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Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics

Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2022

29-2055 Surgical Technologists

Assist in operations, under the supervision of surgeons, registered nurses, or other surgical personnel. May help set up operating room, prepare and transport patients for surgery, adjust lights and equipment, pass instruments and other supplies to surgeons and surgeons’ assistants, hold retractors, cut sutures, and help count sponges, needles, supplies, and instruments. Excludes “Surgical Assistants” (29-9093).


National estimates for Surgical Technologists
Industry profile for Surgical Technologists
Geographic profile for Surgical Technologists

National estimates for Surgical Technologists:

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Surgical Technologists:

Employment (1) Employment
RSE (3)
Mean hourly
wage
Mean annual
wage (2)
Wage RSE (3)
107,400 0.9 % $ 27.64 $ 57,500 0.3 %

Percentile wage estimates for Surgical Technologists:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median)
75% 90%
Hourly Wage $ 18.68 $ 23.01 $ 26.91 $ 30.94 $ 37.77
Annual Wage (2) $ 38,860 $ 47,860 $ 55,960 $ 64,360 $ 78,560


Industry profile for Surgical Technologists:

Industries with the highest published employment and wages for Surgical Technologists are provided. For a list of all industries with employment in Surgical Technologists, see the Create Customized Tables function.

Industries with the highest levels of employment in Surgical Technologists:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals 75,050 1.34 $ 27.64 $ 57,490
Outpatient Care Centers 12,750 1.25 $ 28.96 $ 60,230
Offices of Physicians 12,490 0.45 $ 26.46 $ 55,030
Employment Services 2,210 0.06 $ 25.10 $ 52,210
Specialty (except Psychiatric and Substance Abuse) Hospitals 1,260 0.46 $ 30.74 $ 63,930

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Surgical Technologists:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals 75,050 1.34 $ 27.64 $ 57,490
Outpatient Care Centers 12,750 1.25 $ 28.96 $ 60,230
Specialty (except Psychiatric and Substance Abuse) Hospitals 1,260 0.46 $ 30.74 $ 63,930
Offices of Physicians 12,490 0.45 $ 26.46 $ 55,030
Other Ambulatory Health Care Services 450 0.14 $ 28.72 $ 59,740

Top paying industries for Surgical Technologists:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Medical and Diagnostic Laboratories 180 0.06 $ 34.34 $ 71,430
Home Health Care Services 30 (7) $ 32.39 $ 67,370
Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools 500 0.02 $ 32.30 $ 67,180
Scientific Research and Development Services (8) (8) $ 31.60 $ 65,720
Specialty (except Psychiatric and Substance Abuse) Hospitals 1,260 0.46 $ 30.74 $ 63,930


Geographic profile for Surgical Technologists:

States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for Surgical Technologists are provided. For a list of all areas with employment in Surgical Technologists, see the Create Customized Tables function.



Map of employment of surgical technologists by state, May 2022


States with the highest employment level in Surgical Technologists:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
California 10,810 0.61 0.84 $ 35.03 $ 72,860
Texas 9,110 0.70 0.97 $ 25.93 $ 53,930
Florida 8,750 0.95 1.31 $ 25.11 $ 52,230
New York 5,700 0.63 0.86 $ 31.08 $ 64,640
Michigan 3,950 0.93 1.28 $ 24.89 $ 51,780


Map of location quotient of surgical technologists by state, May 2022


States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Surgical Technologists:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
South Dakota 520 1.20 1.66 $ 22.88 $ 47,590
Louisiana 2,140 1.16 1.59 $ 22.82 $ 47,470
Arkansas 1,410 1.14 1.57 $ 22.47 $ 46,740
Alabama 2,260 1.13 1.55 $ 20.89 $ 43,440
Oklahoma 1,810 1.12 1.55 $ 23.83 $ 49,560


Map of annual mean wages of surgical technologists by state, May 2022


Top paying states for Surgical Technologists:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Alaska 260 0.86 1.18 $ 35.56 $ 73,960
California 10,810 0.61 0.84 $ 35.03 $ 72,860
Connecticut 1,180 0.72 1.00 $ 34.34 $ 71,430
Nevada 1,040 0.73 1.01 $ 33.32 $ 69,300
Washington 2,150 0.63 0.87 $ 32.01 $ 66,590



Map of employment of surgical technologists by area, May 2022


Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Surgical Technologists:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA 5,850 0.64 0.88 $ 32.86 $ 68,360
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA 3,630 0.60 0.82 $ 32.97 $ 68,580
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL 2,750 1.05 1.44 $ 25.96 $ 54,000
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI 2,520 0.57 0.79 $ 28.04 $ 58,320
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX 2,390 0.63 0.86 $ 27.75 $ 57,710
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX 2,230 0.73 1.01 $ 27.47 $ 57,140
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA 1,990 0.73 1.00 $ 28.12 $ 58,500
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD 1,760 0.64 0.88 $ 27.56 $ 57,310
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ 1,750 0.79 1.08 $ 28.83 $ 59,970
Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI 1,690 0.91 1.25 $ 25.23 $ 52,480


