Patent Examining
Drawn directly from OPM FedScope (June 2026), this page tracks headcount, average salary, tenure, and pay comparison for the Patent Examining occupation series (code 1224).
The verdict
With 9,385 employees (0.5% of the federal civilian workforce), Patent Examining ranks as a mid-sized federal occupation within the Copyright, Patent, and Trademark Group family, and headcount grew 0.5% from the prior period. Its average salary of $157,963 pays well above the $117,339 federal average.
- Employees
- 9,385
- Share of workforce
- 0.5%
- Avg salary
- $157,963
- Avg tenure
- 14.3 yrs
FedScope read on Patent Examining (dense series)
As of the June 2026 reporting window, 9,385 people work in the Patent Examining occupation (OPM code 1224) across federal agencies, 0.5% of the 1,953,300-strong federal civilian workforce. Headcount moved up by 0.5% from the prior period, a useful gauge for job seekers on USAJOBS trying to assess whether this role is expanding government-wide or contracting under hiring freezes and attrition.
Patent Examining pays $157,963 per year on average, moving down -0.2% from the prior period (a small shift, within the range of normal year-to-year rounding rather than a broad pay-table change). Employees in this role stay an average of 14.3 years, a mid-length average tenure, reflecting a mix of career employees and those who transfer or exit mid-career.
The Copyright, Patent, and Trademark Group family (code 12) groups Patent Examining together with 6 other related occupations across the federal government. Candidates browsing USAJOBS for Patent Examining postings should also review these sibling occupations in the Copyright, Patent, and Trademark Group family.
Inside the Copyright, Patent, and Trademark Group family (7 occupations, 10,490 employees combined), Patent Examining holds the #1 spot by headcount, a 89.5% share of the family total. Its average salary ranks in the bottom half (29th percentile) of pay among Copyright, Patent, and Trademark Group occupations.
Salary context · rich-pay series
How Patent Examining pay compares to the federal average of $117,339
Occupation Average
$157,963
Federal Average
$117,339
vs. Federal Avg
+34.6%
Where Patent Examining ranks on rich federal pay
Its average salary of $157,963 is higher than 92% of federal occupation series (499 of 541). The highlighted bar marks where Patent Examining sits in the federal pay distribution.
Average-salary distribution across all 541 federal occupation series; Patent Examining ranks higher than 92%.
Related Occupations in Copyright, Patent, and Trademark Group
6 other occupations in the same family
| Occupation | Employees | Avg Salary | Avg LOS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Patent Attorney | 373 | $202,357 | 17.8 yrs |
| Design Patent Examining | 365 | $137,602 | 9.3 yrs |
| Patent Administration | 322 | $199,503 | 24.1 yrs |
| Patent Classifying | 33 | $189,888 | 21.5 yrs |
| Patent Adviser | 7 | $160,445 | 10.6 yrs |
| Patent Technician | 5 | $95,669 | 29 yrs |
Nationwide peers near this dense headcount
Two peer sets for Patent Examining outside the Copyright, Patent, and Trademark 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 (9,385 here).
Similar rich average salary
Nearest average salaries in other occupation families ($157,963 here).
Key takeaways
- Patent Examining pays well above the federal average by 34.6% ($157,963 vs $117,339 federal-wide), at the 92nd percentile for pay among 541 tracked occupation series.
- A mid-sized federal occupation by headcount: 9,385 employees, 0.5% of the federal civilian workforce, and headcount grew 0.5% from the prior period.
- According to OPM FedScope June 2026, Patent Examining ranks #50 of 663 federal occupation series by headcount (the same employee_count ordering as our occupations directory).
- Inside the Copyright, Patent, and Trademark Group family (7 occupations, 10,490 employees combined), Patent Examining holds the #1 spot by headcount, a 89.5% share of the family total.
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.