Heavy equipment operator salary in Grand Island, NE
Updated September 27, 2026 with BLS data from May 2025
Heavy equipment operators in the Grand Island, NE area earn a median of $55,020 a year, or $26.45 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. The highest-paid 10% make over $68,610 a year. That's 6% less than the Nebraska median of $58,360.
- Apprentice starting pay (estimate)
- $20.25/hr
- Jobs in this area
- 120
- After cost of living
- $63,490
- Median hourly pay
- $26.45/hr
- vs U.S. median
- −8%
- vs Nebraska median
- −6%
Entry-level to top heavy equipment operator pay
| Stage | Yearly pay | Hourly pay |
|---|---|---|
| Apprentice / entry level | $42,110–$46,490$20.25–$22.35/hr | |
| Experienced operator | $55,020$26.45/hr | |
| Top earners | $63,310–$68,610$30.44–$32.99/hr |
Estimated from BLS percentiles (10th–25th, median, 75th–90th); BLS does not report pay by license level.
How Grand Island, NE compares
- Grand Island has the lowest heavy equipment operator median of the 4 Nebraska metro areas with published pay.
- Heavy equipment operators hold about the same share of jobs in the Grand Island area as nationally: 3.1 of every 1,000 jobs.
- The 90th-percentile wage, $68,610, is 1.6 times the 10th-percentile wage, $42,110: a measure of how much pay rises with experience and specialty.
Other Nebraska metro areas
Other trades in Grand Island, NE
Questions
- How much do heavy equipment operators make in Grand Island, NE?
- Heavy equipment operators in the Grand Island, NE area earn a median of $55,020 a year, or $26.45 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. The highest-paid 10% make over $68,610 a year.
- How much do heavy equipment operators make an hour in Grand Island, NE?
- The median hourly wage is $26.45. The middle half earn between $22.35 and $30.44 an hour. (BLS, May 2025.)
- What do apprentice heavy equipment operators make in Grand Island, NE?
- BLS doesn't report pay by license level. The 10th-percentile wage, $20.25 an hour ($42,110 a year), is a reasonable estimate of starting pay; the 25th percentile is $22.35.
- Do heavy equipment operators make more in Grand Island or Lincoln?
- Lincoln pays more: the median is $55,020 in Grand Island and $60,810 in Lincoln, a 10% difference.
- How does Grand Island pay compare with the rest of Nebraska?
- The Grand Island median of $55,020 is 6% less than the Nebraska median of $58,360.
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 24260 (Grand Island, NE). 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 (86.7, where the U.S. average is 100). Page updated September 27, 2026. How we calculate these figures