Urban and Regional Planners
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OverviewSalaryAboutEducationWhere are the jobsEmploymentGenderRace/Origin
Overview
Develop comprehensive plans and programs for use of land and physical facilities of jurisdictions, such as towns, cities, counties, and metropolitan areas.
Highlights
Undergraduate program resulting in the highest median salary ($90K): Specialized Program in Social Sciences
Largest undergraduate program (25.8% of workers): Architecture
Explore Pathways
Titles for this career often contain these words
PlannerTechnicianDevelopmentRegionalPlanningCommunityLiaisonTransportationCityHousingSpecialistAnalystDesignerDeveloperEconomicSustainableConsultantUrbanEngineerAdvocateEngineeringGrantMasterNeighborhoodOfficialProgramServicesFacilitiesTransferCommunitiesPolicyTrafficExpertDesignZoning
SOURCES:
2018 SOC codes
2020 CareerOneStop
25.2 O*NET
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Fewer details
Responsibilities and activities

Urban and regional planners typically do the following:

  • Meet with public officials, developers, and the public regarding development plans and land use
  • Administer government plans or policies affecting land use
  • Gather and analyze data from market research, censuses, and economic and environmental studies
  • Conduct field investigations to analyze factors affecting community development and decline, including land use
  • Review site plans submitted by developers
  • Assess the feasibility of proposals and identify needed changes
  • Recommend whether proposals should be approved or denied
  • Present projects to communities, planning officials, and planning commissions
  • Stay current on zoning and building codes, environmental regulations, and other legal issues

Urban and regional planners identify community needs and develop short- and long-term solutions to improve and revitalize communities and areas. As an area grows or changes, planners help communities manage the related economic, social, and environmental issues, such as planning new parks, sheltering the homeless, and making the region more attractive to businesses.

When beginning a project, planners often work with public officials, community members, and other groups to identify community issues and goals. Through research, data analysis, and collaboration with interest groups, they formulate strategies to address issues and to meet goals. Planners may also help carry out community plans by overseeing projects, enforcing zoning regulations, and organizing the work of the groups involved.

Urban and regional planners use a variety of tools and technology in their work. They commonly use statistical software, data visualization and presentation programs, financial spreadsheets, and other database and software programs. Geographic Information System (GIS) software is used to integrate data, such as for population density, with digital maps.

Urban and regional planners may specialize in areas such as transportation planning, community development, historic preservation, or urban design, among other fields of interest.

Planners often collaborate with public officials, civil engineers, environmental engineers, architects, lawyers, and real estate developers.

SOURCES:
2020 Occupational Outlook Handbook
Salary
Median salary: $75,950 annually
Half of those employed in this career earn between $59,130 and $96,380.
$76K$0$20K$40K$60K$80K$100K$120K
SOURCES:
2019 BLS Occupational Employment
Context: Median Salary
How do salaries for this career compare to other jobs' salaries?
SOURCES:
2019 BLS Occupational Employment
Fewer details
Salary growth for urban and regional planners
Is this job likely to reward you for sticking with it through pay raises and promotions? The higher a job’s “experience quotient,” the more you are likely to get as you stay there.
Experience quotient percentile
Take a minute to look at how much you might expect your salary to increase with each five years' experience, as well as how the numbers working at each age change. Does this seem to be a job for the young or the old, or could it be a career offering steady salary growth for many years?
Salary distribution
$61K$85K$89K$82K$72K$50K$91K$72K$0$50K$100K$150K20-2425-2930-3435-3940-4445-4950-5455-5960-64
Number employed
01K2K3K4K20-2425-2930-3435-3940-4445-4950-5455-5960-64
SOURCES:
2019 ACS microdata
About Urban and Regional Planners
How do benefits for this career compare to other jobs? The availability of health care, especially employer provided health care, and pension plans can add significantly to the value of compensation you receive in a career. These charts compare how this career compares to other careers with regard to health care and pension plans.
Employee has health insurance
Employer is providing health insurance
Employer-provided pension plan is available
SOURCES:
2018-2020 CPS
2019 ACS microdata
Worker concerns
Some jobs are more stressful than others, and some are just plain dangerous. The following list gives the percentages of urban and regional planners who report hazardous or difficult situations typically occurring at least once a week.
  • Time Pressure (72%)
  • High Conflict Frequency (58%)
  • Unpleasant or Angry People (40%)
SOURCES:
25.2 O*NET
Fewer details
Personality and skills
Can you see yourself in the ranks of Urban and Regional Planners? Here are the skills and traits that could lead to success.
Analytical skills
Urban and regional planners analyze information and data from a variety of sources, such as market research studies, censuses, and environmental impact studies. They use statistical techniques and technologies such as Geographic Information Systems (GIS) in their analyses to determine the significance of the data.
Communication skills
Urban and regional planners must be able to communicate clearly and effectively because they interact with colleagues and stakeholders, prepare research reports, give presentations, and meet with a wide variety of audiences, including public officials, interest groups, and community members.
Decisionmaking skills
Urban and regional planners must weigh all possible planning options and combine analysis, creativity, and realism to choose the appropriate action or plan.
Leadership skills
Urban and regional planners must be able to manage projects, which may include overseeing tasks and planning assignments.
SOURCES:
2020 Occupational Outlook Handbook
Education pathways to this career
Education attained by urban and regional planners
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), urban and regional planners typically hold a master's degree.
Sometimes the typical education identified by the BLS differs a bit from the reality of the how much education current workers actually have. The donut shows the education level held by people currently working as urban and regional planners as reported in responses to the American Community Survey.
Details: Education and training recommended for urban and regional planners

