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How Much Does a Sawing Machine Setter, Operator, and Tender, Wood Make?

A sawing machine setter, operator, and tender, wood in the US earns a median salary of $42,770 a year, or $20.56 an hour (BLS, May 2025). The average is $43,580, and the middle half earn between $36,510 and $48,620.

Median a year $42,770
Median an hour $20.56
Median a month $3,564
Average a year $43,580

Sawing machine setter, operator, and tender, wood pay range

What sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, wood earn at each point of the pay scale. The 10th percentile is a rough guide to starting pay.

Percentile A year An hour
10th (lowest 10%) $30,890 $14.85
25th $36,510 $17.55
Median (50th) $42,770 $20.56
75th $48,620 $23.37
90th (top 10%) $58,170 $27.97

The median is 16% less than the $50,980 median for all US jobs. About 40,850 people work as sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, wood in the US.

After tax and by period

A week
$823
Every two weeks
$1,645
Twice a month
$1,782
A month
$3,564

At the median salary, before tax.

Sawing machine setter, operator, and tender, wood salary by state

Sorted by average pay. Maryland pays sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, wood the most, at $68,060 a year on average.

State Average Median Jobs After tax
Maryland $68,060 $47,060 130 After tax
Massachusetts $54,170 $47,210 60 After tax
Washington $53,150 $51,940 1,720 After tax
Minnesota $51,610 $51,330 500 After tax
Alaska $50,980 $52,680 100 After tax
Illinois $50,480 $46,530 470 After tax
Montana $50,450 $49,090 280 After tax
Connecticut $50,400 $51,150 110 After tax
Oregon $49,770 $49,740 2,010 After tax
Idaho $49,310 $48,350 700 After tax
Nebraska $48,180 $46,970 140 After tax
California $47,980 $47,390 3,230 After tax
Colorado $47,420 $47,030 350 After tax
Vermont $46,530 $46,040 230 After tax
Maine $46,390 $46,210 730 After tax
Iowa $46,340 $48,090 240 After tax
New Jersey $46,010 $44,630 80 After tax
Louisiana $45,970 $46,610 500 After tax
Arizona $44,920 $42,870 310 After tax
New Hampshire $44,580 $46,090 130 After tax
Ohio $44,560 $45,010 2,180 After tax
New York $44,470 $42,250 1,010 After tax
Indiana $43,640 $42,620 1,270 After tax
Wisconsin $43,640 $44,440 1,880 After tax
Utah $43,360 $43,490 180 After tax
Pennsylvania $43,020 $40,590 1,720 After tax
Nevada $42,730 $39,350 170 After tax
Arkansas $42,480 $36,740 1,240 After tax
Michigan $42,340 $40,260 1,510 After tax
North Carolina $41,720 $38,100 2,020 After tax
New Mexico $41,380 $34,720 70 After tax
South Carolina $41,170 $39,300 810 After tax
Florida $40,740 $38,280 740 After tax
Georgia $40,570 $39,860 1,930 After tax
Tennessee $40,480 $39,070 1,510 After tax
Wyoming $40,310 $39,470 70 After tax
South Dakota $39,940 $37,480 260 After tax
Alabama $39,670 $37,520 1,880 After tax
Missouri $39,660 $38,030 1,380 After tax
Mississippi $39,570 $36,960 1,910 After tax
Texas $38,720 $36,740 1,680 After tax
Kansas $38,660 $36,930 110 After tax
Oklahoma $38,120 $36,140 250 After tax
West Virginia $37,930 $35,590 360 After tax
Virginia $37,680 $35,790 1,580 After tax
Kentucky $37,320 $36,810 1,050 After tax

A dash means BLS did not publish that figure for the state.

Other production jobs

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 (published 2026), for “Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood” (SOC 51-7041). Wages are before tax and leave out self-employed workers. All job salaries

About the Job Salaries

Job Salaries shows what more than 500 US jobs pay, from nurses and electricians to software developers and truck drivers. Each job has its median and average salary, hourly and monthly pay, the pay range from the lowest-paid 10% to the top 10%, and a table of pay in every state. The figures come from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey, the largest survey of US pay, in its latest release.

How to use it

  1. 1 Search for a job or pick one from the list.
  2. 2 Read the median salary, hourly pay and the pay range.
  3. 3 Check the salary by state to see where the job pays most.
  4. 4 Open the take-home pay calculator to see the salary after tax.

Frequently asked questions

How much does a sawing machine setter, operator, and tender, wood make an hour?

The median hourly wage for a sawing machine setter, operator, and tender, wood is $20.56, and the average is $20.95. The lowest-paid 10% earn under $14.85 an hour and the top 10% over $27.97.

How much does a sawing machine setter, operator, and tender, wood make a month?

At the median salary of $42,770, a sawing machine setter, operator, and tender, wood earns about $3,564 a month before tax, or $1,645 every two weeks.

Which state pays sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, wood the most?

Maryland has the highest average pay for a sawing machine setter, operator, and tender, wood, at $68,060 a year. Next are Massachusetts and Washington. Pay is usually higher where living costs are higher, so compare take-home pay too.

What is the starting salary for a sawing machine setter, operator, and tender, wood?

The lowest-paid 10% of sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, wood earn less than $30,890 a year, and the lowest 25% less than $36,510. That is a fair guide to starting pay, which depends on the state, the employer and your experience.

How much do the highest-paid sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, wood make?

The top 10% earn more than $58,170 a year, and the top 25% more than $48,620.