Commercial Pilots Salary — Detroit, Michigan

The average Commercial Pilots in Detroit, Michigan earns $132,400 a year.

$132,400 / year, mean
↓ 9.8% below national average 50th percentile in Michigan

Detroit sits roughly in the middle of the pack for this role within Michigan — neither a standout nor a laggard. That's noticeably below the national average for commercial pilots, worth factoring into any relocation math. Cost of living here is close to the national average — not a major factor either way. This is a reasonably reliable estimate, though the underlying sample is moderate in size.

Percentile within Michigan

0th 50th 100th
Employment (this metro)
410
Estimate confidence
RSE 5.9%
Cost of living 100 #56 most expensive of 188 cities in this dataset 100 = U.S. average · Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024
Crime index 1688 #77 safest of 188 cities in this dataset Per 100k residents · Source: FBI Crime Data Explorer
Median home value $269,080 #124 priciest of 188 cities in this dataset Source: zillow_real
Median household income $75,123 #70 highest of 188 cities in this dataset Source: Census Bureau ACS 5-year

Combining these four figures gives a fuller picture than salary alone: Detroit ranks #56 for cost of living and #124 for home prices among the 188 cities in this pilot dataset, which matters as much as the headline salary number when comparing where to live.

Kiryas Joel $226,850 Santa Rosa $218,810 Louisville $210,350 New York $204,770 Trenton $183,200 San Francisco $181,600 Port St. Lucie $180,600 Seattle $180,290 Lexington Park $179,850 San Jose $177,010 Modesto $176,410 Dallas $171,660 Chicago $171,200 Medford $168,470 Allentown $166,500 Buffalo $161,860 Santa Maria $161,510 Midland $160,280 Philadelphia $157,600 San Diego $156,890 Miami $156,130 Naples $154,470 Reading $153,460 Bakersfield $150,610 Chico $150,150 Redding $149,700 Peoria $149,360 Grand Rapids $147,860 Pittsburgh $147,180 Sacramento $146,350 Tampa $146,330 Portland $145,760 Austin $141,740 Crestview $141,480 San Antonio $141,380 Houston $140,580 Salem $140,360 Riverside $139,460 Baltimore $138,060 Indianapolis $138,020 Richmond $137,100 Rochester $137,000 Lansing $134,340 Oxnard $134,320 Lakeland $133,330 Detroit $132,400 Jacksonville $131,550 Lexington $129,460 Orlando $128,640 Palm Bay $128,110 Sarasota $126,830 Stockton $125,550 Fresno $125,370 Salinas $118,490 Spokane $117,130 Ann Arbor $115,170 Tallahassee $114,650 Columbus $113,730 Corpus Christi $113,320 Ocala $110,510 Bend $108,670 Fort Myers $108,630 Virginia Beach $105,720 Pensacola $105,480 Deltona $105,140 El Paso $104,990 Visalia $90,500 Champaign $75,760 Sebastian $64,030
CityMean salaryvs. Detroit
Allentown, Pennsylvania$166,500+25.8%
Ann Arbor, Michigan$115,170-13.0%
Austin, Texas$141,740+7.1%
Bakersfield, California$150,610+13.8%
Baltimore, Maryland$138,060+4.3%
Bend, Oregon$108,670-17.9%
Buffalo, New York$161,860+22.3%
Fort Myers, Florida$108,630-18.0%
Champaign, Illinois$75,760-42.8%
Chicago, Illinois$171,200+29.3%
Chico, California$150,150+13.4%
Columbus, Indiana$113,730-14.1%
Corpus Christi, Texas$113,320-14.4%
Crestview, Florida$141,480+6.9%
Dallas, Texas$171,660+29.7%
Deltona, Florida$105,140-20.6%
El Paso, Texas$104,990-20.7%
Fresno, California$125,370-5.3%
Grand Rapids, Michigan$147,860+11.7%
Houston, Texas$140,580+6.2%
Indianapolis, Indiana$138,020+4.2%
Jacksonville, Florida$131,550-0.6%
Kiryas Joel, New York$226,850+71.3%
Lakeland, Florida$133,330+0.7%
Lansing, Michigan$134,340+1.5%
Lexington, Kentucky$129,460-2.2%
Lexington Park, Maryland$179,850+35.8%
Louisville, Kentucky$210,350+58.9%
Medford, Oregon$168,470+27.2%
Miami, Florida$156,130+17.9%
Midland, Texas$160,280+21.1%
Modesto, California$176,410+33.2%
Naples, Florida$154,470+16.7%
New York, New York$204,770+54.7%
Sarasota, Florida$126,830-4.2%
Ocala, Florida$110,510-16.5%
Orlando, Florida$128,640-2.8%
Oxnard, California$134,320+1.5%
Palm Bay, Florida$128,110-3.2%
Pensacola, Florida$105,480-20.3%
Peoria, Illinois$149,360+12.8%
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania$157,600+19.0%
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania$147,180+11.2%
Portland, Oregon$145,760+10.1%
Port St. Lucie, Florida$180,600+36.4%
Reading, Pennsylvania$153,460+15.9%
Redding, California$149,700+13.1%
Richmond, Virginia$137,100+3.5%
Riverside, California$139,460+5.3%
Rochester, New York$137,000+3.5%
Sacramento, California$146,350+10.5%
Salem, Oregon$140,360+6.0%
Salinas, California$118,490-10.5%
San Antonio, Texas$141,380+6.8%
San Diego, California$156,890+18.5%
San Francisco, California$181,600+37.2%
San Jose, California$177,010+33.7%
Santa Maria, California$161,510+22.0%
Santa Rosa, California$218,810+65.3%
Seattle, Washington$180,290+36.2%
Sebastian, Florida$64,030-51.6%
Spokane, Washington$117,130-11.5%
Stockton, California$125,550-5.2%
Tallahassee, Florida$114,650-13.4%
Tampa, Florida$146,330+10.5%
Trenton, New Jersey$183,200+38.4%
Virginia Beach, Virginia$105,720-20.2%
Visalia, California$90,500-31.6%
Gross salary
132,400/yr
Estimated take-home
93,342/yr
Est. total withheld
29.5%

Single filer, federal + Michigan state tax + FICA, 2025 rates. Does not include state-specific payroll withholdings beyond income tax (see Data transparency). Not tax advice — verify with a professional for your specific situation.

View cost of living in this state All Commercial Pilots salaries in Michigan → All Commercial Pilots salaries →
Data transparency

Sources used for this page

Official occupation and area metadata behind the visible salary, cost, housing and safety signals.

Occupation 53-2012 SOC code
Official area Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI BLS metro/geographic area
Area code 19820 Stable geographic key
Reference year 2025 BLS OEWS
Cost: bea_realHousing: zillow_realCrime: latest availableNet-pay source: mi_treasury_verificado 2025
Metro also includes
WarrenDearborn
No additional caveats are attached to this row.
Methodology

How this page is built

The salary figure is the mean annual wage reported by the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) program for this occupation and metro area. Percentile and national-average comparisons are calculated directly from the 188 cities currently in this dataset, not from a fixed external benchmark. Cost of living, crime and housing figures come from BEA, FBI and Zillow respectively — see "Data transparency" above for the exact sources and reference years used on this specific page.

Confidence: the RSE (relative standard error) shown under Overview indicates how reliable the salary estimate is for this metro — a lower RSE means a larger underlying sample.

On this page

Where this is

AK HI

Highlighted: Michigan

Population (metro area)
4,367,620