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Machinist Salary in Lubbock, TX

U.S. median $56,150/yr ($27.00/hr)

Machinist pay in Lubbock, Texas moves with the local shops. Aerospace, defense, and medical device plants pay well above general job shops. Here is what the live local market is paying right now.

Checking live local pay...

National benchmarks

Median$56,150/yr ($27.00/hr)
Hourly range$18 to $38/hr
Bottom 10%under $38,100/yr
Top 10%over $78,760/yr

Local pay in Lubbock moves with cost of living, union presence, and demand. The live figure above reflects what Lubbock employers are posting right now.

Pay by experience

Apprentice / Entry (0 to 2 years)This is the bottom 10 to 25 percent of the trade. You are learning setups, running manual mills and lathes, loading simple CNC jobs, and deburring. Pay climbs quickly as you prove you can hold a tolerance.$38,000 to $47,000/yr ($18 to $23/hr)
Journeyman / Mid (3 to 7 years)A fully qualified CNC machinist who reads blueprints and GD&T, does their own setups, and runs jobs unsupervised. This is where most machinists sit, right around the national median.$48,000 to $62,000/yr (around the $27/hr median)
Experienced / Master (8+ years)CNC programmers, 5-axis machinists, and tool and die makers. Tool and die makers alone carry a $63,180 median, and the top 10 percent of machinists clear $78,760 before overtime.$63,000 to $80,000/yr ($30 to $38+/hr)
Lead / Foreman / Shop OwnerShop supervisors, lead programmers, and union aerospace machinists with overtime. Boeing's IAM machinists are averaging toward roughly $119,000 under the 2024 contract. Shop owners set their own ceiling.$80,000 to $120,000+/yr

Machinist jobs in Lubbock

See Machinist jobs hiring in Lubbock with pay shown upfront.

Machinist pay in nearby cities

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Machinist pay in Lubbock: FAQs

How much do machinists make?

The median machinist wage is $56,150 a year, about $27.00 an hour, as of May 2024 (BLS). Most machinists fall between roughly $38,100 and $78,760 a year, with pay rising sharply for CNC programming, tool and die, and union aerospace work.

Do machinists make good money?

Yes. Machinists out-earn many trades you can enter without a degree, and the top 10 percent make over $78,760 a year. Add overtime, a specialty, or a union aerospace job and six figures is realistic, with no college debt required.

What is the highest-paying machinist job?

The best pay goes to tool and die makers (median $63,180), CNC programmers and 5-axis machinists (top earners over $78,760), and union aerospace machinists. After the 2024 Boeing contract, average pay there is heading toward about $119,000.

How much do machinists make an hour?

The median is $27.00 an hour as of May 2024. Entry and apprentice machinists start around $18 to $22 an hour, while experienced CNC programmers and tool and die makers run past $38 an hour before overtime.

Can you make $100,000 as a machinist?

Yes, though not in an average shop. Six figures comes from union aerospace scale, heavy overtime, per-diem travel contracts, or moving into CNC programming and shop supervision. Boeing's union machinists are averaging toward roughly $119,000 under the 2024 contract.