TradeSalary

Diesel mechanic salary in Memphis, TN-MS-AR

Updated September 27, 2026 with BLS data from May 2025

Diesel mechanics in the Memphis, TN-MS-AR area earn a median of $61,360 a year, or $29.50 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. One in ten earns more than $96,110. That's 4% more than the Tennessee median of $59,190.

Median yearly pay$61,360
Bottom 10% under$46,070Top 10% over$96,110
Entry-level starting pay (estimate)
$22.15/hr
Jobs in this area
1,240
After cost of living
$66,570
Median hourly pay
$29.50/hr
vs U.S. median
−1%
vs Tennessee median
+4%
Mean (average) pay
$65,740 a year · $31.61 an hour
Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 (area 32820, Memphis, TN-MS-AR). Excludes self-employed diesel mechanics. Cost of living: BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024. *Starting pay is estimated from the 10th percentile; BLS does not report pay by license level.

Pay by percentile

What diesel mechanics in Memphis, TN-MS-AR 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.

PercentileHourlyYearly
10th percentile$22.15$46,070
25th percentile$25.02$52,040
Median (50th)$29.50$61,360
75th percentile$36.30$75,500
90th percentile$46.21$96,110

BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. BLS yearly figures are the hourly wage times 2,080 hours.

How Memphis, TN-MS-AR compares

  • Memphis has the highest diesel mechanic median of the 10 Tennessee metro areas with published pay.
  • Diesel mechanics hold about the same share of jobs in the Memphis area as nationally: 2.0 of every 1,000 jobs.

Other Tennessee metro areas

Other trades in Memphis, TN-MS-AR

Questions

Do diesel mechanics make more in Memphis or Nashville?
Memphis pays more: the median is $61,360 in Memphis and $60,760 in Nashville, a 1% 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 32820 (Memphis, TN-MS-AR). 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 (92.2, where the U.S. average is 100). Page updated September 27, 2026. How we calculate these figures