radio disc jockeys held about 21,800 U.S. jobs, while the broader broadcast, sound, and video technician group held about 136,600. The figures below are U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics measurements and projections, with dates and scope identified throughout.
Contents
- Radio-related occupations and workforce size
- Jobs inside radio broadcasting stations
- Radio occupation wages and pay ranges
- Where radio announcer jobs are concentrated
- Employment outlook for radio roles
- Employment structure and career-entry measures
Radio-related occupations and workforce size
The most direct BLS occupation for radio on-air work is broadcast announcers and radio disc jockeys, identified as SOC 27-3011. This occupation held about 21,800 U.S. jobs in 2025. Radio broadcasting stations employed 56% of those workers. Educational services at the state and local level accounted for 6%, and performing arts, spectator sports, and related industries also accounted for 6%. Television broadcasting stations employed another 3%.
These percentages describe the industries employing people in the occupation, not the complete staffing of radio stations. They also show why an announcer or DJ employment total should not be treated as a count of every person working in radio. The BLS occupation covers a specific type of on-air role, while station employment includes commercial, technical, sales, production, and administrative jobs.
Technical work is measured through a broader occupational group. Broadcast, sound, and video technicians held about 136,600 U.S. jobs in 2025, a category that includes radio broadcast technicians. Within that group, audio and video technicians accounted for 87,600 jobs, broadcast technicians for 24,100, sound engineering technicians for 15,000, and lighting technicians for 9,900.
The technician totals are therefore useful for understanding the wider media-production labor market, but they are not a radio-only workforce count. Radio broadcast work is explicitly included in the broader technical classification. The BLS sources for these occupation totals are Announcers and DJs: Occupational Outlook Handbook and Broadcast, Sound, and Video Technicians: Occupational Outlook Handbook.
Jobs inside radio broadcasting stations
Industry data gives a different view from occupation data. Radio broadcasting stations had about 52,680 employees in May 2024. Within that industry, broadcast announcers and radio disc jockeys were the largest listed occupation, with 13,710 jobs.
Sales and production roles also formed substantial parts of station staffing. Advertising sales agents held 7,510 jobs, while producers and directors held 5,500. Broadcast technicians held 3,850 jobs. The station workforce consequently includes many roles that are not represented in the headline announcer and DJ occupation total.
The May 2024 occupation counts for radio broadcasting stations were:
| Occupation | Jobs in radio broadcasting stations |
|---|---|
| Broadcast announcers and radio disc jockeys | 13,710 |
| Advertising sales agents | 7,510 |
| Producers and directors | 5,500 |
| Broadcast technicians | 3,850 |
| Office clerks | 1,630 |
| Sales representatives of services | 1,250 |
| Market research analysts and marketing specialists | 1,120 |
| Editors | 510 |
Office clerks accounted for 1,630 jobs in the industry. Sales representatives of services accounted for 1,250, and market research analysts and marketing specialists accounted for 1,120. Editors accounted for 510 jobs. These measurements illustrate the operational structure of a station: programming and production work sits alongside revenue generation, audience research, technical delivery, and routine administration.
The station figures come from Broadcasting BLS statistics on Radio Day. The BLS definition of the radio broadcasting-stations industry excludes satellite radio, internet radio, radio networks, and music streaming services. That limitation matters when comparing these counts with the broader modern audio economy.
Radio occupation wages and pay ranges
For broadcast announcers and radio disc jockeys, the median hourly wage was $22.76 in May 2025. Pay varied widely across the occupation: the lowest-paid 10% earned less than $13.55 per hour, while the highest-paid 10% earned more than $66.56 per hour.
Industry location was associated with different median hourly wages for the same occupation. In May 2025, the median was $21.02 per hour at radio broadcasting stations. It was $30.26 in state and local educational services, $37.49 at television broadcasting stations, and $44.51 in performing arts, spectator sports, and related industries.
| Industry employing announcers and DJs | Median hourly wage, May 2025 |
|---|---|
| Radio broadcasting stations | $21.02 |
| State and local educational services | $30.26 |
| Television broadcasting stations | $37.49 |
| Performing arts, spectator sports, and related industries | $44.51 |
These are occupation medians within industries, not guaranteed offers for every position. They should also be read alongside the national occupation range: the industry-specific radio median is close to the overall occupation median, while the other listed industries have higher medians.
