Ranch hand vs field hand

The differences between ranch hands and field hands can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a field hand has an average salary of $29,401, which is higher than the $27,569 average annual salary of a ranch hand.

The top three skills for a ranch hand include harvest, farm work and farm machinery. The most important skills for a field hand are frac tanks, oilfield equipment, and manual labor.

Ranch hand vs field hand overview

	Ranch Hand	Field Hand
Yearly salary	$27,569	$29,401
Hourly rate	$13.25	$14.14
Growth rate	1%	1%
Number of jobs	4,309	48,899
Job satisfaction	1	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 38%	High School Diploma, 41%
Average age	40	40
Years of experience	-	-

Ranch hand vs field hand salary

Ranch hands and field hands have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Ranch Hand	Field Hand
Average salary	$27,569	$29,401
Salary range	Between $21,000 And $34,000	Between $24,000 And $35,000
Highest paying City	Petersburg, ND	-
Highest paying state	North Dakota	-
Best paying company	Williams International	-
Best paying industry	Health Care	-

Differences between ranch hand and field hand education

There are a few differences between a ranch hand and a field hand in terms of educational background:

	Ranch Hand	Field Hand
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 38%	High School Diploma, 41%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Ranch hand vs field hand demographics

Here are the differences between ranch hands' and field hands' demographics:

	Ranch Hand	Field Hand
Average age	40	40
Gender ratio	Male, 78.3% Female, 21.7%	Male, 88.9% Female, 11.1%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 4.2% Unknown, 3.1% Hispanic or Latino, 26.8% Asian, 1.8% White, 62.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2%	Black or African American, 4.9% Unknown, 3.1% Hispanic or Latino, 29.1% Asian, 1.9% White, 59.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2%
LGBT Percentage	3%	3%

Differences between ranch hand and field hand duties and responsibilities

Ranch hand example responsibilities.

Manage habitat, predators, whitetail and several species of exotic animals.
Assist with lessons and summer camps which include helping riders groom, tack up and mount.
Relocate wheel line sprinklers used to irrigate crops.
Halter training fillies and colts, handling mares, studs and foals
Operate a backhoe to dig dirt and move large oil field equipment.
Clean livestock stalls and sheds using disinfectant solutions, brushes, and shovels.

Field hand example responsibilities.

Certify in running man lifts as well as H2S full mask fresh air.
Operate heavy equipment with CDL certification.
Groom, clip, trim, and/or castrate animals; dock ears and tails; and/or shear coats to collect hair.

Ranch hand vs field hand skills

Common ranch hand skills

Harvest, 15%
Farm Work, 12%
Farm Machinery, 9%
Physical Characteristics, 7%
Cattle Ranch, 6%
Farm Animals, 4%

Common field hand skills

Frac Tanks, 12%
Oilfield Equipment, 7%
Manual Labor, 7%
Routine Maintenance, 6%
Shop Hand, 5%
Mowing, 4%