Chemical Equipment Operators and Tenders
Median $58,040
Occupation · SOC 51-9061
Inspectors, Testers, Sorters, Samplers, and Weighers: pay and where the jobs are
What inspectors, testers, sorters, samplers, and weighers earn in the U.S., how pay varies across workers and states, and tools to plan around it.
National pay, May 2025
$48,570 median annual wage
- Mean (average) annual wage
- $53,450
- Median hourly wage
- $23.35
- Mean hourly wage
- $25.70
- Employment
- 597,370
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 51-9061.
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How much do inspectors, testers, sorters, samplers, and weighers make?
The median annual wage for inspectors, testers, sorters, samplers, and weighers was $48,570 in May 2025, so half of workers earned more and half earned less. The lowest-paid 10% earned less than $35,510 and the highest-paid 10% more than $77,860. As an hourly rate, the median is $23.35. About 597,370 people work in this occupation nationwide. The highest state medians are in Alaska ($78,150), Washington ($64,420) and Maryland ($61,790). Alaska also comes out on top after taxes and local prices.
Pay ladder
What each step of the pay range for inspectors, testers, sorters, samplers, and weighers looks like per month. Take-home here includes federal tax, Social Security and Medicare for a single filer; add your state in the paycheck calculator.
| Step | Annual | Hourly | Monthly gross | Monthly after federal tax & FICA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $35,510 | $17.07 | $2,959 | $2,559 |
| 25th percentile | $39,890 | $19.18 | $3,324 | $2,853 |
| Median | $48,570 | $23.35 | $4,048 | $3,434 |
| 75th percentile | $61,440 | $29.54 | $5,120 | $4,296 |
| 90th percentile | $77,860 | $37.44 | $6,488 | $5,300 |
Inspectors, Testers, Sorters, Samplers, and Weighers: pay by state
54 states and territories have a published median, sorted from highest to lowest. The last two columns are our estimates: the median after 2026 federal and state taxes, and that take-home restated in national-average prices.
1
$62,073 take-home in national prices
2
$52,543 take-home in national prices
3
$49,571 take-home in national prices
Where a median inspectors, testers, sorters, samplers, and weigher paycheck goes furthest after 2026 taxes and BEA price levels.
| State | Employment | Median | 10th pct. | 90th pct. | Median after tax* | In national prices† |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska | 300 | $78,150 | $49,500 | $142,430 | $63,538 | $62,073 |
| Washington | 12,010 | $64,420 | $40,830 | $115,240 | $53,048 | $49,571 |
| Maryland | 4,600 | $61,790 | $37,440 | $99,220 | $49,259 | $46,932 |
| Hawaii | 650 | $59,740 | $36,040 | $93,460 | $47,146 | $42,879 |
| District of Columbia | 70 | $59,730 | $41,130 | $91,510 | $47,737 | $43,436 |
| Colorado | 5,220 | $58,350 | $43,690 | $82,420 | $46,948 | $45,558 |
| Montana | 580 | $58,070 | $37,470 | $101,260 | $46,867 | $49,518 |
| Wyoming | 990 | $57,900 | $39,370 | $98,990 | $48,703 | $52,543 |
| Delaware | 1,020 | $57,190 | $37,570 | $80,650 | $45,406 | $45,494 |
| Minnesota | 9,710 | $57,170 | $42,030 | $76,510 | $45,500 | $46,137 |
| Connecticut | 7,460 | $57,090 | $38,500 | $94,270 | $45,376 | $43,795 |
| Rhode Island | 1,790 | $54,940 | $37,400 | $88,710 | $44,277 | $43,290 |
