Automotive painter vs auto body painter

The differences between automotive painters and auto body 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 automotive painter and an auto body painter. Additionally, an automotive painter has an average salary of $40,894, which is higher than the $36,508 average annual salary of an auto body painter.

The top three skills for an automotive painter include spray guns, OEM and coats. The most important skills for an auto body painter are mask, spray guns, and paint guns.

Automotive painter vs auto body painter overview

	Automotive Painter	Auto Body Painter
Yearly salary	$40,894	$36,508
Hourly rate	$19.66	$17.55
Growth rate	2%	2%
Number of jobs	36,719	11,600
Job satisfaction	-	4
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 47%	High School Diploma, 57%
Average age	42	42
Years of experience	4	4

Automotive painter vs auto body painter salary

Automotive painters and auto body painters have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Automotive Painter	Auto Body Painter
Average salary	$40,894	$36,508
Salary range	Between $31,000 And $53,000	Between $26,000 And $50,000
Highest paying City	-	Lodi, NJ
Highest paying state	-	Vermont
Best paying company	-	GILLIG
Best paying industry	-	Transportation

Differences between automotive painter and auto body painter education

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

	Automotive Painter	Auto Body Painter
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 47%	High School Diploma, 57%
Most common major	Automotive Technology	Automotive Technology
Most common college	-	-

Automotive painter vs auto body painter demographics

Here are the differences between automotive painters' and auto body painters' demographics:

	Automotive Painter	Auto Body Painter
Average age	42	42
Gender ratio	Male, 95.0% Female, 5.0%	Male, 95.6% Female, 4.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 12.5% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 21.3% Asian, 3.3% White, 58.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 10.7% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 21.4% Asian, 3.4% White, 60.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	4%	4%

Differences between automotive painter and auto body painter duties and responsibilities

Automotive painter example responsibilities.

Paint and/or refinish repair areas on vehicle to achieve a better than factory finish.
Set up ladders, and scaffolding according to regulation.
Use of relate PPE and knowledge of hazardous waste disposal procedures.
Set up portable equipment, such as ventilators, exhaust units, ladders, or scaffolding.
Sand vehicle surfaces between coats of paint or primer to remove flaws and enhance adhesion for subsequent coats.
Work with PPG waterborne paint and primers.

Auto body painter example responsibilities.

Paint and/or refinish repair areas on vehicle to achieve a better than factory finish.
Apply base coats and clear coats Mig weld frames, body panels, etc.
Certify body repair, painting, refinishing, MIG welding, steel welding, brazing, and soldering.
Paint cars using solvents and water base coats.
Prep cars for paint jobs which include mask tape and wet sand.
Sand bodies of construction equipment as required for application of primer and paint.

Automotive painter vs auto body painter skills

Common automotive painter skills

Spray Guns, 18%
OEM, 13%
Coats, 10%
Hazardous Waste, 9%
Stencils, 8%
Customer Satisfaction, 6%

Common auto body painter skills

Mask, 66%
Spray Guns, 31%
Paint Guns, 1%
Coats, 0%
Painting Process, 0%
Hazardous Waste, 0%