What maintenance trades
actually pay.
Median and percentile hourly wages for industrial maintenance roles. Know your worth before you apply.
Industrial maintenance is one of the best-paying skilled trades that doesn't require a four-year degree. A typical maintenance technician salary works out to $31–$39 per hour depending on experience and region, while millwright hourly rates run $34–$43 and PLC / controls technician pay tops the hourly table at $36–$46 per hour.
What actually moves the number: certifications (industrial electrical licenses, PLC platforms, EPA 608, welding certs), shift differentials for 2nd/3rd shift and weekend coverage, the industry you're in — automotive, steel, food and beverage, and pharma plants tend to pay above the median — and whether the role is multi-craft. Entry-level maintenance mechanics start near the 25th percentile; journeyman-level techs with electrical and controls skills earn at or above the 75th.
The benchmarks below come from two sources: national figures compiled from active listings on this board, and official government wage data from the BLS OES, May 2025 release. Everything is shown as hourly rates so every role compares apples-to-apples; salaried roles like maintenance supervisor are converted at 2,080 hours per year.
Figures are indicative national ranges compiled from active listings; individual pay varies by employer, certifications, shift, and experience. Annual salaries are converted to hourly at 2,080 hours/year.
Official BLS wage benchmarks
National percentile wages from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 release for the occupations that map to industrial maintenance work. BLS figures cover all workers in an occupation — not just open positions — so they typically read a few dollars below the hiring ranges in the listings table above, which reflect what employers offer to attract new hires today.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 national cross-industry estimates. Hourly percentile wages; annual median as published by BLS. Occupation pages linked above always show the latest release.
Industrial maintenance pay, answered.
How much does an industrial maintenance technician make?
Most industrial maintenance technicians earn $31–$39 per hour, with a median around $35/hr (roughly $73k a year at full time, before overtime). For reference, BLS OES, May 2025 puts the national median for industrial machinery mechanics (SOC 49-9041) at $31.02/hr ($64,520/yr), and general maintenance and repair workers (SOC 49-9071) at $23.84/hr. Pay climbs with multi-craft skills, industrial electrical experience, and PLC troubleshooting ability.
How much do millwrights make per hour?
Maintenance millwrights typically earn $34–$43 per hour, with a median near $38/hr. Journeyman cards, precision-alignment experience, and rigging certifications push rates toward the top of that range, and many millwright roles add significant overtime during shutdowns and outages.
What is the highest-paying industrial maintenance job?
Maintenance Supervisor roles lead our benchmarks at a median of about $42/hr. On the hourly side, PLC / controls and instrumentation technicians consistently top the table (median around $41/hr), because plants compete hard for people who can troubleshoot automation, drives, and instrumentation.
Do certifications increase maintenance technician pay?
Yes — stacked credentials move you up the range. Industrial electrical licenses, PLC platform experience (Allen-Bradley, Siemens), EPA 608 for HVAC/refrigeration work, and welding certs each add leverage. The biggest jump usually comes from adding electrical and controls skills on top of a mechanical base, which is what multi-craft roles pay a premium for.
How much more do night and weekend shifts pay?
Most plants pay a shift differential for 2nd shift, 3rd shift, and weekend coverage — commonly an extra $1–$3 per hour or 5–10% on top of base rate, on the roles that list it. Rotating-shift and 7-day continuous operations (steel, paper, chemicals, food) tend to offer the largest differentials plus built-in overtime.
Is industrial maintenance a good career?
It's one of the strongest skilled-trade paths in the US right now: an aging workforce is retiring faster than plants can hire, so experienced mechanics, millwrights, and controls techs have real bargaining power. Median pay sits well above the all-occupations median, overtime is widely available, and the skills transfer across manufacturing, food processing, logistics, and utilities.
Find roles that pay above median
Compare live openings against the benchmarks above.