BLS API: Get occupation wages
Finds the latest published BLS pay and employment for an occupation in the US, a state, or a metro area, and compares it with the national median.
Unofficial. Not affiliated with or endorsed by BLS.
Inputs
Values from the run on Oct 23, 2026, shown under Output.
- Location optional
location A US state or metro area, for example "Texas" or "Austin, TX". Defaults to the whole United States.
Los Angeles, CA
Default
United States.- Job Title, required
job_title Job in everyday words, for example "registered nurse".
registered nurse
- Occupation Code optional
occupation_code Optional SOC occupation code, for example "29-1141". Overrides job title matching.
(default)
Input as JSON
{ "location": "Los Angeles, CA", "job_title": "registered nurse"}Output
{ "link": "https://data.bls.gov/oes/#/area/0031080/2025" , "currency": "USD", "location": "Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA", "soc_code": "29-1141", "area_code": "0031080", "survey_period": "May 2025", "number_employed": 109360, "occupation_title": "Registered Nurses", "median_annual_wage": 135560, "median_hourly_wage": 65.18, "annual_wage_10th_percentile": 100980, "annual_wage_90th_percentile": 174200, "national_median_annual_wage": 97550, "difference_from_national_median_percent": 38.96}Code
curl https://api.fous.com/v1/runs \ -H "Authorization: Bearer $FOUS_API_KEY" \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -d '{"method":"bls.gov/get_occupation_wages","input":{"location":"Los Angeles, CA","job_title":"registered nurse"}}' # Save as fous.py, then run: python3 fous.pyimport json, os, timefrom urllib.error import HTTPErrorfrom urllib.request import Request, urlopenAPI = "https://api.fous.com/v1/runs" KEY = os.environ["FOUS_API_KEY"]HEADERS = { "Authorization": f"Bearer {KEY}", "Content-Type": "application/json" ,}def call(url, body=None): data = json.dumps(body).encode() if body else None request = Request(url, data, HEADERS) try: with urlopen(request, timeout=120) as r: return r.status, json.load(r) except HTTPError as error: message = json.load(error)["error"]["message"] raise RuntimeError(message) from errorstatus, run = call(API, { "method": "bls.gov/get_occupation_wages" , "input": { "location": "Los Angeles, CA", "job_title": "registered nurse" }})# 202: still going after 30 s. Ask again until it ends.while status == 202: time.sleep(2) status, run = call(f"{API}/{run['id']}")print(json.dumps(run["data"], indent=2))// Save as fous.mjs, then run: node fous.mjsconst api = "https://api.fous.com/v1/runs" ;const headers = { Authorization: `Bearer ${process.env.FOUS_API_KEY}`, "Content-Type": "application/json" ,};let response = await fetch(api, { method: "POST", headers, body: JSON.stringify({ "method": "bls.gov/get_occupation_wages" , "input": { "location": "Los Angeles, CA", "job_title": "registered nurse" } }), signal: AbortSignal.timeout(120_000),});let run = await response.json();// 202: still going after 30 s. Ask again until it ends.while (response.status === 202) { await new Promise((done) => setTimeout(done, 2_000)); response = await fetch(`${api}/${run.id}`, { headers }); run = await response.json();}if (!response.ok) throw new Error(run.error.message);console.log(run.data);# Connect your agent to Fous once, over MCP (Streamable HTTP):# https://api.fous.com/mcp# Set FOUS_API_KEY first: create a key at https://app.fous.com/keys.# Claude Codeclaude mcp add \ --scope user \ --transport http fous https://api.fous.com/mcp \ --header "Authorization: Bearer ${FOUS_API_KEY:?Set FOUS_API_KEY to your Fous API key}"# Codexcodex mcp add fous \ --url https://api.fous.com/mcp \ --bearer-token-env-var FOUS_API_KEY# Cursor, VS Code, Windsurf, Cline and morenpx -y add-mcp https://api.fous.com/mcp -g -n fous \ --header "Authorization: Bearer ${FOUS_API_KEY:?Set FOUS_API_KEY to your Fous API key}"# Then ask your agent:# "Use Fous to run bls.gov/get_occupation_wages# with {"location":"Los Angeles, CA","job_title":"registered nurse"}"Over HTTP, the answer’s data holds the output. A run still going after 30 seconds answers 202 with its id: ask GET /v1/runs/{id} until it ends.
