What is an Auto Garage Mechanic?
There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being an auto garage mechanic. For example, did you know that they make an average of $20.37 an hour? That's $42,369 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow -1% and produce -6,400 job opportunities across the U.S.
What Does an Auto Garage Mechanic Do
There are certain skills that many auto garage mechanics have in order to accomplish their responsibilities. By taking a look through resumes, we were able to narrow down the most common skills for a person in this position. We discovered that a lot of resumes listed detail oriented, mechanical skills and organizational skills.
How To Become an Auto Garage Mechanic
If you're interested in becoming an auto garage mechanic, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We've determined that 9.6% of auto garage mechanics have a bachelor's degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 0.0% of auto garage mechanics have master's degrees. Even though some auto garage mechanics have a college degree, it's possible to become one with only a high school degree or GED.
Auto Garage Mechanic Career Paths
As you move along in your career, you may start taking on more responsibilities or notice that you've taken on a leadership role. Using our career map, an auto garage mechanic can determine their career goals through the career progression. For example, they could start out with a role such as mechanic, progress to a title such as maintenance technician and then eventually end up with the title maintenance supervisor.
Average Salary for an Auto Garage Mechanic
What Am I Worth?
Roles and Types of Auto Garage Mechanic
There are several types of auto garage mechanic, including:
Technician
Role:
Your workload as a technician will vary, depending on what you're trained in. You may be needed to set up a new computer system or maybe you'll need to fix an electricity problem. Either way, you'll probably only need to work 40 hours a week.
The degree of education required for this job depends on what you're specific skillset is. Some technicians only need a high school diploma, others may want to complete an associate's program or earn a certificate to help their employment opportunities. There's definitely something for everyone in the field of technicians.
- Average Salary: $38,045
- Degree: Bachelor's Degree
Mechanic
Role:
Mechanics get down and dirty when it comes to repairing, inspecting and maintaining cars. While they generally work in well-ventilated repair shops, they usually come home with at least a little grease on their hands.
They don't just let anybody become a mechanic (we're looking at you, dad). Most mechanics complete a program at a postsecondary institution and become industry certified before they're qualified to work on your car. That way you know your car is literally in good hands.
- Average Salary: $47,149
- Degree: High School Diploma
Automotive Technician
Role:
They work in repair shops, gas stations, garages, or service areas of automobile dealerships and repair cars, fix engines, and tune trucks. They figure out what is smoking under the hood, where the squeaking noise is coming from, or what is making the tires wobbly. They replace broken tail lights, tighten loose wheel bolts, adjust brakes, or hammer out dents. They do a number of other things as well, with components most of us are not even aware exist.
Automotive technicians are not afraid of getting their hands dirty or sliding in under partially elevated cars, and they typically do not learn their profession from books. They tend to love their job and make $40,150 per year on average.
- Average Salary: $40,910
- Degree: Associate Degree
States With The Most Auto Garage Mechanic Jobs
Mouse over a state to see the number of active auto garage mechanic jobs in each state. The darker areas on the map show where auto garage mechanics earn the highest salaries across all 50 states.
Number Of Auto Garage Mechanic Jobs By State
| Rank | State | Number of Jobs | Average Salary |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Texas | 1,612 | $36,159 |
| 2 | California | 1,438 | $39,788 |
| 3 | Florida | 1,261 | $29,825 |
| 4 | Pennsylvania | 1,030 | $23,366 |
| 5 | Ohio | 926 | $25,265 |
| 6 | North Carolina | 857 | $22,408 |
| 7 | New York | 809 | $22,947 |
| 8 | Georgia | 794 | $30,550 |
| 9 | Illinois | 695 | $24,363 |
| 10 | Indiana | 656 | $27,658 |
| 11 | Tennessee | 617 | $25,167 |
| 12 | Virginia | 616 | $26,122 |
| 13 | Minnesota | 575 | $22,058 |
| 14 | Maryland | 541 | $26,696 |
| 15 | Arizona | 517 | $33,436 |
| 16 | Michigan | 512 | $23,808 |
| 17 | Iowa | 506 | $28,748 |
| 18 | Washington | 494 | $25,108 |
| 19 | New Jersey | 490 | $27,477 |
| 20 | South Carolina | 449 | $22,032 |
| 21 | Missouri | 433 | $22,237 |
| 22 | Colorado | 418 | $26,872 |
| 23 | Kentucky | 403 | $19,778 |
