Annual Salary

• The average salary of livestock farmers, including those who raise cattle, was $24,040 annually as of May 2010, the bureau reports. Wages started at less than $16,280 in the 10th percentile and exceeded $34,750 in the 90th percentile, with farmers earning a median income of $21,970 a year.
  
  

Industry

• Cattle farmers employed in the industry of support activities for animal production earned an average salary of $23,980 as of 2010, reports the bureau. Those working for raw-material merchant wholesalers earned an average of $21,070 a year. Those dealing in animal slaughtering and processing earned an average of $24,340. Wholesale electronic markets, brokers and agents offered an average salary of $21,920 for cattle farmers, and colleges, universities and professional schools offered an average of $29,610. The top-paying employer of cattle farmers was grocery and merchant wholesalers with a salary average of $46,100 a year, followed by the federal executive branch with an average of $42,980.
  
  

Location

• Oklahoma had the highest concentration of jobs for cattle farmers as of 2010, offering a salary average of $23,560 annually, reports the bureau. Those living in Nevada earned the highest wages by state at an average of $35,820 annually, followed by those in Utah at $31,060 and those in Illinois at $30,440. The San Francisco Bay Area was the highest-paying urban area for cattle farmers with a salary average of $51,600 annually, while northwestern Wyoming was the highest paying rural area with an average of $41,380.
  
  

Outlook

• The bureau predicts "little to no change in employment" of cattle farmers and agricultural workers in general between 2008 and 2018, largely due to the ongoing consolidation of farms, along with advancements in farm equipment technology. Cattle farmers also face increasing competition as the nation imports more meat and leather products from other countries.