Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) Code
A federal system that categorizes every U.S. job into one of 867 detailed occupations, used by BLS, DOL, and Census Bureau to track wages, employment, and labor market trends.
Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) Code is a term from U.S. wage and occupational data — typically a concept from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey, the DOL prevailing-wage system, or related employment statistics. The definition here is the practical worker-facing meaning. Understanding Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) Code is part of reading wage data defensibly. BLS and DOL conventions can be subtle — survey methodology, reporting thresholds, geographic definitions, and percentile calculations all shape what the headline numbers actually mean.
Each role-and-city page on SalaryTruth surfaces the Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) Code-relevant values for that specific combination, so the general definition here translates into concrete numbers on the per-role-and-city pages.
How It Works
The SOC system organizes the workforce into a hierarchical structure: 23 major groups (e.g., "15-0000 Computer and Mathematical Occupations"), 98 minor groups ("15-1200 Computer Occupations"), 459 broad occupations ("15-1250 Software and Web Developers"), and 867 detailed occupations ("15-1252 Software Developers"). Each occupation has a 6-digit code. SOC codes are essential for salary comparison because they ensure you're comparing equivalent jobs across different employers and locations. A "Software Engineer" at one company might be classified as SOC 15-1252, while a "Developer" at another is the same SOC code, making cross-company comparison possible. BLS wage data, H-1B prevailing wage determinations, and occupational projections all use SOC codes. The system was last updated in 2018 and is revised approximately every 10 years to reflect changes in the labor market. SalaryTruth maps each role to its SOC code so you can verify you're looking at the correct occupational classification.
Related Terms
- BLS OEWS (Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics), The Bureau of Labor Statistics survey that produces the salary data used by SalaryTruth, covering 800+ occupations across all U.S. metro areas, with data from 1.1 million business establishments.
- Median Salary, The middle point of all salaries for a given role, half of workers earn more, half earn less. More useful than average salary because it isn't skewed by extremely high or low earners.
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About This Definition
This definition is part of the SalaryTruth Salary & Career Glossary, 25 terms explaining compensation, salary data, and career development. All salary data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS survey.