Research Summary. After extensive research by the Zippia data science team, we identified these details of heavy equipment operator salary by state for the United States:
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New Jersey has the highest heavy equipment operator salary of $65,211
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Arkansas has the lowest heavy equipment operator salary of $25,958
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The national average salary for heavy equipment operators is $39,822
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The national hourly pay for heavy equipment operators is $19.15
You can read more on the specific methodology.
Background
Without fail, in surveys across basically every demographic, the number one most important aspect of a job for most people is the salary — how much do heavy equipment operators get paid where I live?
And while there are many things to go into how much you, specifically, can expect to make, there’s really good data for average salaries for heavy equipment operator by state across America broken down by seniority level. So while your city may be slightly different than the state average, these averages give you a rough sense of what to expect for your salary.
The state with the best salary for heavy equipment operators after this adjustment? That would be New Jersey.
Here’s a quick snapshot of the top ten states for heavy equipment operator salaries:
Let’s take a look at how we got here and a full ranking of all the states.
Highest-Paid Heavy Equipment Operators By State
| Rank | State | Average Heavy Equipment Operator Salary | 10th Percentile | 90th Percentile |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New Jersey | $65,211 | $43,000 | $96,000 |
| 2 | Washington | $58,830 | $41,000 | $82,000 |
| 3 | California | $57,498 | $39,000 | $84,000 |
| 4 | New Hampshire | $57,250 | $40,000 | $80,000 |
| 5 | Alaska | $56,247 | $46,000 | $67,000 |
| 6 | Massachusetts | $54,329 | $38,000 | $77,000 |
| 7 | Illinois | $52,233 | $36,000 | $75,000 |
| 8 | North Dakota | $51,288 | $37,000 | $70,000 |
| 9 | New York | $51,047 | $34,000 | $75,000 |
| 10 | Oregon | $50,964 | $35,000 | $72,000 |
| 11 | Minnesota | $50,104 | $35,000 | $70,000 |
| 12 | Wisconsin | $49,958 | $34,000 | $71,000 |
| 13 | Vermont | $49,342 | $35,000 | $68,000 |
| 14 | Nevada | $48,561 | $33,000 | $70,000 |
| 15 | Mississippi | $46,520 | $32,000 | $66,000 |
| 16 | Pennsylvania | $46,137 | $30,000 | $69,000 |
| 17 | Montana | $45,922 | $33,000 | $63,000 |
| 18 | Idaho | $45,143 | $31,000 | $63,000 |
| 19 | Connecticut | $44,984 | $30,000 | $65,000 |
| 20 | Wyoming | $44,821 | $32,000 | $62,000 |
| 21 | Colorado | $43,289 | $30,000 | $61,000 |
| 22 | Indiana | $42,319 | $29,000 | $61,000 |
| 23 | Ohio | $42,093 | $28,000 | $62,000 |
| 24 | Delaware | $42,060 | $28,000 | $63,000 |
| 25 | Utah | $41,165 | $29,000 | $58,000 |
| 26 | Maryland | $40,748 | $27,000 | $61,000 |
| 27 | Virginia | $40,694 | $27,000 | $60,000 |
| 28 | South Dakota | $40,681 | $29,000 | $57,000 |
| 29 | Hawaii | $40,650 | $34,000 | $47,000 |
| 30 | Rhode Island | $39,917 | $27,000 | $57,000 |
| 31 | Nebraska | $39,893 | $28,000 | $56,000 |
| 32 | Michigan | $39,531 | $27,000 | $57,000 |
| 33 | Arizona | $39,291 | $27,000 | $56,000 |
| 34 | Missouri | $39,218 | $27,000 | $55,000 |
| 35 | Iowa | $38,681 | $27,000 | $55,000 |
| 36 | Kansas | $36,970 | $25,000 | $52,000 |
| 37 | West Virginia | $36,871 | $24,000 | $54,000 |
| 38 | New Mexico | $36,342 | $25,000 | $52,000 |
| 39 | Kentucky | $35,209 | $24,000 | $50,000 |
| 40 | Texas | $34,692 | $23,000 | $50,000 |
| 41 | Oklahoma | $34,314 | $23,000 | $49,000 |
| 42 | Tennessee | $34,130 | $23,000 | $48,000 |
| 43 | North Carolina | $33,252 | $23,000 | $47,000 |
| 44 | Louisiana | $32,707 | $22,000 | $47,000 |
| 45 | Florida | $31,569 | $22,000 | $44,000 |
| 46 | Maine | $31,345 | $23,000 | $42,000 |
| 47 | South Carolina | $30,687 | $21,000 | $43,000 |
| 48 | Georgia | $30,208 | $21,000 | $42,000 |
| 49 | Alabama | $30,154 | $21,000 | $42,000 |
| 50 | Arkansas | $25,958 | $18,000 | $37,000 |
Methodology: Heavy Equipment Operator Salary By State
To better understand heavy equipment operator pay by state, Zippia has aggregated data across a multitude of channels including the BLS, FLC, and OPM. We then supplement that data with actual listed salaries from job posts. Finally, the data science team calculates a weighted average of these inputs to create an average pay for heavy equipment operators by state.
We took the average annual salary data for heavy equipment operators from these estimates and ranked every state on this criteria with the state with the highest salary ranking as highest average salary for heavy equipment operators.
Heavy Equipment Operator Salary By State FAQs
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What is the highest-paid state for heavy equipment operators?
The highest-paid state for heavy equipment operators is New Jersey with an average salary of $65,211 per year.
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What city pays heavy equipment operators the most?
Trenton, NJ pays heavy equipment operators the most with an average salary of $65,145 per year.
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What is the worst state for heavy equipment operators?
The worst state for heavy equipment operators is Arkansas with an average salary of $25,958 per year.
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.
