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Sewing Machine Operators · SOC 51-6031

Sewing Machine Operators Salary in the Waterloo Metro Area

Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA metro area

Figures describe the Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA metropolitan statistical area as defined by BLS/OMB — the whole multi-county metro region, not Waterloo city limits.

Median annual wage$34,310
Median hourly wage$16.49

Sewing Machine Operators in the Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA metro area earned a median of $34,310 per year ($16.49 per hour) as of the May 2025 BLS OEWS estimates. Pay ranged from $22,790 at the 10th percentile to $46,220 at the 90th. BLS estimates 60 people work in this occupation in the area.

Pay distribution

Half of Sewing Machine Operators in the Waterloo metro area earn more than $34,310 per year, half earn less; the middle half earn between $29,350 and $38,580.

Wage percentiles (BLS OEWS)
Wage10th25thMedian75th90th
Annual$22,790$29,350$34,310$38,580$46,220
Hourly$10.96$14.11$16.49$18.55$22.22

A percentile is a cut point: 25% of workers in this occupation and area earn less than the 25th-percentile wage. The median is the 50th percentile — half earn less, half earn more.

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How this area compares

  • Waterloo metro areathis metro area
    $34,310
  • Iowastate (IA)
    $35,870
  • United Statesnational
    $36,670

Bars span the 25th–75th percentile (the middle half of workers); the tick marks the median.

The median here is −4% vs Iowa overall and −6% vs the U.S. median for this occupation.

Compare with other areas

Where this metro sits nationally

$21,840$31,503$41,167$50,830Mayaguez, PR — $21,840San Juan-Bayamon-Caguas, PR — $22,190El Paso, TX — $22,400Arecibo, PR — $22,550Owensboro, KY — $25,980Elizabethtown, KY — $26,260San Angelo, TX — $27,010Fort Smith, AR-OK — $27,810Waco, TX — $28,230Charleston, WV — $28,430Wilmington, NC — $28,510Pinehurst-Southern Pines, NC — $28,560Lafayette, LA — $28,640Tyler, TX — $29,030Wichita Falls, TX — $29,110Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH — $29,210Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX — $29,230Rocky Mount, NC — $29,230Williamsport, PA — $29,260Greenville, NC — $29,280Burlington, NC — $29,570Panama City-Panama City Beach, FL — $29,590Fayetteville, NC — $29,640San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX — $29,760Lubbock, TX — $29,900Winston-Salem, NC — $30,150Johnstown, PA — $30,160Corpus Christi, TX — $30,300Dothan, AL — $30,320Saginaw, MI — $30,360Wichita, KS — $30,590Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL — $30,620Raleigh-Cary, NC — $30,960Canton-Massillon, OH — $31,000Joplin, MO-KS — $31,040Daphne-Fairhope-Foley, AL — $31,140New Orleans-Metairie, LA — $31,170Youngstown-Warren, OH — $31,170Jackson, MS — $31,200Michigan City-La Porte, IN — $31,200Salisbury, MD — $31,200Athens-Clarke County, GA — $31,360Amarillo, TX — $31,510Birmingham, AL — $31,840Anniston-Oxford, AL — $31,890Baton Rouge, LA — $31,950Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC — $32,120Vineland, NJ — $32,220Bowling Green, KY — $32,230Gainesville, FL — $32,470Greensboro-High Point, NC — $32,470South Bend-Mishawaka, IN-MI — $32,470Utica-Rome, NY — $32,480Clarksville, TN-KY — $32,690Decatur, AL — $32,770Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN — $32,930Peoria, IL — $33,060Montgomery, AL — $33,330Johnson City, TN — $33,420Columbus, GA-AL — $33,440Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX — $33,530Knoxville, TN — $33,680Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL — $33,700Morristown, TN — $33,850Albuquerque, NM — $33,860Idaho Falls, ID — $33,990Memphis, TN-MS-AR — $33,990Waterbury-Shelton, CT — $34,010Rockford, IL — $34,060Mobile, AL — $34,110Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, FL — $34,170Dalton, GA — $34,180Oklahoma City, OK — $34,260St. George, UT — $34,300Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA — $34,310Logan, UT-ID — $34,360Tulsa, OK — $34,500Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN — $34,680Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR — $34,820Durham-Chapel Hill, NC — $34,850Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC — $34,940Kalamazoo-Portage, MI — $34,960Jacksonville, FL — $35,010Hagerstown-Martinsburg, MD-WV — $35,120Lafayette-West Lafayette, IN — $35,120Pensacola-Ferry Pass-Brent, FL — $35,180Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX — $35,260Richmond, VA — $35,310Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL — $35,320North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota, FL — $35,360Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD — $35,360Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA — $35,380Columbus, OH — $35,420Pittsburgh, PA — $35,440Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach, FL — $35,510Salt Lake City-Murray, UT — $35,550Lancaster, PA — $35,630Santa Fe, NM — $35,660Ocala, FL — $35,690Fargo, ND-MN — $35,730Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC — $35,730Cedar Rapids, IA — $35,740Cleveland, OH — $35,760Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ — $35,820Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD — $35,860Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX — $35,890Rochester, NY — $35,930Ogden, UT — $36,040Savannah, GA — $36,100Trenton-Princeton, NJ — $36,150Lexington-Fayette, KY — $36,170Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN — $36,220Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL — $36,220Akron, OH — $36,230Eugene-Springfield, OR — $36,230Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL — $36,240Terre Haute, IN — $36,250Longview, TX — $36,290Provo-Orem-Lehi, UT — $36,290Sioux City, IA-NE-SD — $36,300Springfield, MO — $36,300Huntsville, AL — $36,340Odessa, TX — $36,380Cleveland, TN — $36,400Lebanon, PA — $36,530Toledo, OH — $36,580Dayton-Kettering-Beavercreek, OH — $36,630Kansas City, MO-KS — $36,640New Haven, CT — $36,700Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA — $36,720Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL — $36,730Bakersfield-Delano, CA — $36,740Roanoke, VA — $36,750Duluth, MN-WI — $36,780Boise City, ID — $36,800Chattanooga, TN-GA — $36,800St. Louis, MO-IL — $36,800Green Bay, WI — $36,820La Crosse-Onalaska, WI-MN — $36,820Indianapolis-Carmel-Greenwood, IN — $36,910Erie, PA — $36,990Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL — $37,020Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR — $37,060Fort Wayne, IN — $37,090Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA — $37,130Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY — $37,180Lincoln, NE — $37,200Asheville, NC — $37,210Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA — $37,270Ann Arbor, MI — $37,350Jackson, TN — $37,380Omaha, NE-IA — $37,380Urban Honolulu, HI — $37,480Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TN — $37,500Racine-Mount Pleasant, WI — $37,550Atlantic City-Hammonton, NJ — $37,620New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ — $37,780Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY — $37,790Reading, PA — $37,820Syracuse, NY — $37,850Gainesville, GA — $37,890Traverse City, MI — $37,900Modesto, CA — $38,100Charleston-North Charleston, SC — $38,110Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI — $38,130Flint, MI — $38,130Providence-Warwick, RI-MA — $38,160Springfield, OH — $38,190Salem, OR — $38,200Colorado Springs, CO — $38,270Fresno, CA — $38,270Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT — $38,340Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA — $38,420Springfield, MA — $38,440Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI — $38,480Missoula, MT — $38,490Naples-Marco Island, FL — $38,500Spartanburg, SC — $38,530San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles, CA — $38,550Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI — $38,600Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA — $38,610Sioux Falls, SD-MN — $38,610Scranton--Wilkes-Barre, PA — $38,630Medford, OR — $38,700Greeley, CO — $39,040Greenville-Anderson-Greer, SC — $39,070Manchester-Nashua, NH — $39,070San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA — $39,070Wausau, WI — $39,110Dubuque, IA — $39,120Worcester, MA — $39,350Kingston, NY — $39,370Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA — $39,420York-Hanover, PA — $39,430Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA — $39,570Bozeman, MT — $39,610Bellingham, WA — $39,650Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA — $39,800Fond du Lac, WI — $39,810Madison, WI — $40,040Elkhart-Goshen, IN — $40,130Janesville-Beloit, WI — $40,130Grand Junction, CO — $40,450Merced, CA — $40,630Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ — $40,910Binghamton, NY — $41,330Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV — $41,410Tucson, AZ — $41,660Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA — $41,980Fort Collins-Loveland, CO — $42,040Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA — $42,080Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI — $42,300Burlington-South Burlington, VT — $42,480Napa, CA — $42,550Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH — $42,970Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT — $43,370Stockton-Lodi, CA — $43,500Kiryas Joel-Poughkeepsie-Newburgh, NY — $43,650Reno, NV — $43,730Boulder, CO — $43,740Evansville, IN — $43,800Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA — $44,350Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA — $44,350Lewiston-Auburn, ME — $44,670Columbia, SC — $44,810San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA — $44,880Portland-South Portland, ME — $45,160Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO — $45,210Bangor, ME — $46,060Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC — $46,540Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard, WA — $47,220San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA — $47,220Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas, NV — $48,190Appleton, WI — $48,460Glens Falls, NY — $50,000Bend, OR — $50,830

