Find a Job You Really Want In
Material Handlers are one of the most common jobs in America. Additionally, a significant number of people work as material handlers in every state in the union — it’s not like they are all just concentrated in California or the South.
Since material handlers are such a prominent occupation, we at Zippia wanted to look at where material handlers have it the best: where there are plenty of jobs to go around and people get paid what they deserve during every phase of their career.
To that end, we dove into the numbers from the BLS to figure out which states have the best opportunities for material handlers.
After all the numbers had been crunched, we were left with this list of the best of best for America’s material handlers:
So there you have it — Laborers And Freight, Stock, And Material Movers, Hand is the best of the best when it comes to being a material handler.
How did Laborers And Freight, Stock, And Material Movers, Hand end up here and does it really deserve this ranking? Read on to see how we completed our research on the best states for material handlers and for more on the top ten states.
If youĂÂre interested, you can read more about the job scene here:
- These Are The 100 Highest Paying Jobs In Indianapolis
- These Are The 100 Highest Paying Jobs In Indiana
- These Are The 100 Largest Companies In Indiana
How we determined the best states to be a material handler
Here at Zippia, we talk to a lot of people of all different backgrounds looking for jobs. Our research has concluded that there are two common things people want in a job:
- Availability of jobs
- Higher Pay
So in order to find out the best states for material handlers in America we needed to figure out where the jobs are and how well material handlers get paid. This led to the following criteria taken from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’s Occupational Employment Statistics for 2018:
- Location quotient. A measure of how common a job is a given state.
- Average annual salary.
- Average annual salary for entry level work.
- Average annual salary for experienced professionals.
To make all the salary numbers more apples to apples across states, we compared the salary data relative to the state’s cost of living.
Applying this standardization allows us to account for that fact that it costs more to live in certain in states. For example, the average salary for material handlers in California is $32,380 and the average salary in Illinois is $30,140, but the Illinois salary actually goes further in paying for life’s essentials.
In order to develop and overall ranking, we ranked each state for each criteria from 1 to 50 where 1 was the best.
We then averaged all the rankings for a state into a Job Score with the state having the lowest overall Job Score earning the distinction of being the best state for material handlers in America.
So without further ado, let’s get into just what made each state so great for material handlers.
1. Indiana
Total Jobs: 95,010
Average Annual Salary: $30,590
Average Entry Level Salary: $20,820
Average Experienced Salary: $43,280
Location Quotient: 1.56
2. Iowa
Total Jobs: 27,480
Average Annual Salary: $32,530
Average Entry Level Salary: $20,810
Average Experienced Salary: $47,100
Location Quotient: 0.89
3. Michigan
Total Jobs: 74,030
Average Annual Salary: $31,060
Average Entry Level Salary: $20,950
Average Experienced Salary: $43,460
Location Quotient: 0.86
4. Nebraska
Total Jobs: 16,230
Average Annual Salary: $32,500
Average Entry Level Salary: $22,040
Average Experienced Salary: $44,470
Location Quotient: 0.83
5. Missouri
Total Jobs: 46,990
Average Annual Salary: $31,360
Average Entry Level Salary: $20,680
Average Experienced Salary: $46,590
Location Quotient: 0.84
6. Wisconsin
Total Jobs: 54,750
Average Annual Salary: $33,360
Average Entry Level Salary: $21,950
Average Experienced Salary: $47,470
Location Quotient: 0.96
7. Kansas
Total Jobs: 21,090
Average Annual Salary: $31,800
Average Entry Level Salary: $21,300
Average Experienced Salary: $44,700
Location Quotient: 0.77
8. Washington
Total Jobs: 71,690
Average Annual Salary: $34,940
Average Entry Level Salary: $24,790
Average Experienced Salary: $49,270
Location Quotient: 1.1
9. Wyoming
Total Jobs: 2,750
Average Annual Salary: $35,990
Average Entry Level Salary: $22,590
Average Experienced Salary: $55,030
Location Quotient: 0.51
10. Kentucky
Total Jobs: 59,760
Average Annual Salary: $29,720
Average Entry Level Salary: $20,460
Average Experienced Salary: $42,140
Location Quotient: 1.58
There You Have It – The Best States To Be A Material Handler
If you’re looking to start out your career as a material handler these are the states that should be at the top of your list. You’ll find high pay, available jobs, and chances for career advancement.
If you’re curious, here are the worst states to be a material handler in America:
Detailed List Of The Best States For material handlers
| Rank | State | Average Salary |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Indiana | $30,590 |
| 2 | Iowa | $32,530 |
| 3 | Michigan | $31,060 |
| 4 | Nebraska | $32,500 |
| 5 | Missouri | $31,360 |
| 6 | Wisconsin | $33,360 |
| 7 | Kansas | $31,800 |
| 8 | Washington | $34,940 |
| 9 | Wyoming | $35,990 |
| 10 | Kentucky | $29,720 |
| 11 | Tennessee | $29,300 |
| 12 | Minnesota | $35,080 |
| 13 | Texas | $30,530 |
| 14 | North Dakota | $34,470 |
| 15 | Illinois | $30,140 |
| 16 | Arizona | $31,460 |
| 17 | Idaho | $31,080 |
| 18 | Ohio | $30,100 |
| 19 | Pennsylvania | $31,590 |
| 20 | Utah | $30,450 |
| 21 | Oklahoma | $29,320 |
| 22 | West Virginia | $29,470 |
| 23 | Georgia | $28,140 |
| 24 | Nevada | $31,550 |
| 25 | Arkansas | $26,770 |
| 26 | Mississippi | $25,500 |
| 27 | Alabama | $27,140 |
| 28 | South Carolina | $29,010 |
| 29 | North Carolina | $27,860 |
| 30 | Florida | $29,370 |
| 31 | Louisiana | $27,680 |
| 32 | Colorado | $32,010 |
| 33 | Alaska | $38,950 |
| 34 | Virginia | $29,370 |
| 35 | New Mexico | $29,260 |
| 36 | Montana | $30,430 |
| 37 | Rhode Island | $32,690 |
| 38 | New Jersey | $30,280 |
| 39 | Delaware | $28,560 |
| 40 | South Dakota | $28,080 |
| 41 | Oregon | $32,170 |
| 42 | California | $32,380 |
| 43 | Maryland | $32,630 |
| 44 | Connecticut | $32,600 |
| 45 | New York | $33,940 |
| 46 | Massachusetts | $34,020 |
| 47 | New Hampshire | $30,110 |
| 48 | Maine | $28,330 |
| 49 | Vermont | $30,440 |
| 50 | Hawaii | $37,210 |
Author
Chris Kolmar is a co-founder of Zippia and the editor-in-chief of the Zippia career advice blog. He has hired over 50 people in his career, been hired five times, and wants to help you land your next job. His research has been featured on the New York Times, Thrillist, VOX, The Atlantic, and a host of local news. More recently, he's been quoted on USA Today, BusinessInsider, and CNBC.
