The 25 Most In-Demand High-Paying Jobs in August 2020

Millions of jobs have been impacted due to COVID-19 in 2020. In a recent Indeed survey¹ of over 10,000 U.S. job seekers, half of all respondents were unemployed—of those, nearly one third (27%) were looking to switch fields. Unemployed respondents who were looking to switch fields cited COVID-19 as a motivation more than employed respondents. This could mean that some people may be switching jobs out of necessity rather than desire. In other words, you may be in a position where you must switch fields due to a lack of available opportunities in your chosen field.

The most in-demand high-paying jobs on Indeed

If you’re looking for a new job or are interested in switching fields, it may be helpful to know which jobs are most in-demand. Below is a list of the 25 U.S. job titles posted most by employers on Indeed, from July 10 to August 10, 2020, paying $50,000 or more on average. The jobs are ranked by the number of job postings per 1 million search results on Indeed.

1. Registered nurse

National average salary: $68,020

Jobs per 1M: 15,663

Primary duties: A registered nurse is a health care professional who assists doctors and other medical professionals with their patient care duties.

Requirements: Bachelor’s degree and state nursing license

Read more: Learn About Being a Registered Nurse (RN)

2. Truck driver

National average salary: $60,911

Jobs per 1M: 14,997

Primary duties: A truck driver’s job is to transport goods with a heavy truck or a tractor-trailer.

Requirements: High school diploma or GED preferred

Read more: Learn About Being a Truck Driver

3. Shift manager

National average salary: $51,643

Jobs per 1M: 9,914

Primary duties: A shift manager supervises the operation of the business while working alongside the employees during a particular shift.

Requirements: Some experience plus high school diploma or GED preferred

Read more: Learn About Being a Shift Manager

4. Delivery driver

National average salary: $50,858

Jobs per 1M: 8,653

Primary duties: A delivery driver’s job is to transport items from one place to another.

Requirements: High school diploma or GED preferred

5. Owner operator driver

National average salary: $184,436

Jobs per 1M: 6,782

Primary duties: An owner-operator driver owns at least one cargo truck and manages their own truck-driving business.

Requirements: High school diploma or GED preferred

6. Sales representative

National average salary: $61,886

Jobs per 1M: 5,803

Primary duties: A sales representative uses customer service and communication skills to build client relationships and sell goods or services.

Requirements: High school diploma or GED. Bachelor’s degree is preferred.

Read more: Learn About Being a Sales Representative

7. Restaurant manager

National average salary: $49,807

Jobs per 1M: 5,728

Primary duties: A restaurant manager oversees the day-to-day operations of the facility.

Requirements: Restaurant experience and high school diploma or GED

Read more: Learn About Being a Restaurant Manager

8. Dental assistant

National average salary: $58,423

Jobs per 1M: 3,926

Primary duties: Dental assistants are healthcare professionals who assist dentists in completing all dental-related tasks, including examining, cleaning and repairing teeth.

Requirements: High school diploma and postsecondary program and/or on-the-job training

Read more: Learn About Being a Dental Assistant

9. Direct support professional

National average salary: $61,173

Jobs per 1M: 3,689

Primary duties: Direct support professionals assist individuals with different intellectual and developmental abilities.

Requirements: High school diploma or GED. Bachelor’s degree is preferred.

10. Assistant general manager

National average salary: $49,071

Jobs per 1M: 3,447

Primary duties: Assistant general managers support general managers in day-to-day tasks maintaining a business including finances and operations.

Requirements: High school diploma or GED. Bachelor’s degree is preferred.

11. General manager

National average salary: $57,927

Jobs per 1M: 3,199

Primary duties: A general manager is responsible for a company’s finances and daily operations.

Requirements: Industry experience and high school diploma or GED. Bachelor’s degree is preferred.

Read more: Learn About Being a General Manager

12. Insurance agent

National average salary: $58,159

Jobs per 1M: 3,092

Primary duties: Insurance agents provide customers with various types of insurance policies and help them choose policies that best meet their needs.

Requirements: High school diploma or GED. Bachelor’s degree and sales experience are preferred.

