Insurance Agent and Broker Salaries: Commission vs. Base Pay

Insurance sales agents sell life, health, property, and casualty insurance products to individuals and businesses. Like other sales occupations, their actual total earnings frequently exceed the BLS wage figure — which captures base wages but not commission income earned by self-employed agents or those primarily working on commission structures.

Captive vs. Independent Agents

Captive agents work exclusively for one insurer (State Farm, Allstate, etc.) and typically receive a salary plus commission. Independent agents represent multiple carriers and work primarily on commission. The independent model has higher earning potential but also higher income variability. BLS data captures employed agents more reliably than independent contractors.

Life and Health vs. Property and Casualty

Life insurance agents who specialize in permanent insurance products (whole life, universal life) can earn very high commissions — particularly on large policies sold to high-net-worth clients. P&C agents have more stable, recurring commission streams from renewals. Browse wages in the Sales and Related Occupations group.

Geographic Variation

Washington D.C., New York, and Connecticut show the highest insurance agent wages — driven by the concentration of financial services and large commercial insurance markets in these areas.