Map of location quotient of surgical technologists by area, May 2022


Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Surgical Technologists:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Hattiesburg, MS 190 2.98 4.11 $ 23.13 $ 48,110
Carbondale-Marion, IL 110 2.08 2.87 $ 24.02 $ 49,960
Rochester, MN 240 2.08 2.86 $ 30.86 $ 64,180
Enid, OK 50 2.08 2.86 $ 22.80 $ 47,420
Dothan, AL 110 1.98 2.73 $ 18.48 $ 38,440
Morgantown, WV 130 1.96 2.70 $ 23.87 $ 49,640
Ann Arbor, MI 400 1.90 2.61 $ 26.55 $ 55,220
Sebastian-Vero Beach, FL 100 1.87 2.57 $ 25.94 $ 53,950
Florence, SC 160 1.84 2.53 $ 23.63 $ 49,150
Owensboro, KY 90 1.81 2.50 $ 23.44 $ 48,760


Map of annual mean wages of surgical technologists by area, May 2022


Top paying metropolitan areas for Surgical Technologists:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA 1,590 0.67 0.92 $ 41.92 $ 87,200
Vallejo-Fairfield, CA 120 0.86 1.18 $ 41.31 $ 85,910
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA 680 0.61 0.83 $ 40.88 $ 85,030
Napa, CA 40 0.49 0.68 $ 39.83 $ 82,840
Santa Rosa, CA 120 0.60 0.82 $ 39.49 $ 82,140
Sacramento--Roseville--Arden-Arcade, CA 610 0.59 0.82 $ 38.99 $ 81,090
Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA 60 0.60 0.82 $ 38.38 $ 79,830
Danbury, CT 80 1.01 1.39 $ 36.06 $ 75,010
Anchorage, AK 190 1.13 1.56 $ 35.97 $ 74,820
Modesto, CA 190 0.99 1.37 $ 35.86 $ 74,580

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in Surgical Technologists:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
West Kentucky nonmetropolitan area 210 1.44 1.98 $ 23.64 $ 49,160
South Central Kentucky nonmetropolitan area 210 1.26 1.74 $ 23.25 $ 48,360
Kansas nonmetropolitan area 200 0.51 0.71 $ 21.37 $ 44,450
Northeast Mississippi nonmetropolitan area 170 0.77 1.06 $ 19.06 $ 39,650
Piedmont North Carolina nonmetropolitan area 170 0.68 0.94 $ 23.28 $ 48,430

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Surgical Technologists:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
East Kentucky nonmetropolitan area 160 1.62 2.23 $ 21.96 $ 45,680
West Kentucky nonmetropolitan area 210 1.44 1.98 $ 23.64 $ 49,160
West Central-Southwest New Hampshire nonmetropolitan area 140 1.41 1.94 $ 25.01 $ 52,020
Upper Savannah South Carolina nonmetropolitan area 110 1.38 1.89 $ 23.40 $ 48,670
Northeast South Carolina nonmetropolitan area 130 1.37 1.88 $ 20.29 $ 42,210

Top paying nonmetropolitan areas for Surgical Technologists:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Eastern Oregon nonmetropolitan area 40 0.50 0.69 $ 40.38 $ 83,990
Eastern Sierra-Mother Lode Region of California nonmetropolitan area 50 0.76 1.04 $ 36.42 $ 75,760
Alaska nonmetropolitan area 40 0.36 0.49 $ 35.92 $ 74,710
North Valley-Northern Mountains Region of California nonmetropolitan area 50 0.52 0.72 $ 35.61 $ 74,080
Northwest Colorado nonmetropolitan area 110 0.86 1.18 $ 32.70 $ 68,020


About May 2022 National, State, Metropolitan, and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

These estimates are calculated with data collected from employers in all industry sectors, all metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas, and all states and the District of Columbia. The top employment and wage figures are provided above. The complete list is available in the downloadable XLS files.

The percentile wage estimate is the value of a wage below which a certain percent of workers fall. The median wage is the 50th percentile wage estimate—50 percent of workers earn less than the median and 50 percent of workers earn more than the median. More about percentile wages.


(1) Estimates for detailed occupations do not sum to the totals because the totals include occupations not shown separately. Estimates do not include self-employed workers.

(2) Annual wages have been calculated by multiplying the hourly mean wage by a "year-round, full-time" hours figure of 2,080 hours; for those occupations where there is not an hourly wage published, the annual wage has been directly calculated from the reported survey data.

(3) The relative standard error (RSE) is a measure of the reliability of a survey statistic. The smaller the relative standard error, the more precise the estimate.

(7) The value is less than .005 percent of industry employment.

(8) Estimate not released.

(9) The location quotient is the ratio of the area concentration of occupational employment to the national average concentration. A location quotient greater than one indicates the occupation has a higher share of employment than average, and a location quotient less than one indicates the occupation is less prevalent in the area than average.


Other OEWS estimates and related information:

May 2022 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2022 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2022 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2022 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2022 Occupation Profiles

Technical Notes

 

Last Modified Date: April 25, 2023