How much does a meat packer make?

The average meat packer salary in the United States is $28,599. Meat packer salaries typically range between $23,000 and $35,000 yearly. The average hourly rate for meat packers is $13.75 per hour. Meat packer salary is impacted by location, education, and experience. Meat packers earn the highest average salary in Colorado.

Meat packer salary

Q: What state pays Meat Packers the most?

Colorado pays Meat Packers the most in the United States, with an average salary of $33,985 per year, or $16.34 per hour.

Q: How do I know if I'm being paid fairly as a meat packer?

You know if you are being paid fairly as a meat packer if your pay is close to the average pay for the state you live in. For example, if you live in New York you should be paid close to $33,775 per year.

Average meat packer salary

$13.75

$28,599 yearly

Entry-level meat packer salary

$23,000 yearly salary

Updated January 8, 2025

Understanding Meat Packer Salaries

The average meat packer salary is approximately $28,599 per year, translating to about $14 per hour. Salary rates can vary significantly depending on factors such as geographic location, years of experience, and the specific employer. For instance, meat packers in states with higher living costs often see increased wages.

Salary by State

In states like California and Texas, meat packers may command higher salaries due to demand and industry presence. Additionally, working in larger metropolitan areas tends to offer better compensation.

Career Opportunities

Aside from base salary, meat packers can explore various job opportunities, including positions in processing facilities, distribution centers, and quality control roles. Specializing in certain techniques or obtaining certifications can further enhance earning potential. For those looking to advance, understanding the industry’s requirements and networking within the sector can lead to higher-paying positions.

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Meat packer salary by:

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Where can a Meat Packer earn more?

Compare salary by location

53k

33k

13k

-7k

Columbus, OH$33,966

Gainesville, GA$23,026

Compare salary by company

55k

35k

15k

-5k

US Foods$35,589

Tecumseh Products$24,502

Meat packer salary estimates from across the web

Based on the latest salary information compiled by Zippia, Salary.com, Glassdoor and Comparably, the average salary for a meat packer typically falls between $28,599 and $40,571.

zippia

$28,599yearly

glassdoor[1]

$33,970yearly

comparably[2]

$40,571yearly

Salary.com[3]

$32,337yearly

Average meat packer salary by state

The highest-paying states for meat packers are Colorado, New York, and West Virginia. The lowest average meat packer salary states are Indiana, Kansas, and Oklahoma.

State view
County view

Average salary:

Highest paying states for meat packers

Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
1	Wisconsin	$31,504	$15.15
2	New York	$33,775	$16.24
3	Rhode Island	$29,456	$14.16
4	Michigan	$28,945	$13.92
5	Texas	$31,077	$14.94
6	New Mexico	$32,208	$15.48
7	Colorado	$33,985	$16.34
8	West Virginia	$33,412	$16.06
9	Pennsylvania	$27,771	$13.35
10	Montana	$29,753	$14.30
11	Arkansas	$31,375	$15.08
12	New Jersey	$28,800	$13.85
13	Ohio	$28,013	$13.47
14	Vermont	$29,484	$14.18
15	Massachusetts	$29,472	$14.17
16	Nevada	$27,875	$13.40
17	Connecticut	$29,090	$13.99
18	Minnesota	$28,509	$13.71
19	Kentucky	$26,851	$12.91
20	North Dakota	$27,645	$13.29
21	California	$29,375	$14.12
22	New Hampshire	$29,498	$14.18
23	South Dakota	$28,889	$13.89
24	Oregon	$29,914	$14.38
25	Tennessee	$25,443	$12.23
26	Maine	$27,338	$13.14
27	Alaska	$26,652	$12.81
28	Wyoming	$27,345	$13.15
29	Delaware	$26,520	$12.75
30	Idaho	$26,027	$12.51
31	Hawaii	$30,148	$14.49
32	Iowa	$24,476	$11.77
33	Utah	$26,568	$12.77
34	Maryland	$25,970	$12.49
35	Washington	$26,766	$12.87
36	Missouri	$25,295	$12.16
37	Arizona	$24,616	$11.83
38	South Carolina	$26,115	$12.56
39	Indiana	$23,849	$11.47
40	Nebraska	$25,506	$12.26
41	Alabama	$25,111	$12.07
42	North Carolina	$24,855	$11.95
43	Illinois	$24,602	$11.83
44	Florida	$24,494	$11.78
45	Kansas	$23,695	$11.39
46	Mississippi	$23,878	$11.48
47	Virginia	$23,374	$11.24
48	District of Columbia	$25,747	$12.38
49	Oklahoma	$23,482	$11.29
50	Georgia	$22,910	$11.01
51	Louisiana	$19,369	$9.31

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Highest paying cities for meat packers

The highest-paying cities for meat packers are Denver, CO, New York, NY, and Dallas, TX.

Rank	City	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
1	Denver, CO	$33,966	$16.33
2	New York, NY	$33,605	$16.16
3	Dallas, TX	$31,207	$15.00
4	Petaluma, CA	$30,389	$14.61
5	Beaverton, OR	$29,914	$14.38
6	Warwick, RI	$29,449	$14.16
7	Elizabeth, NJ	$28,961	$13.92
8	Detroit, MI	$28,895	$13.89
9	Saint Cloud, MN	$28,699	$13.80
10	Vancouver, WA	$27,041	$13.00
11	Memphis, TN	$25,445	$12.23
12	Charlotte, NC	$24,798	$11.92
13	Jacksonville, FL	$24,707	$11.88
14	Aurora, IL	$24,569	$11.81
15	Gainesville, GA	$23,026	$11.07

Meat packer salary details

A meat packer's salary ranges from $23,000 a year at the 10th percentile to $35,000 at the 90th percentile.

