Careers / Captains, Mates, and Pilots of Water Vessels
Captains, Mates, and Pilots of Water Vessels — Career Decision Dashboard
United States
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Report generated from official BLS OEWS and O*NET data — United States.
Median annual wage
$92,460
United States, 2025
Employment
36,850
United States, 2025
Typical education
High School Diploma or the equivalent (such as a GED)
Job Zone 3
Skills identified
35
10 related careers
Career overview
Command or supervise operations of ships and water vessels, such as tugboats and ferryboats. Required to hold license issued by U.S. Coast Guard.
- O*NET code
- 53-5021.00
- Job zone
- 3
- Experience required
- Over 2 years, up to and including 4 years
Typical tasks
- Direct courses and speeds of ships, based on specialized knowledge of local winds, weather, water depths, tides, currents, and hazards.
- Prevent ships under navigational control from engaging in unsafe operations.
- Serve as a vessel's docking master upon arrival at a port or at a berth.
- Consult maps, charts, weather reports, or navigation equipment to determine and direct ship movements.
- Steer and operate vessels, using radios, depth finders, radars, lights, buoys, or lighthouses.
- Operate ship-to-shore radios to exchange information needed for ship operations.
- Dock or undock vessels, sometimes maneuvering through narrow spaces, such as locks.
- Stand watches on vessels during specified periods while vessels are under way.
Choose a location
Salary analysis — United States
10th percentile
$47,420
25th percentile
$63,880
75th percentile
$127,180
90th percentile
$170,640
Most important skills
- Operation and Control3.6
- Speaking3.5
- Monitoring3.5
- Critical Thinking3.4
- Active Listening3.4
- Operations Monitoring3.4
- Judgment and Decision Making3.4
- Reading Comprehension3.3
- Coordination3.3
- Complex Problem Solving3.3
- Management of Personnel Resources3.3
- Active Learning3.1
What skills do you need?
Select the skills you already have
Skills listed are those O*NET rates at importance 3.0 or above for this occupation. Set your own level on the same 0–7 O*NET scale.
Skill coverage
0%
0 of 20 identified skills
Matched
0
Missing
20
Your selected skills cover approximately 0% of the skills identified for this occupation in O*NET. This is a coverage measure of listed skills only — it is not a qualification, hiring or interview outcome.
Skills to develop
| Skill | Importance | Required level | Your level | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operation and Control | 3.6 | 4.0 | Not selected | 4.0 |
| Operations Monitoring | 3.4 | 3.6 | Not selected | 3.6 |
| Coordination | 3.3 | 3.8 | Not selected | 3.8 |
| Speaking | 3.5 | 3.4 | Not selected | 3.4 |
| Monitoring | 3.5 | 3.4 | Not selected | 3.4 |
| Judgment and Decision Making | 3.4 | 3.5 | Not selected | 3.5 |
| Management of Personnel Resources | 3.3 | 3.6 | Not selected | 3.6 |
| Active Listening | 3.4 | 3.4 | Not selected | 3.4 |
| Time Management | 3.1 | 3.6 | Not selected | 3.6 |
| Critical Thinking | 3.4 | 3.3 | Not selected | 3.3 |
| Active Learning | 3.1 | 3.4 | Not selected | 3.4 |
| Reading Comprehension | 3.3 | 3.1 | Not selected | 3.1 |
| Complex Problem Solving | 3.3 | 3.1 | Not selected | 3.1 |
| Equipment Maintenance | 3.1 | 3.3 | Not selected | 3.3 |
| Writing | 3.1 | 3.1 | Not selected | 3.1 |
| Quality Control Analysis | 3.1 | 3.0 | Not selected | 3.0 |
| Instructing | 3.1 | 3.0 | Not selected | 3.0 |
| Social Perceptiveness | 3.1 | 3.0 | Not selected | 3.0 |
| Repairing | 3.0 | 3.0 | Not selected | 3.0 |
| Persuasion | 3.0 | 2.8 | Not selected | 2.8 |
Ordered by required level gap multiplied by O*NET importance. No prediction or recommendation is implied.
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Compare with Captains, Mates, and Pilots of Water VesselsHow salary varies by location
| Location | Median | Employment | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| MD | $138,950 | 450 | 2025 |
| TN | $132,710 | 940 | 2025 |
| Louisville/Jefferson County, KY | $130,380 | 800 | 2025 |
| Baton Rouge, LA | $129,260 | 900 | 2025 |
| San Francisco, CA | $124,610 | 440 | 2025 |
| New Orleans, LA | $121,710 | 1,940 | 2025 |
| Slidell, LA | $120,810 | 580 | 2025 |
| Lake Charles, LA | $119,630 | 150 | 2025 |
| Houston, TX | $118,830 | 2,550 | 2025 |
| LA | $117,160 | 6,830 | 2025 |
| Lafayette, LA | $116,200 | 270 | 2025 |
| Bremerton, WA | $113,850 | 60 | 2025 |
| Mount Vernon, WA | $113,850 | 40 | 2025 |
| Los Angeles, CA | $113,260 | 1,210 | 2025 |
| Beaumont, TX | $112,320 | 230 | 2025 |
| TX | $111,390 | 3,400 | 2025 |
| CA | $110,090 | 2,420 | 2025 |
| Anchorage, AK | $109,580 | 140 | 2025 |
| Seattle, WA | $109,080 | 1,140 | 2025 |
| New York, NY | $106,230 | 2,060 | 2025 |
Career transition paths
Compare the skills of a career you hold today with Captains, Mates, and Pilots of Water Vessels to see shared skills, target-only skills and skill overlap.
Build a transition comparisonCareer and skills data: O*NET 31.0.
Salary and employment data: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS, 2025 (May 2025 release).
Figures are periodic published survey snapshots, not real-time market rates.