Heavy equipment operator salary in Amherst Town, MA
Updated September 27, 2026 with BLS data from May 2025
Heavy equipment operators in the Amherst Town–Northampton, MA area earn a median of $66,830 a year, or $32.13 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. One in ten earns more than $124,100. Across all of Massachusetts, the median is $76,820, so Amherst Town pays 13% less than the state as a whole.
- Apprentice starting pay (estimate)
- $23.30/hr
- Jobs in this area
- 180
- After cost of living
- $66,670
- Median hourly pay
- $32.13/hr
- vs U.S. median
- +12%
- vs Massachusetts median
- −13%
Entry-level to top heavy equipment operator pay
| Stage | Yearly pay | Hourly pay |
|---|---|---|
| Apprentice / entry level | $48,470–$57,090$23.30–$27.45/hr | |
| Experienced operator | $66,830$32.13/hr | |
| Top earners | $80,940–$124,100$38.91–$59.67/hr |
Estimated from BLS percentiles (10th–25th, median, 75th–90th); BLS does not report pay by license level.
How Amherst Town, MA compares
- Amherst Town ranks 6th of 7 Massachusetts metro areas for heavy equipment operator pay.
- Heavy equipment operators are less concentrated in the Amherst Town area than nationally: 2.7 of every 1,000 jobs, 0.87 times the U.S. share.
- The 90th-percentile wage, $124,100, is 2.6 times the 10th-percentile wage, $48,470: a measure of how much pay rises with experience and specialty.
Other Massachusetts metro areas
Other trades in Amherst Town, MA
Questions
- How much do heavy equipment operators make in Amherst Town, MA?
- Heavy equipment operators in the Amherst Town–Northampton, MA area earn a median of $66,830 a year, or $32.13 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. One in ten earns more than $124,100.
- How much do heavy equipment operators make an hour in Amherst Town, MA?
- The median hourly wage is $32.13. The middle half earn between $27.45 and $38.91 an hour. (BLS, May 2025.)
- What do apprentice heavy equipment operators make in Amherst Town, MA?
- BLS doesn't report pay by license level. The 10th-percentile wage, $23.30 an hour ($48,470 a year), is a reasonable estimate of starting pay; the 25th percentile is $27.45.
- Do heavy equipment operators make more in Amherst Town or Worcester?
- Worcester pays more: the median is $66,830 in Amherst Town and $77,050 in Worcester, a 13% difference.
- How does Amherst Town pay compare with the rest of Massachusetts?
- The Amherst Town median of $66,830 is 13% less than the Massachusetts median of $76,820.
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 11200 (Amherst Town-Northampton, MA). 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 (100.2, where the U.S. average is 100). Page updated September 27, 2026. How we calculate these figures