How much do heavy equipment operators make an hour in Hot Springs, AR?

The median hourly wage is $18.15. The middle half earn between $14.36 and $22.46 an hour. (BLS, May 2025.)

What do apprentice heavy equipment operators make in Hot Springs, AR?

BLS doesn't report pay by license level. The 10th-percentile wage, $14.36 an hour ($29,870 a year), is a reasonable estimate of starting pay; the 25th percentile is $14.36.

Do heavy equipment operators make more in Hot Springs or Memphis?

Memphis pays more: the median is $37,760 in Hot Springs and $53,870 in Memphis, a 30% difference.

How does Hot Springs pay compare with the rest of Arkansas?

The Hot Springs median of $37,760 is 15% less than the Arkansas median of $44,520.

Heavy equipment operator salary in Hot Springs, AR

Updated September 27, 2026 with BLS data from May 2025

Heavy equipment operators in the Hot Springs, AR area earn a median of $37,760 a year, or $18.15 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. The top 10% earn more than $54,470. That's 15% less than the Arkansas median of $44,520.

Median yearly pay$37,760

Bottom 10% under$29,870Top 10% over$54,470

Apprentice starting pay (estimate): $14.36/hr
Jobs in this area: 250
After cost of living: $44,050
Median hourly pay: $18.15/hr
vs U.S. median: −37%
vs Arkansas median: −15%

Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 (area 26300, Hot Springs, AR). Excludes self-employed heavy equipment operators. Cost of living: BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024. *Starting pay is estimated from the 10th percentile; BLS does not report pay by license level.

Entry-level to top heavy equipment operator pay

Stage	Yearly pay	Hourly pay
Apprentice / entry level	$29,870–$29,870$14.36–$14.36/hr
Experienced operator	$37,760$18.15/hr
Top earners	$46,720–$54,470$22.46–$26.19/hr

Estimated from BLS percentiles (10th–25th, median, 75th–90th); BLS does not report pay by license level.

How Hot Springs, AR compares

Hot Springs has the lowest heavy equipment operator median of the 7 Arkansas metro areas with published pay.
Heavy equipment operators are more concentrated in the Hot Springs area than nationally: 6.4 of every 1,000 jobs, 2.1 times the U.S. share.
The 90th-percentile wage, $54,470, is 1.8 times the 10th-percentile wage, $29,870: a measure of how much pay rises with experience and specialty.

Other Arkansas metro areas

Other trades in Hot Springs, AR

Electrician HVAC technician Welder Plumber Diesel mechanic Carpenter Auto mechanic

Questions

How much do heavy equipment operators make in Hot Springs, AR?: Heavy equipment operators in the Hot Springs, AR area earn a median of $37,760 a year, or $18.15 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. The top 10% earn more than $54,470.
How much do heavy equipment operators make an hour in Hot Springs, AR?: The median hourly wage is $18.15. The middle half earn between $14.36 and $22.46 an hour. (BLS, May 2025.)
What do apprentice heavy equipment operators make in Hot Springs, AR?: BLS doesn't report pay by license level. The 10th-percentile wage, $14.36 an hour ($29,870 a year), is a reasonable estimate of starting pay; the 25th percentile is $14.36.
Do heavy equipment operators make more in Hot Springs or Memphis?: Memphis pays more: the median is $37,760 in Hot Springs and $53,870 in Memphis, a 30% difference.
How does Hot Springs pay compare with the rest of Arkansas?: The Hot Springs median of $37,760 is 15% less than the Arkansas median of $44,520.

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), area code 26300 (Hot Springs, AR). BLS counts wage and salary workers only, so self-employed heavy equipment operators 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 (85.7, where the U.S. average is 100). Page updated September 27, 2026. How we calculate these figures