| 24 | Alabama | 395 | $25,715 |
| 25 | Massachusetts | 382 | $23,916 |
| 26 | Wisconsin | 372 | $24,081 |
| 27 | Louisiana | 360 | $22,772 |
| 28 | Oregon | 305 | $25,480 |
| 29 | Oklahoma | 289 | $27,414 |
| 30 | Utah | 277 | $22,965 |
| 31 | Mississippi | 248 | $24,108 |
| 32 | Kansas | 218 | $24,554 |
| 33 | Nevada | 204 | $32,779 |
| 34 | Nebraska | 198 | $24,849 |
| 35 | Arkansas | 180 | $24,078 |
| 36 | New Mexico | 176 | $23,109 |
| 37 | Connecticut | 173 | $26,975 |
| 38 | Idaho | 159 | $24,989 |
| 39 | Montana | 140 | $23,095 |
| 40 | Delaware | 110 | $25,618 |
| 41 | West Virginia | 106 | $20,943 |
| 42 | North Dakota | 103 | $25,712 |
| 43 | South Dakota | 91 | $23,175 |
| 44 | Maine | 88 | $26,494 |
| 45 | Alaska | 86 | $28,472 |
| 46 | New Hampshire | 75 | $28,119 |
| 47 | Vermont | 67 | $24,094 |
| 48 | Wyoming | 66 | $25,549 |
| 49 | Rhode Island | 66 | $25,596 |
| 50 | Hawaii | 60 | $26,830 |
Top Skills For an Auto Garage Mechanic
The skills section on your resume can be almost as important as the experience section, so you want it to be an accurate portrayal of what you can do. Luckily, we've found all of the skills you'll need so even if you don't have these skills yet, you know what you need to work on. Out of all the resumes we looked through, 34.5% of auto garage mechanics listed cdl on their resume, but soft skills such as detail oriented and mechanical skills are important as well.
Choose From 10+ Customizable Auto Garage Mechanic Resume templates
Zippia allows you to choose from different easy-to-use Auto Garage Mechanic templates, and provides you with expert advice. Using the templates, you can rest assured that the structure and format of your Auto Garage Mechanic resume is top notch. Choose a template with the colors, fonts & text sizes that are appropriate for your industry.
Auto Garage Mechanic Demographics
Auto Garage Mechanic Gender Distribution
After extensive research and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:
- Among auto garage mechanics, 2.5% of them are women, while 97.5% are men.
- The most common race/ethnicity among auto garage mechanics is White, which makes up 62.1% of all auto garage mechanics.
- The most common foreign language among auto garage mechanics is Amharic at 25.0%.
Online Courses For Auto Garage Mechanic That You May Like
1. Electric Vehicles and Mobility
The purpose of Electric Vehicles and Mobility is to help you, whatever your profile, your training or your country, find your own answers to questions such as: - Will electric vehicles be the last to be allowed in megalopolises in the 21st century? - Does the environmental gain from vehicle electrification justify heavy investment in charging infrastructure? - Are electric vehicles only for wealthy people in developed countries? This course will allow you to acquire elements from engineering...
See More on Coursera2. Electric Vehicle Battery Management System - Advanced Course
ADVANCED ELECTRIC VEHICLE BATTERY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM DESIGN EV LITHIUM ION BMS SELECTION COMPONT SIZING JOB...
See More on Udemy3. Electric Vehicle Education
Vehicle Types, Nomenclature, How They Work, Charging, Performance, Cost of Ownership, Features, Benefits, And More...
See More on UdemyBest States For an Auto Garage Mechanic
Some places are better than others when it comes to starting a career as an auto garage mechanic. The best states for people in this position are California, Texas, Arizona, and Nevada. Auto garage mechanics make the most in California with an average salary of $39,788. Whereas in Texas and Arizona, they would average $36,159 and $33,436, respectively. While auto garage mechanics would only make an average of $32,779 in Nevada, you would still make more there than in the rest of the country. We determined these as the best states based on job availability and pay. By finding the median salary, cost of living, and using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Location Quotient, we narrowed down our list of states to these four.
1. Nevada
$32,779
Avg. Salary
2. Iowa
$28,748
Avg. Salary
3. Arizona
$33,436
Avg. Salary
How Do Auto Garage Mechanic Rate Their Jobs?
Top Auto Garage Mechanic Employers
Most Common Employers For Auto Garage Mechanic
| Rank | Company | Average Salary | Hourly Rate | Job Openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The United Illuminating Company | $94,219 | $45.30 | 1 |
| 2 | Alliant Energy | $88,387 | $42.49 | 1 |
| 3 | Xcel Energy | $67,359 | $32.38 | 4 |
| 4 | CSC Holdings LLC | $55,467 | $26.67 | 1 |
| 5 | Kaiser Aluminum | $53,835 | $25.88 | 1 |
| 6 | Cleveland Metropolitan School District | $46,510 | $22.36 | 2 |
| 7 | International Paper | $45,841 | $22.04 | 1 |
| 8 | Overhead Door | $43,667 | $20.99 | 2 |
| 9 | Kroger | $41,963 | $20.17 | 8 |
| 10 | The Coca-Cola Company | $38,341 | $18.43 | 1 |