Postal Service Mail Sorters, Processors, and Processing Machine Operators Salary
Office and Administrative Support Occupations · 105K employed in the U.S.
Median annual
$58,470
Median hourly
$28
Average annual
$59,430
Typical range
$45,530–$75,280
Pay distribution
10th to 90th percentile, with the median marked.
What this role pays
The median annual salary for Postal Service Mail Sorters, Processors, and Processing Machine Operators is $58,470 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 $28 an hour at a full-time schedule.
Prepare incoming and outgoing mail for distribution for the United States Postal Service (USPS). Examine, sort, and route mail.
Most earn between $45,530 and $75,280 a year. There are roughly 105K people employed as postal service mail sorters, processors, and processing machine 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 Postal Service Mail Sorters, Processors, and Processing Machine Operators.
- Hourly
- $28.11
- Daily
- $225
- Weekly
- $1,124
- Bi-weekly
- $2,249
- Monthly
- $4,873
- Annual
- $58,470
$58,470 a year is around the 50th percentile for Postal Service Mail Sorters, Processors, and Processing Machine Operatorss. The median is $58,470.
Highest-paying states
Median annual wage by state.
- 1District of Columbia$66,750
- 2South Dakota$61,570
- 3Iowa$60,530
- 4New Jersey$60,530
- 5Wyoming$60,530
- 6GU$60,530
- 7North Dakota$59,840
- 8Minnesota$59,740
- 9California$59,490
- 10Hawaii$59,490
- 11Maine$59,490
- 12Michigan$59,490
Top-paying metro areas
Median annual wage by metro area.
- 1Duluth, MN-WI$70,990
- 2Erie, PA$69,680
- 3Wichita, KS$66,750
- 4San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA$63,650
- 5Rocky Mount, NC$62,610
- 6Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA$61,710
- 7McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, TX$61,570
- 8Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA$61,570
- 9Lansing-East Lansing, MI$60,740
- 10Burlington-South Burlington, VT$60,530
- 11Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA$60,530
- 12Evansville, IN$60,530
Related job titles
Employers advertise Postal Service Mail Sorters, Processors, and Processing Machine Operators roles under these titles.
- Automation Clerk
- Dead Mail Checker
- Distribution Handler
- File Conversion Operator
- Flat Sorter Operator
- Flat Sorter Processor
- Flat Sorting Machine Clerk (FSM Clerk)
- General Expeditor
- Letter Sorting Machine Operator (LSM Operator)
- Mail Distribution Clerk
- Mail Distributor
- Mail Examiner
- Mail Forwarding System Markup Clerk
- Mail Handler
- Mail Handler Assistant
- Mail Handler Equipment Operator
Related occupations
- Mail Clerks and Mail Machine Operators, Except Postal Service$39,280
- Shipping, Receiving, and Inventory Clerks$45,260
- Postal Service Clerks$62,130
- Stockers and Order Fillers$37,330
- Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand$40,240
- Office Machine Operators, Except Computer$40,960
- Weighers, Measurers, Checkers, and Samplers, Recordkeeping$46,380
- Data Entry Keyers$41,340
What a Postal Service Mail Sorters, Processors, and Processing Machine Operators does
- Clear jams in sorting equipment.
- Operate various types of equipment, such as computer scanning equipment, addressographs, mimeographs, optical character readers, and bar-code sorters.
- Sort odd-sized mail by hand, sort mail that other workers have been unable to sort, and segregate items requiring special handling.
Frequently asked questions
- How much does a Postal Service Mail Sorters, Processors, and Processing Machine Operators make?
- The median annual wage for Postal Service Mail Sorters, Processors, and Processing Machine Operators is $58,470 ($28 per hour). Pay ranges from about $45,530 at the 10th percentile to $75,280 at the 90th percentile.
- What is the average salary for a Postal Service Mail Sorters, Processors, and Processing Machine Operators?
- The average (mean) annual salary is $59,430, which is higher than the median because a small number of high earners pull the average up.
- Which state pays Postal Service Mail Sorters, Processors, and Processing Machine Operatorss the most?
- District of Columbia has the highest median annual wage for this occupation at $66,750.
- Is Postal Service Mail Sorters, Processors, and Processing Machine Operators a growing occupation?
- BLS employment data for May 2025 counts about 105K people in this occupation. Projected growth is published separately in the BLS Employment Projections program.
- What does a Postal Service Mail Sorters, Processors, and Processing Machine Operators do?
- Clear jams in sorting equipment.; Operate various types of equipment, such as computer scanning equipment, addressographs, mimeographs, optical character readers, and bar-code sorters.; Sort odd-sized mail by hand, sort mail that other workers have been unable to sort, and segregate items requiring special handling..