SOC 47-5022 · Cape Girardeau, MO-IL metro

Excavating and Loading Machine and Dragline Operators, Surface Mining Salary in Cape Girardeau, MO

The average salary for excavating and loading machine and dragline operators, surface mining in Cape Girardeau, Missouri is $59,950 a year ($28.82 an hour), according to BLS estimates for May 2025. The median is $57,640: half of the 60 people in this job in the Cape Girardeau, MO-IL metro area earn more than that, half earn less. That average is about the same as the U.S. metro average for this job ($61,487).

$59,950average per year

$28.82 / hourMedian $57,640Take-home ≈ $48,470

  • $51K10th
  • $58K25th
  • $58KMedian
  • $62K75th
  • $80K90th

median average · bar = middle 50% of workers

60people in this job
-3%vs U.S. metro average
#2 of 2Missouri metros
86cost of living (U.S. = 100)
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Excavating and Loading Machine and Dragline Operators, Surface Mining pay range in Cape Girardeau

New workers and the lowest-paid 10% earn about $50,520 a year or less, while the top 10% make $79,540 or more. The middle half of excavating and loading machine and dragline operators, surface mining in Cape Girardeau earn between $57,640 and $61,720.

  • $51K10th
  • $58K25th
  • $58KMedian
  • $62K75th
  • $80K90th

median average · bar = middle 50% of workers

Pay levelPer yearPer monthPer hour*
Average$59,950$4,996$28.82
Median$57,640$4,803$27.71
Entry level (25th percentile)$57,640$4,803$27.71
Experienced (75th percentile)$61,720$5,143$29.67

*Hourly figures assume 2,080 paid hours a year.

Excavating and Loading Machine and Dragline Operators, Surface Mining salary after taxes in Cape Girardeau

On the average salary of $59,950, a single filer in Cape Girardeau takes home about $48,470 a year, or $4,039 a month and $1,864 every two weeks. Taxes take 19% of gross pay.

The Cape Girardeau, MO-IL metro area crosses state lines, so take-home pay depends on the state where you work:

StatePer yearPer month
Working in MO$48,470$4,039
Working in IL$47,523$3,960

Single filer, standard deduction: federal income tax (2026 brackets), Social Security, Medicare and state income tax (2026 rules). The 1% earnings tax applies to people who live or work in Kansas City or St. Louis itself, not in the suburbs.

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Is Cape Girardeau a good place for excavating and loading machine and dragline operators, surface mining? Pay vs. cost of living

Prices in the Cape Girardeau area are 14% below the U.S. average (BEA price parity 86.1), so the average $59,950 buys what about $69,646 would buy in a typical U.S. metro. This job pays 1.3 times the median wage of all jobs in Cape Girardeau ($44,470). A typical home costs $232,332, or 3.9 years of this average salary before tax.

See what $59,950 is worth in another city

Excavating and Loading Machine and Dragline Operators, Surface Mining salary in other Missouri cities

Cape Girardeau ranks 2nd of 2 Missouri metro areas for this job; St. Louis pays the most ($63,510).

All Excavating and Loading Machine and Dragline Operators, Surface Mining salaries in Missouri

Highest-paying cities for excavating and loading machine and dragline operators, surface mining

San Francisco, CA pays this job the most of the metro areas we cover ($110,990).

Excavating and Loading Machine and Dragline Operators, Surface Mining salary by city

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Excavating and Loading Machine and Dragline Operators, Surface Mining salary in Cape Girardeau: questions

How much do excavating and loading machine and dragline operators, surface mining make an hour in Cape Girardeau?

$28.82 an hour on average, and $27.71 at the median (BLS, May 2025).

What is the entry-level excavating and loading machine and dragline operators, surface mining salary in Cape Girardeau?

The lowest-paid 10% earn about $50,520 a year and the 25th percentile is $57,640, a fair guide to starting pay.

What is the excavating and loading machine and dragline operators, surface mining take-home pay in Cape Girardeau?

About $48,470 a year ($4,039 a month) for a single filer on the average salary of $59,950. The 1% earnings tax applies to people who live or work in Kansas City or St. Louis itself, not in the suburbs.

Do excavating and loading machine and dragline operators, surface mining earn more in Cape Girardeau than elsewhere?

The average here is about the same as the U.S. metro average for this job ($61,487).

Sources and how to read this page

  • Wages: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 estimates for metropolitan areas. SOC code 47-5022; area Cape Girardeau, MO-IL (16020). Relative standard error of the mean wage: 4.6%.
  • Cost of living: Bureau of Economic Analysis regional price parities (RPP), 2024; 100 = U.S. average.
  • Home value: Zillow Home Value Index. Typical-wage figure: OEWS all occupations, same metro.
  • Take-home pay: Single filer, standard deduction: federal income tax (2026 brackets), Social Security, Medicare and state income tax (2026 rules). The 1% earnings tax applies to people who live or work in Kansas City or St. Louis itself, not in the suburbs.
  • Job concentration: location quotient 5.73, this job is 5.7 times as concentrated as in the U.S. overall.

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