SOC 51-4081 · Durham-Chapel Hill, NC metro

Multiple Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic Salary in Durham, NC

The average salary for multiple machine tool setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic in Durham, North Carolina is $48,810 a year ($23.47 an hour), according to BLS estimates for May 2025. The median is $46,360: half of the 80 people in this job in the Durham-Chapel Hill, NC metro area earn more than that, half earn less. That average is about the same as the U.S. average for this job ($50,030).

$48,810average per year

$23.47 / hourMedian $46,360Take-home ≈ $39,960

  • $39K10th
  • $44K25th
  • $46KMedian
  • $52K75th
  • $61K90th

median average · bar = middle 50% of workers · how to read it

80people in this job
-2%vs U.S. average
#5 of 10North Carolina metros
98cost of living (U.S. = 100)
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Multiple Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic pay range in Durham

New workers and the lowest-paid 10% earn about $39,350 a year or less, while the top 10% make $60,730 or more. The middle half of multiple machine tool setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic in Durham earn between $44,390 and $52,240.

  • $39K10th
  • $44K25th
  • $46KMedian
  • $52K75th
  • $61K90th

median average · bar = middle 50% of workers · how to read it

Pay levelPer yearPer monthPer hour*
Average$48,810$4,068$23.47
Median$46,360$3,863$22.29
Entry level (25th percentile)$44,390$3,699$21.34
Experienced (75th percentile)$52,240$4,353$25.12

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

Multiple Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic pay in Durham vs. North Carolina and the U.S.

Multiple machine tool setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic in Durham earn about the same as the North Carolina average ($49,070) and about the same as the U.S. average ($50,030). At the median the gap is -2% against the U.S. median of $47,180.

AreaAverageMedian10th pct.90th pct.Jobs
Durham$48,810$46,360$39,350$60,73080
North Carolina$49,070$47,320$37,360$67,6603,200
United States$50,030$47,180$35,780$74,450124,590

State and U.S. rows: BLS statewide and national estimates, May 2025, which include rural areas.

Multiple Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic salary after taxes in Durham

On the average salary of $48,810, a single filer in Durham takes home about $39,960 a year, or $3,330 a month and $1,537 every two weeks. Taxes take 18% of gross pay.

Single filer, standard deduction: federal income tax (2026 brackets), Social Security, Medicare and state income tax (2026 rules).

North Carolina paycheck calculator: try your own salary

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Is Durham a good place for multiple machine tool setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic? Pay vs. cost of living

Prices in the Durham area are 2% below the U.S. average (BEA price parity 97.6), so the average $48,810 buys what about $50,025 would buy in a typical U.S. metro. This job pays 0.8 times the median wage of all jobs in Durham ($60,720). A typical home costs $414,340, or 8.5 years of this average salary before tax.

See what $48,810 is worth in another city

Multiple Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic salary in other North Carolina cities

Durham ranks 5th of 10 North Carolina metro areas for this job; Charlotte pays the most ($54,330).

All Multiple Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic salaries in North Carolina

Highest-paying cities for multiple machine tool setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic

Dallas, TX pays this job the most of the metro areas we cover ($67,500).

Multiple Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic salary by city

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Multiple Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic salary in Durham: questions

How much do multiple machine tool setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic make an hour in Durham?

$23.47 an hour on average, and $22.29 at the median (BLS, May 2025).

What is the entry-level multiple machine tool setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic salary in Durham?

The lowest-paid 10% earn about $39,350 a year and the 25th percentile is $44,390, a fair guide to starting pay.

What is the multiple machine tool setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic take-home pay in Durham?

About $39,960 a year ($3,330 a month) for a single filer on the average salary of $48,810.

Do multiple machine tool setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic earn more in Durham than elsewhere?

The average here is about the same as the U.S. average for this job ($50,030).

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 51-4081; area Durham-Chapel Hill, NC (20500). Relative standard error of the mean wage: 2.1%.
  • U.S. and statewide figures: BLS OEWS national and state estimates, May 2025, every employer including rural areas.
  • 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).
  • Job concentration: location quotient 0.28, this job is less common than in the U.S. overall (location quotient 0.28).

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