---
title: "Millwright"
description: "Install, dismantle, or move machinery and heavy equipment according to layout plans, blueprints, or other drawings."
canonical: "https://nuecareer.com/careers/millwright"
last-updated: "2026-10-09T10:57:55.138Z"
---

# Millwright

**Category:** Installation, Maintenance, and Repair · **SOC code:** 49-9044 · **O\*NET-SOC code:** 49-9044.00

Install, dismantle, or move machinery and heavy equipment according to layout plans, blueprints, or other drawings.

Also advertised as: Maintenance Mechanic; Maintenance Millwright; Millwright; Millwright Business Representative (Millwright Business Rep); Millwright Foreman; Millwright General Foreman; Millwright Instructor; Precision Millwright.

## At a glance

- **Median annual wage:** $65,700 (BLS OEWS, May 2025)
- **Median hourly wage:** $31.59/hr
- **Wage range (10th–90th percentile):** $46,290 to $93,600, with the middle half between $56,390 and $81,500
- **Total US employment:** 40,330
- **Typical entry education:** High school
- **Preparation required:** Little or no preparation — O\*NET rates this "Job Zone 1-2: Very Little to Some Preparation Needed"
- **Projected growth:** +0.9% over 2025–2035 (BLS EP, 2025–2035)
- **Annual job openings:** 3,200 openings a year
- **AI-resilience score:** 67/100 — a NueCareer heuristic over O\*NET work activities and context, not a BLS or O\*NET figure

## Pay

National wage distribution, BLS OEWS, May 2025, across 40,330 US jobs.

| Percentile | Annual wage |
| --- | --- |
| 10th | $46,290 |
| 25th | $56,390 |
| 50th (median) | $65,700 |
| 75th | $81,500 |
| 90th | $93,600 |
| Mean (average) | $69,780 |

### Pay by state

The 15 highest-paying states, by median annual wage. The cost-of-living-adjusted column divides the state median by that state's BEA Regional Price Parity, so the columns answer different questions: the first is what the job pays there, the second is what that pay buys there.

| State | Median annual wage | Cost-of-living adjusted | Employment |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| NJ | $107,540 | $98,837 | 340 |
| NM | $90,230 | $97,851 | 60 |
| MI | $89,190 | $92,697 | 2,900 |
| WI | $82,630 | $87,816 | 1,220 |
| CO | $81,440 | $79,028 | 200 |
| KS | $79,690 | $88,478 | 840 |
| NY | $79,560 | $73,721 | 1,000 |
| MN | $78,570 | $79,669 | 480 |
| CA | $77,950 | $70,403 | 2,230 |
| IN | $77,140 | $82,654 | 1,760 |
| AK | $76,940 | $75,167 | 300 |
| CT | $76,810 | $74,134 | 110 |
| WA | $76,490 | $71,477 | 1,020 |
| NH | $76,190 | $73,144 | 80 |
| OH | $73,220 | $78,923 | 1,930 |

33 more states with published wage data are omitted here. The full table for all 48 states is at https://nuecareer.com/careers/millwright/salary-by-state, or as JSON at https://nuecareer.com/api/v1/careers/millwright.

## Outlook

BLS projects employment to move from 40,700 in the 2025–2035 base year to 41,000 by the end of the cycle — a gain of 400 jobs, or +0.9%. Slower than average: 0.9% against 3.5% projected for all occupations over the same cycle. About 3,200 openings a year are expected on average, counting openings from growth as well as from workers leaving the occupation permanently. Source: BLS EP, 2025–2035.

## How to get in

- **Typical entry education:** High school diploma or equivalent (BLS Employment Projections).
- **Preparation level:** Little or no preparation — O\*NET's preparation band for this occupation is "Job Zone 1-2: Very Little to Some Preparation Needed".
- **Related work experience typically required:** None.
- **Typical on-the-job training:** Apprenticeship.

### Education people in this job actually hold

O\*NET surveys incumbents, so this distribution describes who is in the job today and can differ from the BLS entry requirement above.

| Education level | Share of workers |
| --- | --- |
| High School Diploma or the equivalent (such as a GED) | 45.5% |
| Post-Secondary Certificate | 36.4% |
| Some College Courses | 9.1% |
| Less than a High School Diploma | 4.6% |
| Associate's Degree or other 2-year degree | 4.6% |

## What the work involves

- Replace defective parts of machine, or adjust clearances and alignment of moving parts.
- Align machines or equipment, using hoists, jacks, hand tools, squares, rules, micrometers, lasers, or plumb bobs.
- Insert shims, adjust tension on nuts and bolts, or position parts, using hand tools and measuring instruments, to set specified clearances between moving and stationary parts.
- Signal crane operator to lower basic assembly units to bedplate, and align unit to centerline.
- Conduct preventative maintenance and repair, and lubricate machines and equipment.
- Assemble and install equipment, using hand tools and power tools.
- Assemble machines, and bolt, weld, rivet, or otherwise fasten them to foundation or other structures, using hand tools and power tools.
- Move machinery and equipment, using hoists, dollies, rollers, and trucks.

