---
title: "Motorboat Mechanic and Service Technician"
description: "Repair and adjust electrical and mechanical equipment of inboard or inboard-outboard boat engines."
canonical: "https://nuecareer.com/careers/motorboat-mechanic-and-service-technician"
last-updated: "2026-10-09T10:57:55.138Z"
---

# Motorboat Mechanic and Service Technician

**Category:** Installation, Maintenance, and Repair · **SOC code:** 49-3051 · **O\*NET-SOC code:** 49-3051.00

Repair and adjust electrical and mechanical equipment of inboard or inboard-outboard boat engines.

Also advertised as: Boat Mechanic; Boat Motor Mechanic; Boat Rigger; Marine Mechanic; Marine Propulsion Technician; Marine Technician; Mechanic; Outboard Motor Mechanic.

## At a glance

- **Median annual wage:** $57,550 (BLS OEWS, May 2025)
- **Median hourly wage:** $27.67/hr
- **Wage range (10th–90th percentile):** $36,950 to $79,330, with the middle half between $46,750 and $66,620
- **Total US employment:** 23,220
- **Typical entry education:** High school
- **Preparation required:** Some preparation — O\*NET rates this "Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed"
- **Projected growth:** +4.9% over 2025–2035 (BLS EP, 2025–2035)
- **Annual job openings:** 2,600 openings a year
- **AI-resilience score:** 65/100 — 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 23,220 US jobs.

| Percentile | Annual wage |
| --- | --- |
| 10th | $36,950 |
| 25th | $46,750 |
| 50th (median) | $57,550 |
| 75th | $66,620 |
| 90th | $79,330 |
| Mean (average) | $58,070 |

### 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 |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| HI | $77,740 | $70,704 | 150 |
| MA | $74,160 | $70,123 | 890 |
| AK | $72,520 | $70,849 | 160 |
| VT | $72,350 | $73,858 | 50 |
| NJ | $71,880 | $66,063 | 250 |
| OR | $66,460 | $64,299 | 140 |
| CT | $63,480 | $61,268 | 560 |
| VA | $63,450 | $62,757 | Not published by BLS |
| WA | $63,020 | $58,890 | 750 |
| CA | $62,330 | $56,295 | 1,230 |
| MN | $61,010 | $61,863 | 500 |
| ND | $60,990 | $68,560 | 70 |
| ME | $60,510 | $62,349 | 340 |
| MD | $60,310 | $57,461 | 420 |
| DE | $60,230 | $60,346 | 130 |

35 more states with published wage data are omitted here. The full table for all 50 states is at https://nuecareer.com/careers/motorboat-mechanic-and-service-technician/salary-by-state, or as JSON at https://nuecareer.com/api/v1/careers/motorboat-mechanic-and-service-technician.

## Outlook

BLS projects employment to move from 25,000 in the 2025–2035 base year to 26,200 by the end of the cycle — a gain of 1,200 jobs, or +4.9%. Faster than average: 4.9% against 3.5% projected for all occupations over the same cycle. About 2,600 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:** Some preparation — O\*NET's preparation band for this occupation is "Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed".
- **Related work experience typically required:** None.
- **Typical on-the-job training:** Long-term on-the-job training.

### 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 |
| --- | --- |
| Post-Secondary Certificate | 53.7% |
| High School Diploma or the equivalent (such as a GED) | 23.6% |
| Some College Courses | 11.5% |
| Less than a High School Diploma | 6.6% |
| Associate's Degree or other 2-year degree | 4.5% |

## What the work involves

- Repair engine mechanical equipment, such as power tilts, bilge pumps, or power take-offs.
- Mount motors to boats, and operate boats at various speeds on waterways to conduct operational tests.
- Perform routine engine maintenance on motorboats, such as changing oil and filters.
- Inspect and repair or adjust propellers or propeller shafts.
- Start motors and monitor performance for signs of malfunctioning, such as smoke, excessive vibration, or misfiring.
- Replace parts, such as gears, magneto points, piston rings, or spark plugs, and reassemble engines.
- Adjust carburetor mixtures, electrical point settings, or timing while motors are running in water-filled test tanks.
- Document inspection and test results and work performed or to be performed.

## Skills and knowledge

### Essential skills

- Critical Thinking — importance 3.4 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Active Listening — importance 3.1 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Speaking — importance 3.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Monitoring — importance 2.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Reading Comprehension — importance 2.8 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Writing — importance 2.5 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Active Learning — importance 2.4 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Mathematics — importance 2.3 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.

- Repairing — importance 4.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Equipment Maintenance — importance 3.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Troubleshooting — importance 3.8 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Operation and Control — importance 3.6 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Operations Monitoring — importance 3.5 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Complex Problem Solving — importance 3.1 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Equipment Selection — importance 3.1 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Quality Control Analysis — importance 3.1 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale

### Knowledge areas

- Mechanical — importance 4.8 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Customer and Personal Service — importance 3.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Computers and Electronics — importance 3.5 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- English Language — importance 3.5 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Mathematics — importance 3.3 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Engineering and Technology — importance 3.3 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale

### Abilities

- Problem Sensitivity — importance 3.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Deductive Reasoning — importance 3.8 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Inductive Reasoning — importance 3.8 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Arm-Hand Steadiness — importance 3.8 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Manual Dexterity — importance 3.8 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Finger Dexterity — importance 3.6 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 | 3.88 |
| I — Investigative | 2.86 |
| E — Enterprising | 1.61 |
| S — Social | 1.01 |
| A — Artistic | 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 | 90.0 |
| ISTP | 79.6 |
| ESTJ | 72.7 |
| ISFJ | 71.3 |
| INTJ | 69.2 |

Best-fitting types: ISTJ.

## Related occupations

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

- [Bus and Truck Mechanic and Diesel Engine Specialist](https://nuecareer.com/careers/bus-and-truck-mechanic-and-diesel-engine-specialist) — median $61,770
- [Electric Motor, Power Tool, and Related Repairer](https://nuecareer.com/careers/electric-motor-power-tool-and-related-repairer) — median $56,210
- [Motorcycle Mechanic](https://nuecareer.com/careers/motorcycle-mechanic) — median $48,580
- [Outdoor Power Equipment and Other Small Engine Mechanic](https://nuecareer.com/careers/outdoor-power-equipment-and-other-small-engine-mechanic) — median $47,880
- [Automotive Service Technician and Mechanic](https://nuecareer.com/careers/automotive-service-technician-and-mechanic) — median $50,620
- [Engine and Other Machine Assembler](https://nuecareer.com/careers/engine-and-other-machine-assembler) — median $53,710
- [Mobile Heavy Equipment Mechanic, Except Engines](https://nuecareer.com/careers/mobile-heavy-equipment-mechanic) — median $65,510
- [Aircraft Mechanic](https://nuecareer.com/careers/aircraft-mechanic) — median $79,870
- [Control and Valve Installer and Repairer, Except Mechanical Door](https://nuecareer.com/careers/control-and-valve-installer-and-repairer) — median $74,340
- [Ship Engineer](https://nuecareer.com/careers/ship-engineer) — median $109,530

## 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/motorboat-mechanic-and-service-technician