Diesel mechanic salary in Bowling Green, KY
Updated September 27, 2026 with BLS data from May 2025
Diesel mechanics in the Bowling Green, KY area earn a median of $51,920 a year, or $24.96 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. The top 10% earn more than $67,280. That's 6% less than the Kentucky median of $55,480.
- Entry-level starting pay (estimate)
- $17.54/hr
- Jobs in this area
- 200
- After cost of living
- $57,570
- Median hourly pay
- $24.96/hr
- vs U.S. median
- −16%
- vs Kentucky median
- −6%
- Mean (average) pay
- $53,650 a year · $25.79 an hour
Pay by percentile
What diesel mechanics in Bowling Green, KY 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 | $17.54 | $36,480 |
| 25th percentile | $22.76 | $47,330 |
| Median (50th) | $24.96 | $51,920 |
| 75th percentile | $28.73 | $59,750 |
| 90th percentile | $32.35 | $67,280 |
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. BLS yearly figures are the hourly wage times 2,080 hours.
How Bowling Green, KY compares
- Bowling Green ranks 8th of 9 Kentucky metro areas for diesel mechanic pay.
- Diesel mechanics are more concentrated in the Bowling Green area than nationally: 2.4 of every 1,000 jobs, 1.3 times the U.S. share.
Other Kentucky metro areas
Other trades in Bowling Green, KY
Questions
- Do diesel mechanics make more in Bowling Green or Paducah?
- Paducah pays more: the median is $51,920 in Bowling Green and $78,900 in Paducah, a 34% difference.
About this data
Wages are from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey for May 2025, occupation 49-3031 (Bus and Truck Mechanics and Diesel Engine Specialists), area code 14540 (Bowling Green, KY). BLS counts wage and salary workers only, so self-employed diesel 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 (90.2, where the U.S. average is 100). Page updated September 27, 2026. How we calculate these figures