Compensation costs for private industry workers in the Atlanta–Athens-Clarke County–Sandy Springs, GA-AL Combined Statistical Area increased by 2.9 percent over the year ending September 2025, according to data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. This increase is lower than the previous year’s annual gain of 4.8 percent in compensation costs for the area.
Victoria G. Lee, Regional Commissioner, noted these figures and pointed out that on a national level, compensation costs rose by 3.5 percent during the same period.
Within Atlanta, wages and salaries—the largest part of compensation costs—rose at a rate of 2.8 percent over the twelve months ending September 2025. Nationally, wages and salaries increased by 3.6 percent.
Atlanta is one of fifteen metropolitan areas across the United States where locality compensation cost data are collected, and one of five such areas in the South region. Among these large metro areas, annual changes in compensation costs ranged from a high of 5.7 percent in Miami-Port St. Lucie-Fort Lauderdale to a low of 2.1 percent in Detroit-Warren-Ann Arbor as of September 2025; for wages and salaries specifically, Miami had the largest increase at 5.9 percent while Washington-Baltimore-Arlington had the smallest at 1.9 percent.
Comparing Atlanta to other southern metropolitan areas (Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston-Pasadena, Miami, and Washington), its annual increase in compensation costs was toward the lower end at 2.9 percent; other cities saw advances ranging from 5.7 to 2.2 percent over the same period.
Locality compensation cost data form part of the national Employment Cost Index (ECI), which tracks quarterly changes in wages, salaries, and employer benefit expenses without being affected by shifts among occupations or industries.
Further information on methodology can be found through resources like the National Compensation Measures Handbook of Methods and additional data are available on topics including industry-specific trends and government employee statistics via the Employment Cost Index website.
The substate area boundaries referenced reflect definitions provided by Office of Management and Budget Bulletin No. 23-01 issued July 21, 2023.
The Atlanta–Athens-Clarke County–Sandy Springs CSA includes numerous counties across Georgia as well as Chambers County in Alabama.
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