How much do heavy equipment operators make an hour in Worcester, MA?

The median hourly wage is $37.05. The middle half earn between $29.12 and $54.24 an hour. (BLS, May 2025.)

What do apprentice heavy equipment operators make in Worcester, MA?

BLS doesn't report pay by license level. The 10th-percentile wage, $23.77 an hour ($49,440 a year), is a reasonable estimate of starting pay; the 25th percentile is $29.12.

Do heavy equipment operators make more in Worcester or Boston?

Pay is about the same: the median is $77,050 in Worcester and $76,940 in Boston.

How does Worcester pay compare with the rest of Massachusetts?

The Worcester median of $77,050 is about the same as the Massachusetts median of $76,820.

Heavy equipment operator salary in Worcester, MA

Updated September 27, 2026 with BLS data from May 2025

Heavy equipment operators in the Worcester, MA area earn a median of $77,050 a year, or $37.05 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. One in ten earns more than $126,110. That's about the same as the Massachusetts median of $76,820.

Median yearly pay$77,050

Bottom 10% under$49,440Top 10% over$126,110

Apprentice starting pay (estimate): $23.77/hr
Jobs in this area: 1,230
After cost of living: $75,150
Median hourly pay: $37.05/hr
vs U.S. median: +29%
vs Massachusetts median: 0%

Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 (area 49340, Worcester, MA). 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	$49,440–$60,570$23.77–$29.12/hr
Experienced operator	$77,050$37.05/hr
Top earners	$112,810–$126,110$54.24–$60.63/hr

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

How Worcester, MA compares

Worcester has the highest heavy equipment operator median of the 7 Massachusetts metro areas with published pay.
Heavy equipment operators are more concentrated in the Worcester area than nationally: 3.5 of every 1,000 jobs, 1.1 times the U.S. share.
The 90th-percentile wage, $126,110, is 2.6 times the 10th-percentile wage, $49,440: a measure of how much pay rises with experience and specialty.

Other Massachusetts metro areas

Other trades in Worcester, MA

Electrician HVAC technician Welder Lineman Plumber Diesel mechanic Carpenter Auto mechanic Roofer

Questions

How much do heavy equipment operators make in Worcester, MA?: Heavy equipment operators in the Worcester, MA area earn a median of $77,050 a year, or $37.05 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. One in ten earns more than $126,110.
How much do heavy equipment operators make an hour in Worcester, MA?: The median hourly wage is $37.05. The middle half earn between $29.12 and $54.24 an hour. (BLS, May 2025.)
What do apprentice heavy equipment operators make in Worcester, MA?: BLS doesn't report pay by license level. The 10th-percentile wage, $23.77 an hour ($49,440 a year), is a reasonable estimate of starting pay; the 25th percentile is $29.12.
Do heavy equipment operators make more in Worcester or Boston?: Pay is about the same: the median is $77,050 in Worcester and $76,940 in Boston.
How does Worcester pay compare with the rest of Massachusetts?: The Worcester median of $77,050 is about the same as 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 49340 (Worcester, 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 (102.5, where the U.S. average is 100). Page updated September 27, 2026. How we calculate these figures