RecruitLocalPros

Hiring a retail salesperson in Albuquerque, NM

Employers in the Albuquerque, NM area pay retail salespersons a median of $34,160, with the middle half of the market between $29,860 and $36,680. Albuquerque residents working in sales and related occupations report a median of $31,109, which is 9% below what the metro pays for this role.

What does a retail salesperson earn here?

Place of work

What employers pay

Annual wages paid by employers in the Albuquerque, NM area. BLS OEWS, May 2025.
25th percentile$29,860
Median$34,160
75th percentile$36,680

Half of retail salespersons in this area earn between $29,860 and $36,680. A band set below $29,860 competes for the bottom quarter of the market.

Place of residence

What Albuquerque residents earn

$31,109

Median earnings of Albuquerque residents working in sales and related occupations, 24,700 people. Census ACS 5-year 2023, tables S2401 and B24011. Where people live, not where they work, so it is not the same measurement as the wages beside it.

The 9% figure is not a pay gap. ACS counts the civilian employed population 16 and over, part-time and part-year work included; OEWS counts wage-and-salary jobs only. The two populations differ, so read this number against other cities rather than as a shortfall: the same definitional difference applies to every city equally, which is what makes a city-to-city reading sound.

The two sit close together, so pay alone is unlikely to be what wins or loses this hire.

What does the role actually involve?

Core tasks

  • Greet customers and ascertain what each customer wants or needs.
  • Recommend, select, and help locate or obtain merchandise based on customer needs and desires.
  • Compute sales prices, total purchases, and receive and process cash or credit payment.
  • Prepare merchandise for purchase or rental.
  • Answer questions regarding the store and its merchandise.

O*NET 29.1, task statements for SOC 41-2031.

Tools and technologies in demand

Adobe Acrobat, Adobe Creative Cloud software, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe InDesign, Adobe Photoshop, Apple macOS, Autodesk AutoCAD, Eclipse IDE.

O*NET 29.1, flagged in demand or hot for this occupation. Useful as a screen, not as a checklist.

Is the talent actually in Albuquerque?

This is a job zone two: some preparation needed occupation. These occupations usually require a high school diploma.

It does not require a degree, which widens the pool considerably. For context, 38.7% of Albuquerque adults hold one. Census ACS 5-year 2023, table S1501.

The average Albuquerque commute runs 22.2 minutes, which is roughly how far your catchment reaches before candidates start saying no. 12.8% already work from home, so a fully onsite requirement here is competing against that.

How often do these jobs turn over?

In Bernalillo County, retail trade employs 38,507 and turns over 12.5% a quarter, with 6,795 hires against 7,697 separations. Average earnings in that industry run $3,210 a month. Census LEHD Quarterly Workforce Indicators, 2024 Q1, NAICS 44-45.

That figure covers every occupation in the industry, not this role alone, so read it as the local churn rate rather than as a number about retail salespersons. It still tells you what you are hiring into: a high-churn market, where speed matters more than a perfect fit.

What does the search cost?

The fee is set by the seniority of the role, never by salary and never by location. Across all six tiers it runs $6,240 to $54,340 per search. A contingency firm hiring at this role's median would bill roughly $6,832 to $10,248 on the first year salary alone.

One owner runs the search from market map to signed offer. Searches typically fill in 23 to 35 days, which is a typical window rather than a promise, and the replacement guarantee runs 45 days at 50% off.

Price this search

Eight questions about the role. Your tier range appears on screen.

Hiring a retail salesperson somewhere else?

Same role, different market. The wage band moves with the metro.

Other sales and related roles in Albuquerque

Related

Albuquerque is the largest of 1 New Mexico cities in this dataset.