How much does a Lawyer make in Maryland?

BLS reports a median annual wage of $143,490 for Lawyers in Maryland as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $98,960 and the 75th-percentile is $191,880.

How many Lawyers does Maryland employ?

BLS OES counts 16,420 Lawyers employed in Maryland in the most recent release. Employment density relative to population determines whether wage tiers reflect a robust competitive market or a thinner labor pool.

Is Maryland a 'real-wage arbitrage' state for Lawyers?

No — Maryland's RPP is close to the national 100 baseline, so nominal and real wages move roughly together. Neither an arbitrage nor a penalty state.

What are the limits of these Lawyer salary numbers?

BLS OES is an employer survey of W-2 wages — it excludes contractor pay, bonuses outside the base wage definition, equity compensation, and tip income. Self-employed practitioners and gig workers are not represented. For occupations with significant non-W-2 income, the BLS figure is a floor, not a complete picture.

When does this data update?

BLS OES releases a new May reference set roughly each spring; we re-run the ETL pipeline within two weeks of release. BEA RPP refreshes annually. The last-synced timestamp at the top of this page reflects the most recent build.

Does the BLS lawyer median include partner profit-share in Maryland?

No — BLS OEWS captures W-2 wage and salary income only. Equity-partner distributions at law firms are reported on K-1 (partnership income), not W-2, and are excluded entirely. In Maryland BigLaw and major regional firms, this means the BLS-reported median understates total compensation for the partnership tier substantially: P90 partner draw often runs 3-10× the BLS-reported P90 once profits-per-equity-partner are factored in. The BLS figure on this page accurately represents salaried associates, of-counsel, and staff attorneys; it does not represent equity-partner income.

BigLaw associate vs in-house vs government vs solo practice in Maryland?

BLS aggregates all lawyers (23-1011) regardless of practice setting. In Maryland, BigLaw and major-market AmLaw 100/200 associates earn at or above BLS P90 on the published Cravath-adjacent pay scale plus year-end bonuses. In-house counsel at established companies sits mid-band with stronger work-life economics. Government attorneys (state AG, public defender, DOJ, federal agencies in Maryland) typically earn at or below BLS median, with PSLF loan-forgiveness eligibility partly compensating. Solo and small-firm practitioners are highly bimodal — successful niche practices in Maryland can exceed BigLaw associate pay; struggling solos earn below the median.

How Much Do Lawyers Make in Maryland? $143K (2026 BLS + BEA)

TL;DR

Lawyers in Maryland earn a BLS median of $143,490, with real take-home of $137,177 after BEA RPP adjustment.
Lawyer ranking: #12 on the BLS table, #17 once cost of living is in.
Cost adjustment is small — neither an arbitrage state nor a high-cost penalty.
BLS percentiles available for this state: P25 $98,960, P50 $143,490, P75 $191,880. P10 or P90 is suppressed by BLS for this occupation-state cell.

Wage breakdown — Maryland

Percentile	Nominal (BLS)	Real (BEA RPP-adjusted)
P10 (entry tier)	$66,430	$63,507
P25 (lower quartile)	$98,960	$94,606
P50 (median)	$143,490	$137,177
P75 (upper quartile)	$191,880	$183,438
P90 (top tier)
Mean	$155,930	$149,070
Employment	16,420 Lawyers in Maryland

Cost of living — BEA Regional Price Parity

Component	Maryland index (US = 100)
All-items RPP	104.6
Goods	103.2
Services	108.7
Rents	119.9

Maryland's overall RPP (104.6) is close to the national 100 baseline; nominal and real wage move roughly together.

After-tax take-home — Maryland (2024 BLS · 2024 tax year, single filer)

Layer-by-layer take-home math at the BLS median

Layer	Amount	Note
Gross BLS P50 (Lawyer)	$143,490	nominal median
Federal income tax	−$23,256	16.2% effective; std deduction $15,750 applied
State income tax	−$6,784	2–5.75% (graduated, +county piggyback 2.25–3.2%)
FICA (SS 6.2% + Medicare 1.45%)	−$10,977	SS capped at $183,600 wage base
Take-home (after-tax)	$102,473	71.4% of gross
Real take-home (RPP-adjusted)	$97,965	÷ (104.6 / 100) BEA cost-of-living

What the Maryland state-tax burden means for Lawyer take-home

Mid-band state-tax burden at 4.7% effective. Combined with federal and FICA, take-home is $102,473 (71.4% of gross). After the 104.6 RPP, real take-home is $97,965. Local-tax overlay: Maryland counties piggyback 2.25–3.2% on state liability — Baltimore City and Howard / Montgomery / PG counties at the top of the range.

