Agricultural Commodity Grading
Drawn directly from OPM FedScope (June 2026), this page tracks headcount, average salary, tenure, and pay comparison for the Agricultural Commodity Grading occupation series (code 1980).
The verdict
Agricultural Commodity Grading is a smaller, specialized federal occupation: 1,562 employees (0.1% of the federal civilian workforce) in the Quality Assurance, Inspection, and Grading Group family. At an average salary of $69,487 it pays below the federal average, and headcount edged down from the prior period.
- Headcount change
- -0.2%
- Pay change
- +0.0%
- Avg tenure
- 11.4 yrs
- Rank in family
- #2 of 3
FedScope read on Agricultural Commodity Grading (dense series)
Headcount moved down versus the prior period, a modest but trackable signal for anyone considering this specialized federal career path. Pay moved up between the two reporting periods, a small shift, within the range of normal year-to-year rounding rather than a broad pay-table change. On length of service, this series shows a mid-length average tenure, reflecting a mix of career employees and those who transfer or exit mid-career.
Code 19, the Quality Assurance, Inspection, and Grading Group family, is where the federal government classifies Agricultural Commodity Grading alongside 2 related occupations. Candidates browsing USAJOBS for Agricultural Commodity Grading postings should also review these sibling occupations in the Quality Assurance, Inspection, and Grading Group family. Agricultural Commodity Grading makes up 21.5% of the Quality Assurance, Inspection, and Grading Group family's 7,261 combined employees. Its average salary ranks in the bottom half (33rd percentile) of pay among Quality Assurance, Inspection, and Grading Group occupations.
Salary context · lean-pay series
How Agricultural Commodity Grading pay compares to the federal average
Occupation Average
$69,487
Federal Average
$117,339
vs. Federal Avg
-40.8%
Where Agricultural Commodity Grading ranks on lean federal pay
Agricultural Commodity Grading earns more on average than 25% of federal occupation series (136 of 541). The highlighted bar marks where Agricultural Commodity Grading sits in the federal pay distribution.
Average-salary distribution across all 541 federal occupation series; the highlighted bar marks Agricultural Commodity Grading.
Related Occupations in Quality Assurance, Inspection, and Grading Group
2 other occupations in the same family
| Occupation | Employees | Avg Salary | Avg LOS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quality Assurance | 4,964 | $119,613 | 16.9 yrs |
| Agricultural Commodity Aid | 735 | $38,048 | 5 yrs |
Nationwide peers near this dense headcount
Two peer sets for Agricultural Commodity Grading outside the Quality Assurance, Inspection, and Grading Group family, on headcount and average salary axes that vary across all OPM occupation series.
Similar dense headcount
Nearest employee counts in other occupation families (1,562 here).
Similar lean average salary
Nearest average salaries in other occupation families ($69,487 here).
Key takeaways
- Place Agricultural Commodity Grading pay in context with the pay-rank chart above, then compare it with another occupation.
- Turn an average salary into a grade: the GS pay grade tables show how grades and steps map to pay.
- Browse the Quality Assurance, Inspection, and Grading Group family occupations in the table above, or search current Agricultural Commodity Grading postings on USAJOBS.
OPM FedScope and Federal Workforce Data figures are federal civilian headcounts, average salaries, and length-of-service statistics - not job-quality scores, hiring advice, or a live vacancy listing. A larger or higher-paid agency is not a better employer.