Most urban and regional planners have a master’s degree from an accredited urban or regional planning program. In 2016, there were 71 programs accredited by the Planning Accreditation Board (PAB) that offered a master’s degree in planning.

Master’s degree programs accept students with a wide range of undergraduate backgrounds. However, many candidates who enter these programs have a bachelor’s degree in economics, geography, political science, or environmental design.

Most master’s programs have students spending considerable time in seminars, workshops, and laboratory courses, in which they learn to analyze and solve planning problems. Although most master’s programs have a similar core curriculum, there is some variability in the courses they offer and the issues they focus on. For example, programs located in agricultural states may focus on rural planning, and programs located in larger cities may focus on urban revitalization.

Bachelor’s degree holders can qualify for a small number of jobs as assistant or junior planners. In 2016, there were 15 accredited bachelor’s degree programs in planning. Candidates with a bachelor’s degree typically need work experience in planning, public policy, or a related field.

Details: Licensing and certification recommended for urban and regional planners

As of 2016, New Jersey was the only state that required urban and regional planners to be licensed. More information is available from the regulatory board of New Jersey.

The American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP) offers the AICP certification for planners. To become certified, candidates must meet certain education and experience requirements and pass an exam.

SOURCES:
2019 ACS microdata
Education level of Urban and Regional Planners
About 54% of urban and regional planners have a graduate-level education, and 92% have at least a bachelor's degree.
Education attained by urban and regional planners
None
High School
Some College
Associate's Degree
Bachelor's Degree
Master's Degree
Professional Degree
Doctorate
SOURCES:
2021 Ididio: Award levels
2019 ACS microdata
Top college degrees
Here are the top college degrees held by the 89% of people in this job who have at least a bachelor's degree. Some of degrees may link to multiple programs due to the way Census classifies college majors. Click on a program to learn more about career opportunities for people who major in that field.
  1. Architecture
  2. Geography
  3. Political Science and Government
  4. Business Management and Administration
  5. Economics
SOURCES:
2019 ACS microdata
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College majors held by urban and regional planners
This table shows the college majors held by people working as urban and regional planners. If you see "**" before the name of a degree/program, that means this field is one that the Department of Education believes is preparatory for this career. However, you can see from this list that those recommendations are far from your only path to this job!
Major
Select any title to learn more about that degree
Salary comparison for bachelor's only
Higher
Similar
Lower
Career salary (tail) versus Career/Major salary (dot)
Does the bachelor's-only salary rise or fall with this major?
$59K$72K
Salary for bachelor's-only
For people with this career and major
Median
Middle 50%
Middle 80%
Salary for all workers
For people with this career and major
Median
Middle 50%
Middle 80%
Education for Career and Major
Bachelor's
Master's
Professional
Doctorate
Workers with this career/major
Percentage in this career with this major
SOURCES:
2019 ACS microdata
2010 CIP Codes
Not so much?
The link between degrees and this career
With the following sankey diagram, you can follow the top ten bachelor's degrees held by people working as urban and regional planners, and then, in turn, you can see the 10 occupations that hire the most of each degree's graduates. We hope this provides ideas for similar jobs and similar fields of study.
Expand degrees
ArchitectureGeographyPolitical Science an...Business Management ...EconomicsEnvironmental Scienc...SociologySpecialized Program ...General BusinessHistoryAll other degreesThis jobTop 10 majors
SOURCES:
2019 ACS microdata
Where are the jobs
State-by-state employment numbers
Some careers tend to be centered in specific parts of the country. For example, most jobs in fashion are in New York or California. Let's see if your dream job is easy to find in your dream location! We have a few choices for viewing the data that can help you get a full employment picture.
Select a state to see local area details
Number of Urban and Regional Planners per 1,000 workers (ACS)
