Purchasing managers

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Total Workforce

201k

Average Age

46.9

Average Salary

$90,456

Average Male Salary

$99,129

Average Female Salary

$81,714

About

Employment

Diversity

Education

Skills

About

Purchasing managers are most often employed by the National security & international affairs industry. The average yearly wage for Purchasing managers was $90,456 in 2016. The top 3 most similar occupations to Purchasing managers by wage are Human resources managers, General & operations managers, and Miscellaneous mathematical science occupations, including mathematicians & statisticians.

Purchasing managers are part of the Management occupations, along with General & operations managers, Advertising & promotions managers, Marketing managers, Sales managers, Public relations and fundraising managers, and 24 more.

The top 3 locations that employ the most Purchasing managers are Davenport City PUMA, IA, Woodlawn, Rose Hill & Mount Vernon PUMA, VA, and Walton, Washington, Holmes & Bay Counties PUMA, FL. The top 3 locations with a relatively high concentration of Purchasing managers are Woodlawn, Rose Hill & Mount Vernon PUMA, VA, Burbank City PUMA, CA, and Davenport City PUMA, IA.

Photo by Roman Kruglov

Management occupations Management, business, & financial occupations Management, business, science, & arts occupations

Information on the businesses and industries that employ Purchasing managers and on wages and locations for those in the field. National security & international affairs is the industry that employs the most Purchasing managers, both by share and by number, though the highest paid industry for Purchasing managers, by average wage, is Iron & steel mills & steel product manufacturing. Purchasing managers are paid most in Bethesda, Potomac & North Bethesda PUMA, MD but are relatively concentrated in Woodlawn, Rose Hill & Mount Vernon PUMA, VA.

Wages

Yearly Wage

$90,456

AVERAGE SALARY

± $3,715

In 2018, Purchasing managers earned an average of $90,456, $36,568 more than than the average national salary of $53,888.

Human resources managers make somewhat more than Purchasing managers while Miscellaneous mathematical science occupations, including mathematicians & statisticians make somewhat less. This chart shows the various occupations closest to Purchasing managers as measured by average annual salary in the US.

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Wage Distribution

0.331

WAGE GINI

In 2018, Purchasing managers had a wage GINI coefficient of 0.331, which is lower than than the national average of 0.479. In other words, wages are distributed more evenly for Purchasing managers (shown in red) than for the overall labor force (shown in gray).

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Wage by Location

HIGHEST PAYING PUMAS

This map shows the Public Use Microdata Areas (PUMAs) in the United States shaded by average annual wage for Purchasing managers.

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Spatial Concentration

PUMAs with a Relatively High Concentration of Purchasing managers

This map displays which Public Use Microdata Areas (PUMAs) in the United States have a relatively high population of Purchasing managers.

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Industries

Most Common

The most common industries employing Purchasing managers, by number of employees, are National security & international affairs, General medical and surgical hospitals, and specialty (except psychiatric and substance abuse) hospitals, and Construction.

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Highest Paying

The highest paying industries for Purchasing managers, by average wage, are Sporting goods, and hobby & toy stores , Iron & steel mills & steel product manufacturing, Support activities for mining, Printing & related support activities, Industrial & miscellaneous chemicals, and Securities, commodities, funds, trusts & other financial investments.

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Industries by Share

201k

2018 Workforce

± 10,996

1.14%

1 YEAR GROWTH

± 7.68%

The number of people employed as Purchasing managers has been growing at a rate of 1.14%, from 198,628 people in 2017 to 200,883 people in 2018.

This graphic shows the share of Purchasing managers employed by various industries. National security & international affairs employs the largest share of Purchasing managers at 4.68%, followed by General medical and surgical hospitals, and specialty (except psychiatric and substance abuse) hospitals with 4.64% and Construction with 4.54%.

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Diversity

Demographic information on Purchasing managers in the US. The average age of male Purchasing managers in the workforce is 47.1 and of female Purchasing managers is 46.8, and the most common race/ethnicity for Purchasing managers is White (Non-Hispanic).

Gender Composition

101k

MALE WORKFORCE

± 7,794

100k

FEMALE WORKFORCE

± 7,763

50.2% of Purchasing managers are Male, making them the more common gender in the occupation. This chart shows the gender breakdown of Purchasing managers.

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Race & Ethnicity

Most Common Race or Ethnicity of Purchasing managers

White (Non-Hispanic)
Black (Non-Hispanic)
Asian (Non-Hispanic)

74.9% of Purchasing managers are White (Non-Hispanic), making that the most common race or ethnicity in the occupation. Representing 8.61% of Purchasing managers, Black (Non-Hispanic) is the second most common race or ethnicity in this occupation. This chart shows the racial and ethnic breakdown of Purchasing managers.

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Age by Gender

47.1

AVERAGE MALE AGE

± 0.963

46.8

AVERAGE FEMALE AGE

± 0.876

The median age of Purchasing managers is 46.9, and Male employees are generally 0.33 years older than than their Female counterparts.

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Education

Data on higher education choices for Purchasing managers from The Department of Education and Census Bureau. The most common major for Purchasing managers is Business but a relatively high number of Purchasing managers hold a major in Business.

Majors

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

MOST COMMON MAJORS

MOST SPECIALIZED MAJORS

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Skills

Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for Purchasing managers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Purchasing managers need many skills, but most especially Social Perceptiveness, Critical Thinking, and Active Listening. The revealed comparative advantage (RCA) shows that Purchasing managers need more than the average amount of Management of Financial Resources, Management of Material Resources, and Operations Analysis.