Captains, Mates, and Pilots of Water Vessels vs Commercial Pilots: $92K vs $123K Median Pay

Captains, Mates, and Pilots of Water Vessels vs Commercial Pilots: what changes?

Consider Captains, Mates, and Pilots of Water Vessels if you want to command or supervise operations of ships and water vessels, such as tugboats and ferryboats. Consider Commercial Pilots if you would rather pilot and navigate the flight of fixed-wing aircraft on nonscheduled air carrier routes, or helicopters. Both list postsecondary nondegree award; compare training and prior experience separately. Prior experience in a related occupation is typically needed for Captains, Mates, and Pilots of Water Vessels (less than 5 years).

Try this next: Compare three local entry-level postings for Captains, Mates, and Pilots of Water Vessels and Commercial Pilots. List the duties, credentials, prior experience, and paid training each employer actually asks for. Try a supervised class or sample project from each field before choosing a program.

BLS 2025 wages and 2025–2035 projections. National medians are not starting offers. Occupation size is not a count of vacancies. View the BLS data.

Compare the practical differences

Captains, Mates, and Pilots of Water Vessels

National median pay (2025): $92,460
Route into the job: Postsecondary nondegree award; Prior related experience: less than 5 years
Prior related experience: Prior related experience: less than 5 years.
Training and licensing: BLS does not list a separate on-the-job training requirement. Employers may still provide orientation and role-specific training.
Work to investigate: Direct courses and speeds of ships, based on specialized knowledge of local winds, weather, water depths, tides, currents, and hazards.
Annual openings (2025–2035): 3,800

Know before you choose

BLS lists less than 5 years of related experience. This is normally reached through feeder roles, not directly from school.

See the full Captains, Mates, and Pilots of Water Vessels brief

Commercial Pilots

National median pay (2025): $123,220
Route into the job: Postsecondary nondegree award; More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing
Prior related experience: No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.
Training and licensing: More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing.
Work to investigate: Check aircraft prior to flights to ensure that the engines, controls, instruments, and other systems are functioning properly.
Annual openings (2025–2035): 5,200

Know before you choose

Review the full career brief for day-to-day working conditions.

See the full Commercial Pilots brief

How the national numbers differ

Commercial Pilots has the edge on median pay

Commercial Pilots is at $123,220, compared with $92,460 for Captains, Mates, and Pilots of Water Vessels.

Commercial Pilots has the edge on projected growth

Commercial Pilots is at 5.2% projected growth, compared with 4% projected growth for Captains, Mates, and Pilots of Water Vessels.

Commercial Pilots has the edge on annual openings

Commercial Pilots is at 5,200 annual openings, compared with 3,800 annual openings for Captains, Mates, and Pilots of Water Vessels.

60.2/ 100

Captains, Mates, and Pilots of Water Vessels

68.2/ 100

Commercial Pilots

Each available metric is ranked from 0 to 100 against the careers on ChooseField. The weighted average uses this profile: pay 30%, growth 25%, openings 30%, preparation level 15%. Missing values are not scored as zero; their weights are redistributed across available metrics. Occupation size has zero weight: employment is not accessible vacancies. Preparation categories do not measure admission difficulty or years without earnings. The score summarizes national measures; local opportunities and personal fit still need separate consideration.

Detailed evidence

Captains, Mates, and Pilots of Water Vessels vs Commercial Pilots

Dimension	Captains, Mates, and Pilots of Water Vessels	Commercial Pilots
Median pay (2025)	$92,460	$123,220
Pay percentile	77.8 percentile	89.9 percentile
Projected growth (2025–2035)	4%	5.2%
Annual openings (2025–2035)	3,800	5,200
2025 employment	41,300	50,400
How you qualify	Postsecondary nondegree award; Prior related experience: less than 5 years	Postsecondary nondegree award; More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing
O*NET preparation group	Job Zone 3	Job Zone 3
Related work experience	Prior related experience: less than 5 years.	No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.
On-the-job training	BLS does not list a separate on-the-job training requirement. Employers may still provide orientation and role-specific training.	More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing.

The table reports national benchmarks and reviewed work descriptions. It does not rate personal suitability, job security, or physical safety.

Read Captains, Mates, and Pilots of Water Vessels brief Read Commercial Pilots brief

Captains, Mates, and Pilots of Water Vessels vs Commercial Pilots: what changes?

The facts most likely to affect your decision

Captains, Mates, and Pilots of Water Vessels

Commercial Pilots

How the national numbers differ

Commercial Pilots has the edge on median pay

Commercial Pilots has the edge on projected growth

Commercial Pilots has the edge on annual openings

Captains, Mates, and Pilots of Water Vessels vs Commercial Pilots

Try another comparison

Captains, Mates, and Pilots of Water Vessels vs Motorboat Operators

Captains, Mates, and Pilots of Water Vessels vs Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers

Commercial Pilots vs Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers