Riggers Salary: $88,822 Median Pay (2026 stats)
TL;DR
About 24,190 riggers nationally earn a mean of $88,822. Employment in the series shown rose about 61% from the first to the last year; projections imply about 10.4% annual growth.
Key Statistics
Riggers: what the data shows
Common questions about riggers careers, answered from BLS OEWS and O*NET in this repository.
What is a riggers?
Riggers is tracked by the Bureau of Labor Statistics under SOC 49-9096.
U.S. employment in our OEWS extract is about 24,190 workers.
What does a riggers do?
O*NET work activities rated highest for this occupation include Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials, Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates, Handling and Moving Objects, Performing General Physical Activities, Getting Information, Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events, and related tasks. See Work Activities for the full list.
How much does a riggers make?
BLS national median annual wage: $62,060 (May 2024 in our extract).
Mean annual wage in our occupational extract: $88,822 — higher than the median, which often reflects top earners in the distribution.
Wage percentiles below are from the California OEWS extract (not national unless noted).
| Wage percentile | Annual wage |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $50,455 |
| 25th percentile | $73,643 |
| Median (50th) | $85,566 |
| 75th percentile | $104,586 |
| 90th percentile | $130,527 |
What education do you need?
For Riggers, O*NET incumbent surveys in our extract most often report: Some college (29%), High School or Equivalent (27%), Bachelors Degree (22%).
These are education levels of current workers, not minimum legal requirements.
What skills do you need?
O*NET ratings for this occupation emphasize skills such as Operation and Control, Active Listening, Monitoring, Reading Comprehension, Operations Monitoring, Critical Thinking, and knowledge areas including Mechanical, Public Safety and Security, Production and Processing, Customer and Personal Service. See Education & Skills for detail.
Is riggers in demand?
Historical employment trend in our series implies about 10.4% annual growth (compound rate in the extract).
Five-year projected employment change: 63.9%.
Ten-year projected employment change: 168.5%.
Current U.S. headcount: 24,190.
We report federal series only—compare wages, growth, and openings against your target market.
Where do riggerss work?
Top industries by employment share in our OEWS industry extract:
| Industry | Employment | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Cross-industry | 24,190 | 20.2% |
| Cross-industry, Private Ownership only | 22,350 | 18.6% |
| Construction | 7,130 | 5.9% |
| Specialty Trade Contractors | 5,850 | 4.9% |
| Manufacturing | 3,840 | 3.2% |
| Building Equipment Contractors | 3,170 | 2.6% |
See Industry for charts.
What degrees lead to this career?
Common majors for Riggers in O*NET:
See Related degrees.
Employment
Employment and salary information for the Riggers workforce.
Employment Over Time
24,190 Workforce in 2023
The Riggers workforce has been growing over time.
Historical employment trends for Riggers.
Yearly Wage Ranking
$88,822 Average Wage
In 2023, Riggers earned an average of $88,822.
Wage ranking compared to other occupations.
Wage Distribution
This chart shows the distribution of average salaries by income buckets for Riggers.
Salary distribution for Riggers.
Employment Growth Projections
10.4% Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR)
19,892 Projected Employment (5 years)
Projected growth: 63.9%
32,594 Projected Employment (10 years)
Projected growth: 168.5%
This occupation is projected to grow at 10.4% annually, indicating strong future demand.
Historical employment trends and future projections for Riggers.
Industry
Information on the industries that employ Riggers and on wages for those in the field.
Occupations by Industries
This graphic shows the share of Riggers employed by various industries.
Industry distribution for Riggers.
Wage Trends by Industry
-6.9% Average Annual Wage Growth Rate
Historical wage growth trends by industry for Riggers.
Geographic Distribution
Employment and wage information by geographic location for Riggers.
State employment and wages are from the U.S. BLS OEWS May 2024 state extract. Metropolitan areas use the national MSA file when available.
