Auto mechanic salary in Columbus, OH
Updated September 27, 2026 with BLS data from May 2025
Auto mechanics in the Columbus, OH area earn a median of $56,150 a year, or $27.00 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. The top 10% earn more than $85,590. Across all of Ohio, the median is $48,710, so Columbus pays 15% more than the state as a whole.
- Entry-level starting pay (estimate)
- $16.55/hr
- Jobs in this area
- 3,920
- After cost of living
- $58,810
- Median hourly pay
- $27.00/hr
- vs U.S. median
- +11%
- vs Ohio median
- +15%
- Mean (average) pay
- $58,180 a year · $27.97 an hour
Pay by percentile
What auto mechanics in Columbus, OH earn at each point of the pay range, May 2025: 10% earn less than the 10th percentile, half earn less than the median, and 10% earn more than the 90th.
| Percentile | Hourly | Yearly |
|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $16.55 | $34,420 |
| 25th percentile | $18.42 | $38,310 |
| Median (50th) | $27.00 | $56,150 |
| 75th percentile | $34.00 | $70,720 |
| 90th percentile | $41.15 | $85,590 |
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. BLS yearly figures are the hourly wage times 2,080 hours.
How Columbus, OH compares
- Columbus has the highest auto mechanic median of the 15 Ohio metro areas with published pay.
- Auto mechanics are less concentrated in the Columbus area than nationally: 3.5 of every 1,000 jobs, 0.78 times the U.S. share.
Other Ohio metro areas
Other trades in Columbus, OH
Questions
- Do auto mechanics make more in Columbus or Akron?
- Columbus pays more: the median is $56,150 in Columbus and $52,900 in Akron, a 6% difference.
About this data
Wages are from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey for May 2025, occupation 49-3023 (Automotive Service Technicians and Mechanics), area code 18140 (Columbus, OH). BLS counts wage and salary workers only, so self-employed auto mechanics and business owners aren't included. The cost-of-living figure divides the median by the Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parity for 2024 (95.5, where the U.S. average is 100). Page updated September 27, 2026. How we calculate these figures