Heavy equipment operator salary
Updated September 27, 2026 with BLS data from May 2025
Heavy equipment operators in the U.S. earn a median of $59,850 a year, or $28.78 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. One in ten earns more than $101,090.
- Apprentice starting pay (estimate)
- $20.28/hr
- Jobs nationwide
- 478,090
- Median hourly pay
- $28.78/hr
- Mean (average) pay
- $66,290 a year · $31.87 an hour
Pay by percentile
What heavy equipment operators in the U.S. 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 | $20.28 | $42,190 |
| 25th percentile | $23.40 | $48,680 |
| Median (50th) | $28.78 | $59,850 |
| 75th percentile | $37.10 | $77,170 |
| 90th percentile | $48.60 | $101,090 |
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. BLS yearly figures are the hourly wage times 2,080 hours.
Pay over time
The median heavy equipment operator wage in the U.S. rose 23.8%, from $48,360 in May 2021 to $59,850 in May 2025. Prices rose 19.4% over the same period, so after inflation it rose 3.6%.
| Year | Median a year | Median an hour |
|---|---|---|
| May 2021 | $48,360 | $23.25/hr |
| May 2022 | $51,430 | $24.73/hr |
| May 2023 | $56,160 | $27.00/hr |
| May 2024 | $58,710 | $28.23/hr |
| May 2025 | $59,850 | $28.78/hr |
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, each May release; inflation from the BLS Consumer Price Index (CPI-U, May of each year). BLS cautions against reading much into year-to-year changes, so we compare the first and last years. How we compare years
Heavy equipment operator pay by state
- Hawaii$115,860
- Illinois$97,740
- New Jersey$89,660
- California$87,160
- Washington$81,700
- New York$80,980
- Indiana$79,580
- Minnesota$79,130
- Connecticut$78,750
- Alaska$77,810
See all 50 states and DC
- Massachusetts$76,820
- Wisconsin$75,280
- District of Columbia$74,610
- Oregon$73,430
- Nevada$71,410
- Ohio$64,940
- Rhode Island$63,610
- Wyoming$62,960
- Michigan$62,690
- Colorado$62,620
- New Hampshire$62,200
- North Dakota$62,150
- Idaho$61,680
- Montana$61,580
- Maryland$61,410
- Utah$60,740
- Arizona$60,620
- Missouri$60,540
- Pennsylvania$60,530
- Iowa$60,330
- South Dakota$59,500
- Vermont$58,870
- Nebraska$58,360
- Delaware$58,020
- Kentucky$57,780
- Virginia$57,160
- Maine$56,140
- New Mexico$52,000
- Tennessee$52,000
- Louisiana$51,700
- Kansas$51,620
- West Virginia$51,300
- Texas$50,460
- Florida$49,400
- North Carolina$49,310
- South Carolina$48,940
- Oklahoma$47,970
- Georgia$47,880
- Alabama$47,520
- Mississippi$47,410
- Arkansas$44,520
Top-paying metro areas
- Kahului–WailukuHI$124,990
- San Francisco–Oakland–FremontCA$124,750
- San Jose–Sunnyvale–Santa ClaraCA$124,340
- Urban HonoluluHI$117,630
- Santa Rosa–PetalumaCA$105,080
- Chicago–Naperville–ElginIL-IN$103,100
- Olympia–Lacey–TumwaterWA$103,060
- DecaturIL$100,520
- Michigan City–La PorteIN$98,120
- Waterloo–Cedar FallsIA$97,770
Every metro area ranked by heavy equipment operator pay after cost of living
Other trades in the U.S.
Questions
- Which state pays heavy equipment operators the most?
- Hawaii, with a median of $115,860 a year, followed by Illinois ($97,740). Arkansas has the lowest median, $44,520.
- Which metro area pays heavy equipment operators the most?
- The Kahului–Wailuku, HI area, with a median of $124,990 a year.
About this data
Wages are from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey for May 2025, occupation 47-2073 (Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators). BLS counts wage and salary workers only, so self-employed heavy equipment operators and business owners aren't included. Page updated September 27, 2026. How we calculate these figures