Auto painter vs vehicle painter

The differences between auto painters and vehicle painters can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both an auto painter and a vehicle painter. Additionally, an auto painter has an average salary of $41,337, which is higher than the $37,714 average annual salary of a vehicle painter.

The top three skills for an auto painter include coats, mask and auto body painting. The most important skills for a vehicle painter are mask, , and .

Auto painter vs vehicle painter overview

	Auto Painter	Vehicle Painter
Yearly salary	$41,337	$37,714
Hourly rate	$19.87	$18.13
Growth rate	2%	2%
Number of jobs	8,709	5,454
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 57%	Bachelor's Degree, 38%
Average age	42	42
Years of experience	4	4

Auto painter vs vehicle painter salary

Auto painters and vehicle painters have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Auto Painter	Vehicle Painter
Average salary	$41,337	$37,714
Salary range	Between $31,000 And $54,000	Between $25,000 And $56,000
Highest paying City	-	-
Highest paying state	-	-
Best paying company	-	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between auto painter and vehicle painter education

There are a few differences between an auto painter and a vehicle painter in terms of educational background:

	Auto Painter	Vehicle Painter
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 57%	Bachelor's Degree, 38%
Most common major	Automotive Technology	Automotive Technology
Most common college	-	-

Auto painter vs vehicle painter demographics

Here are the differences between auto painters' and vehicle painters' demographics:

	Auto Painter	Vehicle Painter
Average age	42	42
Gender ratio	Male, 95.8% Female, 4.2%	Male, 91.7% Female, 8.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 12.2% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 22.1% Asian, 3.4% White, 57.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%	Black or African American, 9.1% Unknown, 3.6% Hispanic or Latino, 23.4% Asian, 2.4% White, 61.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage	4%	4%

Differences between auto painter and vehicle painter duties and responsibilities

Auto painter example responsibilities.

Paint and/or refinish repair areas on vehicle to achieve a better than factory finish.
Paint steam and water treatment piping using scaffolding, safety harnesses, and follow refinery safety protocols
Operate strriping machines, sandblasters and spray equipment.
Entrust to paint luxury cars, including Ferrari, BMW, and Maserati.

Vehicle painter example responsibilities.

Prepared/Paint LPG tanks prepared/paint heater treaters prepared/paint oil-filled holding tanks prepared/paint separators
Operate compressors, sandblasters and spray equipment.

Auto painter vs vehicle painter skills

Common auto painter skills

Coats, 33%
Mask, 14%
Auto Body Painting, 9%
Customer Service, 8%
Painting Process, 5%
Stencils, 5%

Common vehicle painter skills

Mask, 100%

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Updated January 8, 2025

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