Heavy equipment operator salary in Bowling Green, KY
Updated September 27, 2026 with BLS data from May 2025
Heavy equipment operators in the Bowling Green, KY area earn a median of $60,180 a year, or $28.93 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. The top 10% earn more than $82,400. Across all of Kentucky, the median is $57,780, so Bowling Green pays 4% more than the state as a whole.
- Apprentice starting pay (estimate)
- $22.07/hr
- Jobs in this area
- 300
- After cost of living
- $66,730
- Median hourly pay
- $28.93/hr
- vs U.S. median
- +1%
- vs Kentucky median
- +4%
Entry-level to top heavy equipment operator pay
| Stage | Yearly pay | Hourly pay |
|---|---|---|
| Apprentice / entry level | $45,900–$50,880$22.07–$24.46/hr | |
| Experienced operator | $60,180$28.93/hr | |
| Top earners | $63,130–$82,400$30.35–$39.62/hr |
Estimated from BLS percentiles (10th–25th, median, 75th–90th); BLS does not report pay by license level.
How Bowling Green, KY compares
- Bowling Green ranks 3rd of 9 Kentucky metro areas for heavy equipment operator pay.
- Heavy equipment operators are more concentrated in the Bowling Green area than nationally: 3.6 of every 1,000 jobs, 1.2 times the U.S. share.
- The 90th-percentile wage, $82,400, is 1.8 times the 10th-percentile wage, $45,900: a measure of how much pay rises with experience and specialty.
Other Kentucky metro areas
Other trades in Bowling Green, KY
Questions
- How much do heavy equipment operators make in Bowling Green, KY?
- Heavy equipment operators in the Bowling Green, KY area earn a median of $60,180 a year, or $28.93 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. The top 10% earn more than $82,400.
- How much do heavy equipment operators make an hour in Bowling Green, KY?
- The median hourly wage is $28.93. The middle half earn between $24.46 and $30.35 an hour. (BLS, May 2025.)
- What do apprentice heavy equipment operators make in Bowling Green, KY?
- BLS doesn't report pay by license level. The 10th-percentile wage, $22.07 an hour ($45,900 a year), is a reasonable estimate of starting pay; the 25th percentile is $24.46.
- Do heavy equipment operators make more in Bowling Green or Cincinnati?
- Cincinnati pays more: the median is $60,180 in Bowling Green and $66,950 in Cincinnati, a 10% difference.
- How does Bowling Green pay compare with the rest of Kentucky?
- The Bowling Green median of $60,180 is 4% more than the Kentucky median of $57,780.
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 14540 (Bowling Green, KY). 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 (90.2, where the U.S. average is 100). Page updated September 27, 2026. How we calculate these figures