Read more: Learn About Being an Insurance Agent

13. Registered nurse - medical/surgical

National average salary: $87,158

Jobs per 1M: 2,835

Primary duties: Medical/Surgical nurses treat patients who are sick, require surgery or are recovering from surgery.

Requirements: Bachelor's Degree in Nursing (BSN) and registered nursing state licensure through the NCLEX-RN certification. Possibly specialized education such as perioperative nurse training.

Read more: How to Become a Surgical Nurse

14. Service technician

National average salary: $53,099

Jobs per 1M: 2,909

Primary duties: Service technicians offer a variety of technical, mechanical or other customer support services depending on their industry and specialties.

Requirements: High school diploma or GED

15. Management trainee

National average salary: $54,212

Jobs per 1M: 2,835

Primary duties: Management Trainees work closely with and learn under a manager to assume the role of a manager in the future.

Requirements: Dependent on the industry, high school diploma or GED preferred

16. Registered nurse

National average salary: $99,161

Jobs per 1M: 2,561

Primary duties: ICU nurses provide emergency and trauma-based medical care to patients in the intensive care unit or emergency room.

Requirements: Bachelor's Degree in Nursing (BSN) and registered nursing state licensure through the NCLEX-RN certification

17. Real estate agent

National average salary: $80,543

Jobs per 1M: 2,470

Primary duties: Real estate agents assist clients with the sale, purchase and rental of residential, commercial and industrial property.

Requirements: High school diploma or GED plus valid state real estate license

Read more: Learn About Being a Real Estate Agent

18. Maintenance person

National average salary: $63,960

Jobs per 1M: 2,346

Primary duties: A maintenance technician keeps a building or facility safe, tidy and in working order.

Requirements: High school diploma or GED preferred

Read more: Learn About Being a Maintenance Technician

19. Licensed vocational nurse

National average salary: $62,646

Jobs per 1M: 2,284

Primary duties: Licensed vocational nurses (LVNs) give sick or injured patients basic care under a doctor or registered nurse’s supervision.

Requirements: Nursing program completion and valid state licensure

Read more: Learn About Being an LVN

20. Physicial therapist

National average salary: $93,487

Jobs per 1M: 2,264

Primary duties: A physical therapist, or PT, helps an injured or ill person improve their mobility and manage their pain.

Requirements: Doctorate of Physical Therapy (D.P.T.)

Read more: Learn About Being a Physical Therapist

21. Manager

National average salary: $58,832

Jobs per 1M: 2,258

Primary duties: Managers plan daily schedules, interview and hire new talent, motivate and encourage existing employees, create and maintain budgets and coordinate with and report to senior-level management.

Requirements: Dependent on the industry. High school diploma or GED preferred, Bachelor’s degree strongly preferred.

Read more: Learn About Being a Manager

22. Outside sales representative

National average salary: $65,271

Jobs per 1M: 2,207

Primary duties: An outside sales representative meets and sells to customers in the field.

Requirements: High school diploma or GED required. Bachelor’s degree is preferred.

Read more: Learn About Being an Outside Representative

23. Engineer

National average salary: $69,750

Jobs per 1M: 2,080

Primary duties: Depending on their specialty, engineers use the principles of science, mathematics, technology and physical sciences to solve problems.

Requirements: Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering

24. Software engineer

National average salary: $104,907

Jobs per 1M: 1,989

Primary duties: Software engineers develop systems and software for businesses.

Requirements: Bachelor’s Degree in Software Engineering

Read more: Learn About Being a Software Engineer

25. Dental hygienist

National average salary: $78,005

Jobs per 1M: 1,965

Primary duties: Dental hygienists examine and clean patients’ teeth.

Requirements: Completion of a post-secondary program approved by the Commission on Dental Accreditation

Read more: Learn About Being a Dental Hygienist

For all available jobs, visit Indeed.com and search for opportunities based on your criteria. Using the advanced search or search filters, you can refine your results by location, salary, job type, company and more. For more on getting the best job search results, visit our guide on Using Indeed.com Job Search.

¹ Indeed survey, n=10,604