While backpacking and tent camping allow you to experience the great outdoors in full force, some people prefer to experience nature along with modern convenience via recreational vehicles (RVs). RV sales associates assist customers in finding the RV that is right for their needs and budget while earning one of the higher retail sales salaries in the nation.

RV Sales Associate

RV sales associates sell campers, trailers, fifth-wheels and motor homes to the general public. Most RV sales associates earn a base salary or hourly rate as well as commission on the RVs they sell. In 2010, they represented about one in every 593,599 sales associates in America. They took home a mean or average income of $36,880 per year, or $17.73 hourly, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The median, or 50th percentile income, was $31,160 per year, suggesting that a few highly paid RV sales associates raised the mean away from the typical income.

Location Comparisons

In 2010, California employed more sales associates of all kinds than any other state and paid a mean income of $25,810 per year. The state with the second-highest employment was Texas, with an average $23,880 per year. Colorado sales associates earned $27,380 per year on average, but it was District of Columbia that paid sales associates the highest average income of $28,330 per year, as reported by the BLS.

Industry Comparisons

RV sales associates fared well compared to colleagues in other industries. For example, sales associates at automobile dealers, who represented 5.4 percent of the market, earned a mean $42,430 per year. Sales associates in the sporting goods, hobby and musical instrument stores earned $21,760 per year on average. The highest-paid industry was the motor vehicle body and trailer manufacturing industry, with a mean salary of $51,480 per year, according to the BLS reports.

National Ranking

In 2010, the salary range for all kinds of American sales representatives started at around $16,120 per year and reached approximately $38,570 per year. The average income was $25,000 annually, or $12.02 an hour. This ranked RV sales associate in the third quartile, or 50th to 75th percentile range, of national salaries that year, says the BLS.