Heavy equipment operator salary in Oklahoma City, OK
Updated September 27, 2026 with BLS data from May 2025
Heavy equipment operators in the Oklahoma City, OK area earn a median of $48,690 a year, or $23.41 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. One in ten earns more than $65,100. Across all of Oklahoma, the median is $47,970, so Oklahoma City pays 2% more than the state as a whole.
- Apprentice starting pay (estimate)
- $18.00/hr
- Jobs in this area
- 2,250
- After cost of living
- $53,860
- Median hourly pay
- $23.41/hr
- vs U.S. median
- −19%
- vs Oklahoma median
- +2%
Entry-level to top heavy equipment operator pay
| Stage | Yearly pay | Hourly pay |
|---|---|---|
| Apprentice / entry level | $37,440–$41,820$18.00–$20.11/hr | |
| Experienced operator | $48,690$23.41/hr | |
| Top earners | $57,870–$65,100$27.82–$31.30/hr |
Estimated from BLS percentiles (10th–25th, median, 75th–90th); BLS does not report pay by license level.
How Oklahoma City, OK compares
- Oklahoma City ranks 2nd of 5 Oklahoma metro areas for heavy equipment operator pay.
- Heavy equipment operators hold about the same share of jobs in the Oklahoma City area as nationally: 3.3 of every 1,000 jobs.
- The 90th-percentile wage, $65,100, is 1.7 times the 10th-percentile wage, $37,440: a measure of how much pay rises with experience and specialty.
Other Oklahoma metro areas
Other trades in Oklahoma City, OK
Questions
- How much do heavy equipment operators make in Oklahoma City, OK?
- Heavy equipment operators in the Oklahoma City, OK area earn a median of $48,690 a year, or $23.41 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. One in ten earns more than $65,100.
- How much do heavy equipment operators make an hour in Oklahoma City, OK?
- The median hourly wage is $23.41. The middle half earn between $20.11 and $27.82 an hour. (BLS, May 2025.)
- What do apprentice heavy equipment operators make in Oklahoma City, OK?
- BLS doesn't report pay by license level. The 10th-percentile wage, $18.00 an hour ($37,440 a year), is a reasonable estimate of starting pay; the 25th percentile is $20.11.
- Do heavy equipment operators make more in Oklahoma City or Enid?
- Enid pays more: the median is $48,690 in Oklahoma City and $49,050 in Enid, a 1% difference.
- How does Oklahoma City pay compare with the rest of Oklahoma?
- The Oklahoma City median of $48,690 is 2% more than the Oklahoma median of $47,970.
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 36420 (Oklahoma City, OK). 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 (90.4, where the U.S. average is 100). Page updated September 27, 2026. How we calculate these figures