Directional driller vs rotary operator

The differences between directional drillers and rotary operators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a directional driller and a rotary operator. Additionally, a directional driller has an average salary of $54,153, which is higher than the $35,754 average annual salary of a rotary operator.

The top three skills for a directional driller include CDL, safety procedures and safety standards. The most important skills for a rotary operator are customer specifications, RAN, and computer system.

Directional driller vs rotary operator overview

	Directional Driller	Rotary Operator
Yearly salary	$54,153	$35,754
Hourly rate	$26.04	$17.19
Growth rate	-	7%
Number of jobs	911	29,864
Job satisfaction	5	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 44%	High School Diploma, 54%
Average age	40	40
Years of experience	4	4

Directional driller vs rotary operator salary

Directional drillers and rotary operators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Directional Driller	Rotary Operator
Average salary	$54,153	$35,754
Salary range	Between $35,000 And $83,000	Between $26,000 And $47,000
Highest paying City	-	-
Highest paying state	-	-
Best paying company	-	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between directional driller and rotary operator education

There are a few differences between a directional driller and a rotary operator in terms of educational background:

	Directional Driller	Rotary Operator
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 44%	High School Diploma, 54%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Directional driller vs rotary operator demographics

Here are the differences between directional drillers' and rotary operators' demographics:

	Directional Driller	Rotary Operator
Average age	40	40
Gender ratio	Male, 97.5% Female, 2.5%	Male, 87.1% Female, 12.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.7% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 19.2% Asian, 1.2% White, 63.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.2%	Black or African American, 9.4% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 17.7% Asian, 1.2% White, 65.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.2%
LGBT Percentage	2%	2%

Differences between directional driller and rotary operator duties and responsibilities

Directional driller example responsibilities.

Perform data analysis and provide recommendations to achieve improve performance and accelerate commercialization of Pathmaker (RSS).
Adhere to all safety policies.
Train rig hands in safe operating procedures, maintenance, and repairs for rig and associate equipment.
use of torches such as oxygen and acetylene, propane, map gas, and butane torches.
Make and check the daily safety sheets given to all employees and conduct JSA meetings before every task.
Administer company, government, OSHA and IADC guidelines and regulation to ensure a safe and productive work environment.

Rotary operator example responsibilities.

Use automate systems and RF units to pull, put away and load customer product, in addition to managing inventory
Set up press and run jobs.
work on shipping dock & warehouse run oven in rotary mix all ingedents for making of dog food & treats
Perform specialized production line and quality control duties in a professional production environment specializing in plastic extrusion.
Manufacture ammunition from components using a power loading machine.

Directional driller vs rotary operator skills

Common directional driller skills

CDL, 40%
Safety Procedures, 13%
Safety Standards, 7%
Directional Drill, 7%
Shovels, 5%
HSE, 3%

Common rotary operator skills

Customer Specifications, 70%
RAN, 18%
Computer System, 12%

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Updated January 8, 2025

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