Career Atlas USA

Careers in Lafayette, LA

Part of Louisiana.

Lafayette, LA’s regional price level is below the national average (index 87.209, where 100 = U.S. average, 2024 BEA data).

Unemployment rate: 4.3% · 196,328 people employed (2026-06, BLS LAUS, not seasonally adjusted).

Highest-Paying Careers

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  1. 1Physicians, All Other$299,990
  2. 2Nurse Anesthetists$216,300
  3. 3General Internal Medicine Physicians$201,140
  4. 4Dentists, General$171,860
  5. 5Architectural and Engineering Managers$152,090

Largest Occupations

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  1. 1Home Health and Personal Care Aides5,200 employed
  2. 2Retail Salespersons5,010 employed
  3. 3Registered Nurses4,930 employed
  4. 4General and Operations Managers4,590 employed
  5. 5Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand4,500 employed

Highest Concentration

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  1. 1Extraction Workers, All Other60.67× national avg
  2. 2Rotary Drill Operators, Oil and Gas27.56× national avg
  3. 3Roustabouts, Oil and Gas17.43× national avg
  4. 4Riggers10.56× national avg
  5. 5Service Unit Operators, Oil and Gas10.05× national avg

Best Purchasing Power

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cost-of-living adjusted

  1. 1Physicians, All Other$343,990
  2. 2Nurse Anesthetists$248,025
  3. 3General Internal Medicine Physicians$230,641
  4. 4Dentists, General$197,067
  5. 5Architectural and Engineering Managers$174,397

Sources

Wage and employment data: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS). Cost of living: BEA Regional Price Parities. Unemployment rate: BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS). Opportunity Score isn’t available at the metro level yet — see Louisiana state page.