Tool technician vs machinist apprentice

The differences between tool technicians and machinist apprentices can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a tool technician, becoming a machinist apprentice takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a tool technician has an average salary of $42,908, which is higher than the $37,681 average annual salary of a machinist apprentice.

The top three skills for a tool technician include grinders, hand tools and CNC. The most important skills for a machinist apprentice are cnc lathes, grinders, and hand tools.

Tool technician vs machinist apprentice overview

	Tool Technician	Machinist Apprentice
Yearly salary	$42,908	$37,681
Hourly rate	$20.63	$18.12
Growth rate	1%	1%
Number of jobs	78,258	21,288
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 33%	High School Diploma, 39%
Average age	54	48
Years of experience	6	4

Tool technician vs machinist apprentice salary

Tool technicians and machinist apprentices have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Tool Technician	Machinist Apprentice
Average salary	$42,908	$37,681
Salary range	Between $29,000 And $61,000	Between $30,000 And $46,000
Highest paying City	Fort Wayne, IN	-
Highest paying state	Indiana	-
Best paying company	Rivian	-
Best paying industry	Energy	-

Differences between tool technician and machinist apprentice education

There are a few differences between a tool technician and a machinist apprentice in terms of educational background:

	Tool Technician	Machinist Apprentice
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 33%	High School Diploma, 39%
Most common major	Business	Precision Metal Working
Most common college	-	-

Tool technician vs machinist apprentice demographics

Here are the differences between tool technicians' and machinist apprentices' demographics:

	Tool Technician	Machinist Apprentice
Average age	54	48
Gender ratio	Male, 92.0% Female, 8.0%	Male, 94.9% Female, 5.1%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 2.4% Unknown, 2.8% Hispanic or Latino, 6.5% Asian, 2.7% White, 84.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%	Black or African American, 3.9% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.4% Asian, 6.3% White, 71.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	3%	3%

Differences between tool technician and machinist apprentice duties and responsibilities

Tool technician example responsibilities.

Use specialize tools and machinery (CNC milling machine, manual lathe, manual milling machine and surface grinders . )
Program and operate wire EDM machine, milling machines, drill presses, surface grinders, lathes and jig grinders.
Perform mig, tig, and stick welds.
Skil welder utilizing TIG, MIG and stick welding processes.
Work on and troubleshoot the press machinery using calipers, micrometers and other precision tools.
Learned to use a TIG welder . )

Machinist apprentice example responsibilities.

Design and construct intricate EDM electrodes.
Set up and operate Mazak machining centers.
Work with manual lathe, mill and EDM to repair parts for production.
Set up and operate CNC and manual machining equipment for high precision aerospace components.
Develop various forms and procedures to assure the machine shop are operating effectively and maintaining ISO certification.
Use blueprints to create molds using stick and tig welders.

Tool technician vs machinist apprentice skills

Common tool technician skills

Grinders, 11%
Hand Tools, 10%
CNC, 9%
Calipers, 7%
Micrometers, 6%
Jigs, 6%

Common machinist apprentice skills

CNC Lathes, 23%
Grinders, 10%
Hand Tools, 7%
Calipers, 7%
Math, 5%
Drill Press, 4%