Despite not producing good results, the method of moments is commonly applied when constructing the parametric distribution for a data file. An alternative approach is to use the so-called order statistics. The present paper deals with the application of order statistics (parameter estimation methods of L-moments and TL-moments) to the economic data. Theoretical advantages of L-moments over conventional moments become obvious when applied to small data sets, e.g. in hydrology, meteorology and climatology, considering extreme precipitation in particular. The main aim of this paper is to apply the two methods to large data sets, comparing their parametric estimation accuracy with that of the maximum likelihood method. The methods of L-moments and TL-moments are utilized for the construction of income and wage distribution models. Three-parameter lognormal curves represent the basic theoretical probability distribution whose parameters were estimated simultaneously by the three methods of parameter estimation, their accuracy having been then evaluated.