Technical compensation is reported on an annual basis for the broader broadcast, sound, and video technician group. The median annual wage was $60,150 in May 2025. The lowest-paid 10% earned less than $37,130 annually, and the highest-paid 10% earned more than $108,440. Because this technician group includes several media-production specialties, its wage range should not be interpreted as a radio broadcast technician-only range.
The wage and range measurements are reported by the Announcers and DJs: Occupational Outlook Handbook and Broadcast, Sound, and Video Technicians: Occupational Outlook Handbook.
Where radio announcer jobs are concentrated
State employment data for May 2023 placed California first among the listed states, with 2,590 broadcast announcer and radio DJ jobs. New York had 2,260, Texas had 1,480, Tennessee had 1,180, and Florida had 1,160.
The largest raw employment totals reflect the size of the states and their media markets. A different pattern appears when employment is compared with the size of each state’s labor market through the location quotient. South Dakota had 230 broadcast announcer and radio DJ jobs and a 3.12 location quotient in May 2023. North Dakota had 180 jobs and a 2.67 location quotient, while Kansas had 560 jobs and a 2.40 location quotient.
| State | Jobs, May 2023 | Location quotient |
|---|---|---|
| California | 2,590 | — |
| New York | 2,260 | — |
| Texas | 1,480 | — |
| Tennessee | 1,180 | — |
| Florida | 1,160 | — |
| South Dakota | 230 | 3.12 |
| North Dakota | 180 | 2.67 |
| Kansas | 560 | 2.40 |
The location quotient figures indicate relative concentration, not a larger absolute workforce. South Dakota and North Dakota had fewer jobs than the biggest states but a higher concentration of this occupation relative to their broader employment bases. The state measurements are from Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2023: Broadcast Announcers and Radio Disc Jockeys.
Metropolitan-area data for May 2024 listed 1,670 broadcast announcer and radio DJ jobs in New York-Newark-Jersey City and 860 in Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim. These area figures use a different measurement period from the state figures and should not be combined as if they were one single ranking.
Employment outlook for radio roles
The BLS projects employment of announcers and DJs overall to decline 3% from 2025 to 2035. Within that broader group, broadcast announcer and radio DJ employment is projected to decline 8%, from 21,800 jobs in 2025 to 20,200 in 2035. The projected numeric change is negative 1,700 jobs. The BLS also projects about 3,700 openings for announcers and DJs each year on average from 2025 to 2035.
The projected decline describes the expected change in the number of jobs, while annual openings also reflect the need to replace workers who leave occupations or the workforce. A declining occupation can therefore still have recurring opportunities, even though its total employment is projected to be smaller at the end of the period.
Technical roles have a mixed outlook. Employment of broadcast, sound, and lighting technicians is projected to grow 1% from 2025 to 2035, with about 9,800 openings each year on average for broadcast, sound, and video technicians. Within the broader technician group, broadcast technician employment is projected to decline 3%, from 24,100 jobs in 2025 to 23,300 in 2035.
Audio and video technician employment is projected to grow 4%, from 87,600 jobs in 2025 to 91,100 in 2035. Sound engineering technician employment is projected to decline 3%, from 15,000 to 14,600, while lighting technician employment is projected to decline 5%, from 9,900 to 9,400. These are 2025–35 projections, not historical counts.
Employment structure and career-entry measures
The 2025 national matrix lists 2.3% of broadcast announcers and radio DJs as self-employed. It lists a $47,340 median annual wage for the occupation and projects 2.0 thousand annual openings during 2025–35. In the matrix’s occupation-line measures, broadcast announcers and radio DJs represent 2.3% of 2025 employment and are projected to represent 2.0% in 2035.
For broadcast, sound, and lighting technicians, the 2025 national matrix lists 10.5% as self-employed. It lists a $60,150 median annual wage and projects 9.8 thousand annual openings during 2025–35. The group represents 0.8% of 2025 employment in the national matrix and is projected to represent 0.8% in 2035.
The matrix measures are broader than the radio station industry counts. In particular, the technician line combines broadcast, sound, and lighting work, while the announcer and DJ line covers an occupation that can work in radio, television, education, performing arts, and other settings. The matrix’s annual-opening values also differ in presentation from the Occupational Outlook Handbook’s broader announcer-and-DJ opening estimate, so each figure should be retained with its named source and scope.
For the underlying worker characteristics and projections, see Occupational projections and worker characteristics. For geographic context, the relevant BLS data tables include state employment and area employment.