Top States by Employment
Top States by Employment:
- TX: 3,890 employees, $57,500 avg wage
- CA: 3,470 employees, $86,490 avg wage
- LA: 2,270 employees, $45,620 avg wage
- VA: 2,030 employees, $59,850 avg wage
- FL: 1,130 employees, $53,950 avg wage
- WA: 900 employees, $77,120 avg wage
- NY: 880 employees, $105,720 avg wage
- NV: 590 employees, $80,550 avg wage
- GA: 570 employees, $66,680 avg wage
- UT: 480 employees, $78,290 avg wage
Top 10 states by employment for Riggers.
Top Metropolitan Areas
Top Metropolitan Areas:
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA: 1,800 employees, $94,640 avg wage
- Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC: 1,340 employees, $60,070 avg wage
- Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX: 1,250 employees, $64,430 avg wage
- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ: 760 employees, $103,070 avg wage
- Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX: 580 employees, $61,400 avg wage
- Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard, WA: 580 employees, $72,400 avg wage
- Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux, LA: 520 employees, $37,600 avg wage
- Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas, NV: 480 employees, $84,100 avg wage
- Baton Rouge, LA: 450 employees, $58,610 avg wage
- Lafayette, LA: 380 employees, $42,020 avg wage
Top 10 metropolitan statistical areas by employment for Riggers.
Diversity
Demographic information on Riggers in the US.
Gender and Age
The workforce of Riggers in 2023 was 24,190 people, with 62.0% women and 38.0% men.
Gender and age distribution for Riggers.
Races
Racial and ethnic shares when present in the career dataset. If the chart area shows a notice instead, occupational race/ethnicity fields are not yet populated for this extract.
Race and ethnicity distribution for Riggers.
Education & Skills
Data on higher education choices and required skills for Riggers.
Majors
The most common majors achieved by Riggers in 2023 were Business Administration, Engineering, Business.
Common majors for Riggers.
Education Levels
The main educational levels achieved by Riggers workers.
Education level distribution for Riggers.
Skills
Riggers need many skills, but most especially Operation and Control, Active Listening, Monitoring, Reading Comprehension, Operations Monitoring.
Required skills for Riggers.
Knowledge & Abilities
Knowledge areas and abilities required for Riggers.
Knowledge Areas
The most important knowledge areas for Riggers include Mechanical, Public Safety and Security, Production and Processing, Customer and Personal Service, Administration and Management.
Knowledge areas required for Riggers.
Abilities
Key abilities needed for Riggers include Problem Sensitivity, Control Precision, Multilimb Coordination, Depth Perception, Near Vision.
Required abilities for Riggers.
Work Activities
Common work activities performed by Riggers.
Daily Activities
Riggers spend their time on activities such as Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials, Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates, Handling and Moving Objects, Performing General Physical Activities, Getting Information.
Most important work activities for Riggers.
About
Riggers
The average yearly wage for Riggers was $88,822 in 2023.
SOC Code
49-9096 - Riggers
Insights and Analysis
Compensation snapshot: Riggers reports an average salary of $88,822.
Labor market presence: The current workforce is approximately 24,190 workers, indicating sustained demand.
Forward outlook: Projected annual growth is 10.4%, which should inform long-term career planning.
Data Sources
This page uses data from the following sources:
- College Scorecard - U.S. Department of Education
- Institutional characteristics, costs, completion rates, and earnings data
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: collegescorecard.ed.gov
- Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS)
- Employment and wage data by occupation
- Latest data: May 2024
- Source: bls.gov/oes
- O*NET Online - U.S. Department of Labor
- Occupational skills, knowledge, abilities, and work activities
- Database version: 28.0 (August 2023)
- Source: onetcenter.org
- IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) - National Center for Education Statistics
- Institutional data, completions, enrollment, and financial aid
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: nces.ed.gov/ipeds
- Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS)
- Demographic and workforce data
- Latest data: 2023 ACS 5-Year Estimates
- Source: census.gov/acs
Data Processing: All data has been processed, cleaned, and aggregated for presentation. Where specific data points are unavailable, estimates are based on available data and clearly marked.
Last Updated: Data reflects the most recent available information as of January 2025.
Methodology
Data for this profile is sourced from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS), and O*NET Online.
All wage figures represent annual averages and may vary by location, industry, and experience level.