Agricultural Equipment Operators Salary
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry Occupations · 29K employed in the U.S.
Median annual
$41,730
Median hourly
$20
Average annual
$43,710
Typical range
$33,500–$58,650
Pay distribution
10th to 90th percentile, with the median marked.
What this role pays
The median annual salary for Agricultural Equipment Operators is $41,730 as of May 2025, based on the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey. That works out to about $20 an hour at a full-time schedule.
Drive and control equipment to support agricultural activities such as tilling soil; planting, cultivating, and harvesting crops; feeding and herding livestock; or removing animal waste. May perform tasks such as crop baling or hay bucking.
Most earn between $33,500 and $58,650 a year. There are roughly 29K people employed as agricultural equipment operators in the United States. Use the state and metro pages below to see how pay changes by location, and the calculator to convert any hourly or annual figure.
Salary calculator
Convert your pay and see where it lands for Agricultural Equipment Operators.
- Hourly
- $20.06
- Daily
- $161
- Weekly
- $803
- Bi-weekly
- $1,605
- Monthly
- $3,478
- Annual
- $41,730
$41,730 a year is around the 50th percentile for Agricultural Equipment Operatorss. The median is $41,730.
Highest-paying states
Median annual wage by state.
- 1Montana$58,770
- 2Louisiana$58,520
- 3New York$50,020
- 4Delaware$49,910
- 5Massachusetts$49,150
- 6Minnesota$48,520
- 7North Dakota$48,080
- 8South Dakota$48,060
- 9Virginia$47,890
- 10Iowa$47,220
- 11Ohio$47,220
- 12Pennsylvania$47,100
Top-paying metro areas
Median annual wage by metro area.
- 1Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN$54,380
- 2Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI$53,680
- 3Lafayette-West Lafayette, IN$52,100
- 4Columbus, OH$51,050
- 5Sioux City, IA-NE-SD$49,990
- 6Dubuque, IA$49,440
- 7Madison, WI$49,410
- 8Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD$49,220
- 9Fargo, ND-MN$48,710
- 10Mankato, MN$48,520
- 11Medford, OR$48,510
- 12Terre Haute, IN$48,330
Related job titles
Employers advertise Agricultural Equipment Operators roles under these titles.
- Ag Equipment Operator
- Agricultural Equipment Operator
- Agricultural Farm Equipment Operator
- Agricultural Plow Operator
- Agriculture Equipment Operator
- Bean Picker Machine Operator
- Berry Picker Machine Operator
- Broomcorn Thresher
- Cane Cutter Machine Operator
- Cane Flume Chute Operator
- Cane Flume Feeding Machine Operator
- Cane Piler
- Combine Driver
- Corn Detasseler Machine Operator
- Corn Husker Machine Operator
- Cotton Chopper
Related occupations
- Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop, Nursery, and Greenhouse$35,660
- Machine Feeders and Offbearers$41,220
- Crushing, Grinding, and Polishing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders$48,540
- Separating, Filtering, Clarifying, Precipitating, and Still Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders$51,610
- Extruding, Forming, Pressing, and Compacting Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders$45,760
- Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand$40,240
- Milling and Planing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic$52,800
- Conveyor Operators and Tenders$42,420
What a Agricultural Equipment Operators does
- Adjust, repair, and service farm machinery and notify supervisors when machinery malfunctions.
- Observe and listen to machinery operation to detect equipment malfunctions.
- Operate or tend equipment used in agricultural production, such as tractors, combines, and irrigation equipment.
- Attach farm implements such as plows, discs, sprayers, or harvesters to tractors, using bolts and hand tools.
- Manipulate controls to set, activate, and adjust mechanisms on machinery.
- Load and unload crops or containers of materials, manually or using conveyors, handtrucks, forklifts, or transfer augers.
- Mix specified materials or chemicals, and dump solutions, powders, or seeds into planter or sprayer machinery.
- Spray fertilizer or pesticide solutions to control insects, fungus and weed growth, and diseases, using hand sprayers.
Frequently asked questions
- How much does a Agricultural Equipment Operators make?
- The median annual wage for Agricultural Equipment Operators is $41,730 ($20 per hour). Pay ranges from about $33,500 at the 10th percentile to $58,650 at the 90th percentile.
- What is the average salary for a Agricultural Equipment Operators?
- The average (mean) annual salary is $43,710, which is higher than the median because a small number of high earners pull the average up.
- Which state pays Agricultural Equipment Operatorss the most?
- Montana has the highest median annual wage for this occupation at $58,770.
- Is Agricultural Equipment Operators a growing occupation?
- BLS employment data for May 2025 counts about 29K people in this occupation. Projected growth is published separately in the BLS Employment Projections program.
- What does a Agricultural Equipment Operators do?
- Adjust, repair, and service farm machinery and notify supervisors when machinery malfunctions.; Observe and listen to machinery operation to detect equipment malfunctions.; Operate or tend equipment used in agricultural production, such as tractors, combines, and irrigation equipment..