Computed from 2026 IRS federal brackets (Rev. Proc. 2025-32), 2026 state DOR brackets, and 2026 FICA rates. Single filer, standard deduction, no other adjustments. See methodology · tax for limitations (married filers, ITM/SALT itemizers, retirement deferrals, HSA, dependent credits, etc.).

National context

Across the United States, BLS reports a national median of $151,160 for Lawyers with mean pay of $182,760 and total employment of 747,750. Maryland sits at #12 on nominal pay and #17 on real (cost-adjusted) pay among the 51 states and DC. After cost adjustment, Maryland falls 5 positions — the cost premium eats into the headline wage.

Frequently asked questions

How much does a Lawyer make in Maryland?: BLS reports a median annual wage of $143,490 for Lawyers in Maryland as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $98,960 and the 75th-percentile is $191,880.
How many Lawyers does Maryland employ?: BLS OES counts 16,420 Lawyers employed in Maryland in the most recent release. Employment density relative to population determines whether wage tiers reflect a robust competitive market or a thinner labor pool.
Is Maryland a 'real-wage arbitrage' state for Lawyers?: No — Maryland's RPP is close to the national 100 baseline, so nominal and real wages move roughly together. Neither an arbitrage nor a penalty state.
What are the limits of these Lawyer salary numbers?: BLS OES is an employer survey of W-2 wages — it excludes contractor pay, bonuses outside the base wage definition, equity compensation, and tip income. Self-employed practitioners and gig workers are not represented. For occupations with significant non-W-2 income, the BLS figure is a floor, not a complete picture.
When does this data update?: BLS OES releases a new May reference set roughly each spring; we re-run the ETL pipeline within two weeks of release. BEA RPP refreshes annually. The last-synced timestamp at the top of this page reflects the most recent build.
Does the BLS lawyer median include partner profit-share in Maryland?: No — BLS OEWS captures W-2 wage and salary income only. Equity-partner distributions at law firms are reported on K-1 (partnership income), not W-2, and are excluded entirely. In Maryland BigLaw and major regional firms, this means the BLS-reported median understates total compensation for the partnership tier substantially: P90 partner draw often runs 3-10× the BLS-reported P90 once profits-per-equity-partner are factored in. The BLS figure on this page accurately represents salaried associates, of-counsel, and staff attorneys; it does not represent equity-partner income.
BigLaw associate vs in-house vs government vs solo practice in Maryland?: BLS aggregates all lawyers (23-1011) regardless of practice setting. In Maryland, BigLaw and major-market AmLaw 100/200 associates earn at or above BLS P90 on the published Cravath-adjacent pay scale plus year-end bonuses. In-house counsel at established companies sits mid-band with stronger work-life economics. Government attorneys (state AG, public defender, DOJ, federal agencies in Maryland) typically earn at or below BLS median, with PSLF loan-forgiveness eligibility partly compensating. Solo and small-firm practitioners are highly bimodal — successful niche practices in Maryland can exceed BigLaw associate pay; struggling solos earn below the median.

Sources & methodology

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES), SOC 23-1011, 2024 reference period.
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis — Regional Price Parities, 2023 vintage (all-items, goods, services, rents).
Real-wage figures = nominal BLS wage ÷ (state RPP / 100).
See the methodology page for full computation details and limitations.

By Marcus Liang · Founder & Editor · Last synced 2026-05-07.

Cross-comparison: see how Maryland Lawyer pay ranks against the other 254 state × occupation pages on the Real Wage Atlas → — four-way ranking by real wage, after-tax take-home, state-tax savings, and cost-of-living arbitrage.