Median pay for insurance underwriters runs from $43,540 in Daphne-Fairhope-Foley to $115,420 in Springfield — a 2.65× range across 154 metropolitan areas. The national median of $81,370 sits inside that range but describes no particular market.
Ten per cent of insurance underwriters earn below $55,530 and ten per cent above $145,160 — a 2.61× band. The upside from median to 90th percentile is 78%, which is a normal amount of room for experience and specialisation to matter. An offer below the 25th percentile is worth questioning; one above the 75th is worth taking seriously.
Springfield (MA) leads and Daphne-Fairhope-Foley (AL) trails, but the gap is modest. For a role like this the more useful comparison is not between cities but between the 10th and 90th percentile within one — see the band above.
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Springfield MA | $115,420 | $55.49 | 0.99 | 130 |
| Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury CT | $114,980 | $55.28 | 0.58 | 160 |
| Milwaukee-Waukesha WI | $106,570 | $51.24 | 1.7 | 950 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton MA-NH | $106,170 | $51.04 | 1.13 | 2,080 |
| Chattanooga TN-GA | $102,460 | $49.26 | 0.6 | 110 |
| Waterbury-Shelton CT | $102,030 | $49.05 | 0.44 | 50 |
| Denver-Aurora-Centennial CO | $101,840 | $48.96 | 1.42 | 1,540 |
| Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas NV | $101,300 | $48.70 | 0.52 | 400 |
| Lexington-Fayette KY | $100,990 | $48.55 | 1.49 | 290 |
| Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford CT | $100,690 | $48.41 | 3.51 | 1,430 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue WA | $100,130 | $48.14 | 0.85 | 1,210 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin IL-IN | $99,840 | $48.00 | 1.33 | 4,060 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City NY-NJ | $98,410 | $47.31 | 1.05 | 6,740 |
| San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad CA | $98,210 | $47.22 | 0.5 | 520 |
| Worcester MA | $98,000 | $47.12 | 1.31 | 310 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim CA | $97,870 | $47.06 | 0.49 | 2,090 |
| Manchester-Nashua NH | $97,800 | $47.02 | 0.71 | 100 |
| Trenton-Princeton NJ | $96,730 | $46.51 | 1.21 | 200 |
| Fresno CA | $95,880 | $46.10 | 0.23 | 70 |
| Appleton WI | $95,610 | $45.97 | 1.38 | 120 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell GA | $95,430 | $45.88 | 2.6 | 5,090 |
| Buffalo-Cheektowaga NY | $95,370 | $45.85 | 0.56 | 200 |
| Lafayette-West Lafayette IN | $95,130 | $45.74 | 0.76 | 50 |
| Madison WI | $95,130 | $45.74 | 1.73 | 480 |
| Rochester NY | $94,310 | $45.34 | 0.76 | 260 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daphne-Fairhope-Foley AL | $43,540 | $20.93 | 0.66 | 40 |
| San Juan-Bayamon-Caguas PR | $46,990 | $22.59 | 1.8 | 840 |
| Scranton--Wilkes-Barre PA | $47,840 | $23.00 | 1.46 | 250 |
| Upper East Mississippi nonmetropolitan area | $49,030 | $23.57 | 0.23 | 30 |
| Gulfport-Biloxi MS | $51,470 | $24.75 | 0.42 | 50 |
| Mobile AL | $56,660 | $27.24 | 1.1 | 130 |
| Montgomery AL | $57,400 | $27.60 | 1.8 | 200 |
| Goldsboro NC | $58,110 | $27.94 | 1.85 | 50 |
| Burlington NC | $58,790 | $28.26 | 0.79 | 40 |
| Mid Michigan nonmetropolitan area | $59,520 | $28.61 | 0.34 | 40 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Columbia MO | $63,540 | $30.55 | 3.72 | 270 |
| Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford CT | $100,690 | $48.41 | 3.51 | 1,430 |
| Lansing-East Lansing MI | $75,140 | $36.13 | 3.28 | 480 |
| Northeastern Wisconsin nonmetropolitan area | $74,340 | $35.74 | 3.21 | 430 |
| Des Moines-West Des Moines IA | $79,230 | $38.09 | 2.9 | 790 |
| Lincoln NE | $78,830 | $37.90 | 2.62 | 320 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell GA | $95,430 | $45.88 | 2.6 | 5,090 |
| Cincinnati OH-KY-IN | $82,110 | $39.48 | 2.27 | 1,690 |
| Peoria IL | $75,910 | $36.49 | 2.26 | 250 |
| Omaha NE-IA | $70,160 | $33.73 | 2.26 | 760 |
| Traverse City MI | $69,500 | $33.41 | 2.18 | 100 |
| Fort Wayne IN | $64,490 | $31.00 | 2.16 | 330 |
| Metropolitan area | Median | Hourly | LQ | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York-Newark-Jersey City NY-NJ | $98,410 | $47.31 | 1.05 | 6,740 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell GA | $95,430 | $45.88 | 2.6 | 5,090 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington TX | $79,590 | $38.27 | 1.51 | 4,140 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin IL-IN | $99,840 | $48.00 | 1.33 | 4,060 |
| Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler AZ | $77,740 | $37.38 | 1.88 | 3,030 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington PA-NJ-DE-MD | $84,580 | $40.66 | 1.32 | 2,590 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim CA | $97,870 | $47.06 | 0.49 | 2,090 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton MA-NH | $106,170 | $51.04 | 1.13 | 2,080 |
| Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater FL | $78,350 | $37.67 | 2.11 | 2,070 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington MN-WI | $82,980 | $39.90 | 1.42 | 1,880 |
| Cincinnati OH-KY-IN | $82,110 | $39.48 | 2.27 | 1,690 |
| Denver-Aurora-Centennial CO | $101,840 | $48.96 | 1.42 | 1,540 |
Figures come from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics programme, May 2025 release, SOC code 13-2053. OEWS surveys employers, so it reports what is actually paid rather than what job advertisements claim, and it excludes the self-employed. Estimates are published for 154 of 528 metropolitan areas; the remaining 374 had too few survey responses for BLS to publish without risking disclosure, so they are absent here rather than estimated. For a specialised role that is normal. Read the methodology.