Salary
Average Salary: $29,000
Expected Lifetime Earnings: $1,210,692
Sure, the CEO of Wal-Mart makes a killing, but the pharmacy technician working behind the counter in a Wal-Mart pharmacy? Not exactly.
Pharmacy technicians make somewhere around $30k a year (source).
How much you make can depend on things such as geographic location and industry. Pharmacy technicians working in places like San Diego, Los Angeles, and Dallas tend to make more than their colleagues elsewhere (source). Meanwhile, those working in ambulatory heath care services and hospitals make closer to $34k-$35k a year (source).
Unsurprisingly, skill level comes into play as well. Some of the best pharmacy technicians can net themselves over twenty dollars an hour (source). But in general this job doesn't allow for much upwards mobility, and is best used as a stepping stone to something bigger and better.