Skip to main content
True Trade Path

Trade hub

Machinist

Produce precision metal parts using manual and CNC machine tools to engineering tolerances.

Median pay
$50,840/yr
Entry path
4 years for tool and die
Job outlook
+2%

What machinists do

Machinists set up and operate lathes, mills and CNC machining centers to produce parts within tolerances measured in thousandths of an inch. The trade splits between production operation and the far better-paid setup, programming and toolmaking work. Skill in CAM programming and GD&T interpretation is what separates operators from machinists.

Median annual pay
$50,840
$24.44 per hour
Typical range
$35,910–$74,670
10th to 90th percentile
Projected growth
+2%
2023–2033 projections
Annual openings
39,000
Growth plus replacement

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook, May 2023 national wage estimates. Local pay varies substantially with union scale, prevailing wage projects and regional demand. Estimate pay for your area.

The work itself

A typical day

  • Interpret prints and GD&T callouts
  • Write or edit CAM programs and post to the control
  • Set work offsets, tool offsets and workholding
  • Prove out first articles and inspect to print
  • Adjust for tool wear and hold tolerance across a run

Where you work

  • Job shops and production floors
  • Aerospace and medical device manufacturers
  • Toolrooms inside larger plants
  • Climate-controlled, generally indoors

Physical demands

Mostly standing, with moderate lifting of stock and fixtures. Indoors and climate-controlled compared with the building trades. Hearing and eye protection are constant requirements.

The honest tradeoffs

What works in your favor

  • Indoor, clean and climate-controlled relative to field trades
  • Programming and toolmaking skills pay well above the median
  • Strong reshoring demand in aerospace, defense and medical
  • Genuinely intellectually engaging work

What to go in knowing

  • Entry-level machine operation pays poorly and is being automated
  • Shift work is common in production shops
  • Growth is flat at the occupational level
  • Advancement requires deliberate CAM and metrology learning

Getting in

Typical education
High school diploma or equivalent
Training route
1–2 year machining program or a 4-year apprenticeship
Apprenticeship length
4 years for tool and die
Licensing
No license. NIMS credentials are the recognized skill standard.
How to become a machinistMachinist apprenticeships

Where the trade splits

Pay and working conditions diverge sharply by specialization. These are the paths most machinists end up choosing between.

  • CNC setup and programming
  • Tool and die making
  • Mold making
  • Swiss screw machining
  • Aerospace machining
  • Manual toolroom work
  • CMM and quality inspection
  • Additive and hybrid manufacturing

Credentials that matter

  • NIMS Machining Level I–IIINational Institute for Metalworking Skills
  • Mastercam / Fusion CAM CertificationSoftware vendor
  • ASQ Certified Quality InspectorAmerican Society for Quality
  • OSHA 10-Hour General IndustryOSHA-authorized trainer

Related trades

Trades that share skills, tools or career adjacency.