Oil rig roughneck vs rig hand

The differences between oil rig roughnecks and rig hands can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, an oil rig roughneck has an average salary of $40,338, which is higher than the $33,851 average annual salary of a rig hand.

The top three skills for an oil rig roughneck include rig, tongs and . The most important skills for a rig hand are tongs, CDL, and H2S.

Oil rig roughneck vs rig hand overview

	Oil Rig Roughneck	Rig Hand
Yearly salary	$40,338	$33,851
Hourly rate	$19.39	$16.27
Growth rate	-	1%
Number of jobs	1,906	4,329
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 61%	High School Diploma, 60%
Average age	40	40
Years of experience	-	-

Oil rig roughneck vs rig hand salary

Oil rig roughnecks and rig hands have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Oil Rig Roughneck	Rig Hand
Average salary	$40,338	$33,851
Salary range	Between $26,000 And $60,000	Between $26,000 And $42,000
Highest paying City	-	-
Highest paying state	-	-
Best paying company	-	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between oil rig roughneck and rig hand education

There are a few differences between an oil rig roughneck and a rig hand in terms of educational background:

	Oil Rig Roughneck	Rig Hand
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 61%	High School Diploma, 60%
Most common major	Precision Metal Working	General Studies
Most common college	-	-

Oil rig roughneck vs rig hand demographics

Here are the differences between oil rig roughnecks' and rig hands' demographics:

	Oil Rig Roughneck	Rig Hand
Average age	40	40
Gender ratio	Male, 95.0% Female, 5.0%	Male, 96.7% Female, 3.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 19.4% Asian, 1.2% White, 63.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.2%	Black or African American, 7.3% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 20.0% Asian, 1.2% White, 65.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.3%
LGBT Percentage	2%	2%

Differences between oil rig roughneck and rig hand duties and responsibilities

Oil rig roughneck example responsibilities.

Operate heavy equipment with CDL certification.
Clamp holding fixtures on ends of hoisting cables.

Rig hand example responsibilities.

Manage and perform rig operations, repair large mud pump motors, hoppers, shakers, generators, valves and agitators.
Complete OSHA 10 and H2S certifications.
Maintain current OSHA and CDL license.
Wear proper personal protective equipment (PPE).
Operate a methane work over rig and run a crew .... CDL
Help guide objects while elevate in air by crane inspect tools, equipment and PPE before using.

Oil rig roughneck vs rig hand skills

Common oil rig roughneck skills

Rig, 90%
Tongs, 10%

Common rig hand skills

Tongs, 20%
CDL, 16%
H2S, 11%
CPR, 7%
Flow Lines, 6%
PPE, 4%

Oil Rig Roughneck vs. similar jobs

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Updated January 8, 2025

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