## Skills and knowledge

### Essential skills

- Critical Thinking — importance 3.6 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Active Listening — importance 3.1 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Monitoring — importance 3.1 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Reading Comprehension — importance 3.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Speaking — importance 3.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Learning Strategies — importance 2.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Writing — importance 2.8 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Active Learning — importance 2.8 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale

### Transferable skills

These are the skills that carry into other occupations, and they drive the related-occupation and career-change rankings on this site.

- Installation — importance 3.8 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Equipment Maintenance — importance 3.8 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Troubleshooting — importance 3.8 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Operations Monitoring — importance 3.6 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Repairing — importance 3.6 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Operation and Control — importance 3.4 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Quality Control Analysis — importance 3.3 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Time Management — importance 3.3 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale

### Knowledge areas

- Mechanical — importance 4.8 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Mathematics — importance 4.4 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Building and Construction — importance 4.2 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Education and Training — importance 3.8 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Engineering and Technology — importance 3.5 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Public Safety and Security — importance 3.5 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale

### Abilities

- Manual Dexterity — importance 4.1 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Near Vision — importance 4.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Visualization — importance 3.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Arm-Hand Steadiness — importance 3.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Finger Dexterity — importance 3.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Control Precision — importance 3.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale

## Who it suits

O\*NET rates every occupation on the six Holland (RIASEC) interest areas, on a 1–7 scale. This occupation's strongest areas are Realistic (R), Conventional (C).

| Interest area | Score (1–7) |
| --- | --- |
| R — Realistic | 7.00 |
| C — Conventional | 3.63 |
| I — Investigative | 2.68 |
| A — Artistic | 1.59 |
| E — Enterprising | 1.09 |
| S — Social | 1.00 |

### Personality fit

These scores are **derived by NueCareer**, not published by any government agency: they are cosine similarities between a personality type's trait profile and this occupation's O\*NET interest and work-style ratings, expressed 0–100. Treat them as a starting point for exploration, not as evidence that a type belongs in a job.

| Type | Fit score (0–100) |
| --- | --- |
| ISTJ | 87.3 |
| ISTP | 80.2 |
| ISFJ | 69.9 |
| INTJ | 69.6 |
| ESTJ | 67.9 |

Best-fitting types: ISTJ.

## Related occupations

O\*NET's primary related occupations, in its own ranked order.

- [Aircraft Structure, Surface, Rigging, and Systems Assembler](https://nuecareer.com/careers/aircraft-structure-surface-rigging-and-systems-assembler) — median $65,380
- [Maintenance and Repair Worker, General](https://nuecareer.com/careers/maintenance-and-repair-worker-general) — median $49,590
- [Industrial Machinery Mechanic](https://nuecareer.com/careers/industrial-machinery-mechanic) — median $64,520
- [Engine and Other Machine Assembler](https://nuecareer.com/careers/engine-and-other-machine-assembler) — median $53,710
- [Boilermaker](https://nuecareer.com/careers/boilermaker) — median $76,410
- [Machinist](https://nuecareer.com/careers/machinist) — median $58,750
- [Structural Iron and Steel Worker](https://nuecareer.com/careers/structural-iron-and-steel-worker) — median $62,780
- [Mobile Heavy Equipment Mechanic, Except Engines](https://nuecareer.com/careers/mobile-heavy-equipment-mechanic) — median $65,510
- [Structural Metal Fabricator and Fitter](https://nuecareer.com/careers/structural-metal-fabricator-and-fitter) — median $51,330
- [Welding, Soldering, and Brazing Machine Setter, Operator, and Tender](https://nuecareer.com/careers/welding-soldering-and-brazing-machine-setter-operator-and-tender) — median $47,920

## Sources

- **O\*NET** — O\*NET 31.0 Database, August 2026. https://www.onetcenter.org/database.html
- **BLS OEWS** — BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. https://www.bls.gov/oes/
- **BLS EP** — BLS Employment Projections, Table 1.2, 2025–2035. https://www.bls.gov/emp/
- **BLS OOH** — BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2025–2035 edition. https://www.bls.gov/ooh/
- **BEA RPP** — BEA Regional Price Parities by State, 2024. https://www.bea.gov/data/prices-inflation/regional-price-parities-state-and-metro-area

---

This bank includes information from the O\*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). O\*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. NueCareer has transformed the data by joining it to BLS wage and projection data and deriving facet, personality-fit and AI-resilience scores. BLS and BEA data are public domain (17 U.S.C. §105).

O\*NET content is used under [CC BY 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). How these figures are sourced and derived: https://nuecareer.com/careers/methodology

JSON representation of this page: https://nuecareer.com/api/v1/careers/millwright