| New Hampshire | 3,050 | $54,800 | $41,660 | $77,520 | $46,212 | $44,364 |
| Missouri | 12,480 | $54,420 | $36,630 | $78,410 | $44,286 | $48,764 |
| California | 61,130 | $54,300 | $38,750 | $88,210 | $43,807 | $39,565 |
| Oregon | 5,690 | $54,120 | $38,340 | $82,270 | $41,819 | $40,459 |
| Kansas | 9,300 | $53,680 | $37,800 | $80,910 | $43,116 | $47,871 |
| Maine | 1,800 | $53,570 | $34,200 | $79,730 | $43,017 | $44,325 |
| Massachusetts | 10,650 | $52,270 | $38,140 | $76,330 | $41,545 | $39,283 |
| Arizona | 11,120 | $52,100 | $39,210 | $77,720 | $43,134 | $42,844 |
| Nebraska | 3,350 | $51,270 | $39,130 | $66,110 | $41,922 | $46,527 |
| North Dakota | 1,800 | $50,820 | $40,500 | $81,560 | $43,014 | $48,352 |
| Iowa | 7,230 | $50,740 | $39,160 | $71,240 | $41,673 | $47,484 |
| New York | 19,790 | $49,990 | $37,190 | $77,930 | $39,997 | $37,062 |
| Oklahoma | 7,430 | $49,630 | $35,680 | $75,980 | $40,370 | $45,957 |
| Wisconsin | 17,670 | $49,610 | $37,290 | $69,270 | $40,484 | $43,025 |
| Virginia | 9,830 | $49,590 | $36,210 | $76,390 | $39,988 | $39,552 |
| New Mexico | 1,550 | $49,500 | $36,080 | $81,340 | $40,792 | $44,237 |
| Louisiana | 8,110 | $49,490 | $35,220 | $94,450 | $40,847 | $46,308 |
| Nevada | 4,040 | $49,280 | $35,530 | $98,700 | $41,776 | $41,785 |
| New Jersey | 12,280 | $49,140 | $35,740 | $77,330 | $40,100 | $36,855 |
| Utah | 6,630 | $48,910 | $37,640 | $77,930 | $39,870 | $40,328 |
| Pennsylvania | 25,870 | $48,320 | $35,720 | $73,890 | $39,488 | $40,470 |
| Illinois | 31,700 | $47,920 | $36,220 | $75,030 | $38,456 | $38,473 |
| Indiana | 24,790 | $47,900 | $35,590 | $72,860 | $39,284 | $42,092 |
| Florida | 22,630 | $47,540 | $33,040 | $75,550 | $40,378 | $39,045 |
| Ohio | 32,060 | $47,360 | $35,680 | $73,840 | $39,375 | $42,442 |
| South Dakota | 1,090 | $47,240 | $37,930 | $64,070 | $40,137 | $45,309 |
| Virgin Islands | 30 | $47,240 | $36,950 | $72,900 | — | — |
| West Virginia | 2,720 | $47,010 | $30,500 | $80,930 | $38,635 | $43,169 |
| South Carolina | 13,360 | $46,890 | $35,010 | $70,430 | $39,063 | $41,667 |
| North Carolina | 19,700 | $46,430 | $31,590 | $71,770 | $38,143 | $40,437 |
| Kentucky | 12,880 | $46,280 | $34,460 | $66,330 | $37,864 | $41,997 |
| Texas | 56,390 | $46,210 | $32,200 | $78,560 | $39,310 | $40,502 |
| Vermont | 900 | $46,210 | $38,500 | $72,740 | $38,196 | $38,992 |
| Georgia | 19,980 | $46,130 | $33,860 | $71,450 | $37,692 | $39,143 |
| Tennessee | 17,140 | $45,760 | $34,110 | $66,340 | $38,948 | $42,395 |
| Idaho | 2,900 | $45,130 | $34,790 | $83,370 | $37,158 | $38,912 |
| Arkansas | 5,880 | $44,570 | $33,890 | $61,910 | $36,830 | $42,365 |
| Michigan | 27,980 | $44,490 | $34,240 | $64,010 | $36,288 | $37,714 |
| Guam | 50 | $44,160 | $24,320 | $58,770 | — | — |
| Mississippi | 6,970 | $40,670 | $30,840 | $65,480 | $33,964 | $39,060 |
| Alabama | 13,120 | $40,010 | $28,130 | $63,060 | $32,699 | $36,813 |
| Puerto Rico | 3,870 | $29,870 | $22,550 | $64,150 | — | — |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 51-9061. *Our estimate for a single filer paid biweekly with no pre-tax deductions or local tax, 2026 federal and state rules. †Take-home ÷ BEA Regional Price Parity × 100 (2024 price levels).
Sources
- OEWS May 2025 (oesm25nat.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.
- OEWS May 2025 (oesm25st.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.