AKMEWIVTNHWAIDMTNDMNILMINYMAORUTWYSDIAINOHPANJCTRICANVCONEMOKYWVVAMDDEAZNMKSARTNNCSCDCOKLAMSALGAHITXFLPR
SOURCES:
2019 ACS microdata
Fewer details
Job density versus job count
Which states hire the most urban and regional planners? We wonder if that's a fair question since states come in all sizes, so instead let's start with the question of which states have the highest density of people working as urban and regional planners. You can choose to view the number of jobs per state if you prefer.
Salaries by state
Let's get a feel for where urban and regional planners earn the highest salaries. There are several choices for which data we consider and how we view that data, and each can lead to different conclusions, so please read on...
Median salary versus state ratio
We use two methods to compare salaries across states:
  • In-state comparisons: the ratio of median (middle) salaries for urban and regional planners compared to the median salary for all people working in each state, or
  • Median salary: the unaltered median salaries for urban and regional planners.
We hope the ratio allows perspective about how salaries may compare to the regional cost-of-living.
The darkest shading corresponds to states in which urban and regional planners earn the highest salary when compared to other jobs in the state. We think this figure might be a better indicator than the actual salary for your buying power as a state resident.
Select a state to see local area details
Location-adjusted median salary for Urban and Regional Planners (ACS)
AKMEWIVTNHWAIDMTNDMNILMINYMAORUTWYSDIAINOHPANJCTRICANVCONEMOKYWVVAMDDEAZNMKSARTNNCSCDCOKLAMSALGAHITXFLPR
SOURCES:
2019 BLS Occupational Employment
2019 BEA Regional Price Parities
Employment
6% of Urban and regional planners are working part time.
We’ve found that some jobs have a huge number of part-time workers, and typically that is because they are unable to find full-time work or the job itself can’t provide full-time hours. With 6% part-time workers, this occupation has a lower percentage of part-time workers than 71% of careers.
6%0%20%40%60%80%100%
SOURCES:
2019 ACS microdata
Employer types
This donut shares the break-down of workers by employer type, giving us a picture of what employers most typically hire for this career.
Employers of undefined (ACS)
Private for-profit
Private not-for-profit
Local government
State government
Federal government
Self-employed incorporated
Self-employed not incorporated
Working without pay
SOURCES:
2021 Ididio: Comparing employment
2019 ACS microdata
Fewer details
Distribution: Salaries of urban and regional planners by type of employer
Here are the salary distributions based on employer type.
$71K$70K$72K$89K$67K$63K$0$50,000$100,000$150,000Federal governmentState governmentLocal governmentPrivate not-for-profitPrivate for-profitAll
SOURCES:
2021 Ididio: Comparing employment
2019 ACS microdata
Gender
Urban and regional planners and gender
With 44% women, this occupation has a higher percentage of women than 56% of careers.
Gender of Urban and regional planners
Men (56%)
Women (44%)
SOURCES:
2019 ACS microdata
Distribution: salaries by gender
Does gender greatly influence your salary in this career? The closer the bars are, the less discrepancy there is.
$67K$75K$0$100K$200K$300KWomenMen
We only include salary data when the survey error is less than 20%, so you may see only partial information for some categories.
SOURCES:
2019 ACS microdata
Fewer details
Context: Women in the workforce
How does this career compare to other careers with regard to the percentage of women in the career.
44%0%20%40%60%80%100%
SOURCES:
2019 ACS microdata
Context: Salary inequity
The median salary for all full-time male workers in the US exceeds the full-time median salary for women by 19%. The situation is a little better for urban and regional planners, with the median salary for men 12% higher than the median salary for women.
12%0%20%40%60%80%100%
SOURCES:
2019 ACS microdata
Race/Origin
Race and origin of Urban and regional planners
This donut shows the distribution of race and origin among those employed as Urban and regional planners.
Race/origin of urban and regional planners
White (82% )
Asian (6% )
Black (5% )
Multiracial (3% )
Other (2% )
Hispanic (1% )
American Indian (0% )
SOURCES:
2019 ACS microdata
Distribution: salaries by race/origin
Some careers might have a pay disparity based on race or origin, the closer the below bars are the less of a discrepancy is present.
$44K$63K$69K$69K$71K$71K$0$50K$100K$150KAmerican IndianMultiracialOtherAsianBlackWhite
We only include salary data when the survey error is less than 20%, so you may see only partial information for some categories.
SOURCES:
2019 ACS microdata
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