Each dot is one metro area with a published median — hover any dot for the name and figure. Metros without published estimates are not drawn.

The Waterloo metro area has the 162nd-highest published median for this occupation among the 236 metro areas where BLS publishes it. Higher medians often track higher living costs — this is a pay comparison, not a ranking of where the job is “best”.

Other metro areas in Iowa

Metro areas in the same state with published May 2025 medians for sewing machine operators, highest first. Areas without published estimates are not listed.

  • Waterloo metro areathis page
    $34,310
  • Dubuque metro area
    $39,120
  • Des Moines metro area
    $37,270
  • Sioux City metro area
    $36,300
  • Davenport metro area
    $36,220
  • Cedar Rapids metro area
    $35,740

Bars span the 25th–75th percentile (the middle half of workers); the tick marks the median.

Keep exploring

Other occupations in the same SOC group with published medians here, largest employment first:

Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators$50,310Computer Numerically Controlled Tool Operators$51,600Inspectors, Testers, Sorters, Samplers, and Weighers$51,250Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers$51,080First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers$75,370Helpers--Production Workers$48,520

Highest-paying metro areas for sewing machine operatorss · Highest-paying occupations in Waterloo Metro

About this estimate

These figures are survey estimates from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program — modeled from employer reports collected over three years and benchmarked to May 2025. They describe what employers in this area currently pay across all industries, not what any individual worker will be offered.

Employment counts wage-and-salary jobs in the occupation (self-employed workers are excluded). Estimates carry sampling error; percentile wages are rounded by BLS. Some values are suppressed by BLS for confidentiality or quality — suppressed values appear here as “not published”, never as zero. Read the full methodology.

About this data. Estimates are from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program, May 2025 release, retrieved from bls.gov/oes/tables.htm on July 24, 2026. OEWS estimates describe metropolitan/nonmetropolitan areas and states — not city limits — and are not designed for year-over-year comparisons. See BLS methodology, our plain-English methodology, and sources. CitySalaryData is independent and not affiliated with BLS.