The median annual wage of wholesale and manufacturing sales representatives, technical and scientific products was $73,710 in May 2010. The median wage is the wage at which half of the workers in an occupation earned more than that amount and half earned less. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $36,740, and the top 10 percent earned more than $144,420.
The median annual wage of wholesale and manufacturing sales representatives, except technical and scientific products was $52,440 in May 2010. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $26,970, and the top 10 percent earned more than $108,750.
Compensation methods for representatives vary significantly by the type of firm and the product sold. Most employers use a combination of salary and commissions or salary plus bonuses. Commissions usually are based on the value of sales. Bonuses may depend on individual performance, on the performance of all sales workers in the group or district, or on the company's performance.
Most wholesale and manufacturing sales representatives work full time. In 2010, about a quarter of sales representatives worked more than 50 hours per week.
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2012-13 Edition