Average meat packer salary graph, trends, and summary

What is a meat packer's salary?

Percentile	Annual salary	Monthly salary	Hourly rate
90th Percentile	$35,000	$2,917	$17
75th Percentile	$31,000	$2,583	$15
Average	$28,599	$2,383	$14
25th Percentile	$25,000	$2,083	$12
10th Percentile	$23,000	$1,917	$11

Highest paying meat packer jobs

The highest paying types of meat packers are cold storage worker, packer/shipper, and meat wrapper.

Job title	Annual salary	Monthly salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
Packer/Shipper	$31,596	$2,633	$15.19	17,034
Assembler/Packer	$28,115	$2,343	$13.52	35,106
Meat Wrapper	$30,975	$2,581	$14.89	8,296
Packer	$30,118	$2,510	$14.48	19,418

Top companies hiring meat packers now:

Which companies pay meat packers the most?

Meat packer salaries at US Foods and Sysco are the highest-paying according to our most recent salary estimates. In addition, the average meat packer salary at companies like Vallarta Supermarkets and EFP are highly competitive.

Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate
1	US Foods	$35,589	$17.11
2	Sysco	$35,086	$16.87
3	Vallarta Supermarkets	$34,718	$16.69
4	EFP	$34,643	$16.66
5	Price Chopper Supermarkets-Market 32	$34,297	$16.49
6	P&S Surgical Hospital	$32,886	$15.81
7	Performance Food Group	$28,289	$13.60
8	ManpowerGroup	$28,137	$13.53
9	Pacific Choice Seafood	$28,078	$13.50
10	Randstad North America, Inc.	$27,429	$13.19
11	Aerotek	$26,764	$12.87
12	PeopleReady	$26,499	$12.74
13	Staff Management	$26,257	$12.62
14	Onin Staffing	$26,092	$12.54
15	HW Staffing Solutions	$25,937	$12.47
16	Peco Foods	$25,879	$12.44
17	Mar-Jac Poultry	$25,613	$12.31
18	Jetro Cash & Carry Enterprises Inc.	$25,210	$12.12
19	Perdue Farms	$24,986	$12.01
20	Tecumseh Products	$24,502	$11.78

Wage gap by gender, race and education

$30,000$29,400$28,800$28,200$27,600$27,000

MaleFemale

Meat Packer salary by industry

The average meat packer salary varies across industries:

The average meat packer salary in the finance industry is $38,130, the highest of any industry.
The average meat packer salary in the finance industry is $32,244.
Meat packers in the agriculture industry earn an average salary of $25,029, the lowest of any industry.

Highest paying industries for meat packers

Rank	Industry	Average salary	Hourly rate
1	Finance	$38,130	$18.33
2	Retail	$32,244	$15.50
3	Manufacturing	$32,034	$15.40
4	Agriculture	$25,029	$12.03

High paying meat packer jobs

Meat packer salary trends

The average meat packer salary has risen by $6,724 over the last ten years. In 2014, the average meat packer earned $21,875 annually, but today, they earn $28,599 a year. That works out to a 15% change in pay for meat packers over the last decade.

Compare meat packer salaries for cities or states with the national average over time.

Average meat packer salary over time

Compare meat packer salaries for individual cities or states with the national average.

Meat packer salary by year

Year	Avg. salary	Hourly rate	% Change
2025	$28,600	$13.75	+4.8%
2024	$27,200	$13.09	+3.3%
2023	$26,300	$12.65	+2.6%
2022	$25,600	$12.33	+3.4%
2021	$24,800	$11.91	+3.5%

Recently added meat packer salaries

Company	Job	Location	Date added	Salary
Price Chopper	Meat Teammate	Essex Junction, VT	06/28/2025	$34,957
Seattle Fish	Warehouse Meat Packer (DAY Shift)	Denver, CO	06/23/2025	$50,923
Foster Farms	Breast Meat Packaging/Packer-Swing Shift	Kelso, WA	06/01/2025	$39,653
Core Mark	Meat Packer	Morristown, TN	05/23/2025	$33,392
Performance Food Group	Meat Packer	Morristown, TN	05/23/2025	$33,392
Foster Farms	Breast Meat Packaging/Packer-Swing Shift	Kelso, WA	05/23/2025	$39,653
Economy Wholesale Grocers	Meat Packer	El Paso, TX	05/09/2025	$26,129
Market 32	Meat Teammate	Plattsburgh, NY	05/06/2025	$32,870
Market 32	Meat Teammate	Colchester, VT	05/06/2025	$32,870
Shamrock Foods	Packer Wrapper-Meat Plant	Phoenix, AZ	04/27/2025	$37,566

Meat packer salary FAQs

What state pays Meat Packers the most?

How do I know if I'm being paid fairly as a meat packer?

Have more questions? See all answers to common production and manufacturing questions.

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Updated January 8, 2025

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