Money · 1 of 5
What tour guides make
Median for the group
$38,120
Bottom tenth
$28,520
Top tenth
$60,930
The federal survey takes these figures from the wider group Tour and Travel Guides, where the national median is $38,120 a year. The bottom tenth earn $28,520 or less and the top tenth $60,930 or more (2025 federal wage survey). Read that as a full-time-all-year figure, which is rare in this field. Most guides are paid by the hour or by the tour and work heavy summers and thin winters.