Schema
Input schema
{ "type": "object", "required": [ "job_title" ], "properties": { "location": { "type": "string", "default": "United States", "description": "A US state or metro area, for example \"Texas\" or \"Austin, TX\". Defaults to the whole United States." }, "job_title": { "type": "string", "description": "Job in everyday words, for example \"registered nurse\"." }, "occupation_code": { "type": "string", "default": "", "description": "Optional SOC occupation code, for example \"29-1141\". Overrides job title matching." } }}Output schema
{ "type": "object", "required": [ "occupation_title", "location", "survey_period", "currency", "link", "soc_code", "area_code" ], "properties": { "link": { "type": "string" }, "currency": { "type": "string" }, "location": { "type": "string" }, "soc_code": { "type": "string" }, "area_code": { "type": "string" }, "survey_period": { "type": "string" }, "number_employed": { "type": [ "null", "integer" ] }, "occupation_title": { "type": "string" }, "median_annual_wage": { "type": [ "null", "number" ] }, "median_hourly_wage": { "type": [ "null", "number" ] }, "annual_wage_10th_percentile": { "type": [ "null", "number" ] }, "annual_wage_90th_percentile": { "type": [ "null", "number" ] }, "national_median_annual_wage": { "type": [ "null", "number" ] }, "difference_from_national_median_percent": { "type": [ "null", "number" ] } }}- Price
- 1 credit per completed run (1¢ with pay as you go); failed runs are free.
- Method
bls.gov/get_occupation_wages- Returns
- occupation title, location, survey period, employment, median/10th/90th percentile annual wage, median hourly wage, national median, difference
Use it from your agent
Give your agent this line. It reads SKILL.md, gets a Fous API key and connects the Fous MCP server. Its run then takes the method bls.gov/get_occupation_wages with the inputs above.
Ask your agent
- What do electricians make per year in Ohio compared with the national median?
- How much does a registered nurse earn in the Austin, TX metro area versus the US median wage?
- Show me median and 90th percentile pay for software developers in California.
- What is the hourly wage for paralegals in Denver, and how does it stack up nationally?
- Look up employment numbers and annual wage percentiles for SOC 29-1141 across the whole United States.
See more
All BLS methodsFinds the best-matching Occupational Outlook Handbook profile for a job title and returns its pay, entry requirements, jobs and 10-year outlook.
bls.gov/get_occupation_outlookGets the latest seasonally adjusted unemployment rate and labor-force counts for the United States or a state, with up to 24 months of history.
bls.gov/get_unemployment_rateGets the latest U.S. Consumer Price Index inflation for a spending category, with up to 24 recent months of history. Monthly changes are seasonally adjusted; 12-month changes are not.
bls.gov/get_inflation_rateConverts a US dollar amount from one month or annual average to another using the US city average CPI-U for all items, not seasonally adjusted. Defaults to the latest published month.
bls.gov/calculate_inflationLooks up ZipRecruiter's salary page for a job title in the United States or one US state and returns typical pay, the percentile range and the top-paying cities. Only salary pages that exist publicly are returned.
ziprecruiter.com/get_salaryGets typical pay for a job title from PayScale research pages. You can narrow it to a country and a city.
payscale.com/get_salaryFinds the typical pay for a job title in the United States or a U.S. city or state on Indeed's public salary pages, with the number of reported salaries, the last update date, and the top-paying cities and companies when shown.
indeed.com/get_salaryGets a US state's or the federal hourly minimum wage from the Department of Labor, with the tipped cash wage and maximum tip credit, future dated increases, notes and the page's update date.
dol.gov/get_minimum_wage