• Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics

Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2023

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).

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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)
110,320	0.9 %	$ 29.93	$ 62,250	0.3 %

Percentile wage estimates for Surgical Technologists:

Percentile	10%	25%	50% (Median)	75%	90%
Hourly Wage	$ 19.54	$ 24.01	$ 29.14	$ 34.86	$ 39.98
Annual Wage (2)	$ 40,640	$ 49,940	$ 60,610	$ 72,520	$ 83,150

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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	75,030	1.31	$ 29.98	$ 62,350
Offices of Physicians	12,580	0.44	$ 28.40	$ 59,060
Outpatient Care Centers	12,420	1.17	$ 30.98	$ 64,440
Employment Services	3,700	0.10	$ 32.33	$ 67,240
Offices of Dentists	2,480	0.24	$ 22.72	$ 47,250

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	75,030	1.31	$ 29.98	$ 62,350
Outpatient Care Centers	12,420	1.17	$ 30.98	$ 64,440
Offices of Physicians	12,580	0.44	$ 28.40	$ 59,060
Specialty (except Psychiatric and Substance Abuse) Hospitals	1,250	0.44	$ 33.03	$ 68,710
Offices of Dentists	2,480	0.24	$ 22.72	$ 47,250

Top paying industries for Surgical Technologists:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Medical and Diagnostic Laboratories	110	0.04	$ 37.80	$ 78,620
Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services	290	0.02	$ 37.07	$ 77,100
Office Administrative Services	(8)	(8)	$ 35.96	$ 74,790
Management of Companies and Enterprises	50	(7)	$ 33.81	$ 70,330
Scientific Research and Development Services	(8)	(8)	$ 33.25	$ 69,170

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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.

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	11,100	0.62	0.85	$ 36.62	$ 76,170
Texas	9,460	0.70	0.96	$ 28.88	$ 60,070
Florida	8,430	0.88	1.21	$ 27.28	$ 56,730
New York	5,190	0.55	0.76	$ 35.17	$ 73,150
Pennsylvania	4,380	0.74	1.01	$ 28.32	$ 58,900

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)
Arkansas	1,540	1.21	1.66	$ 24.08	$ 50,080
South Dakota	530	1.20	1.66	$ 24.58	$ 51,120
Oklahoma	1,940	1.17	1.61	$ 26.17	$ 54,430
Alabama	2,330	1.13	1.56	$ 22.14	$ 46,060
South Carolina	2,420	1.09	1.50	$ 26.72	$ 55,570

Top paying states for Surgical Technologists:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Connecticut	1,170	0.71	0.97	$ 38.02	$ 79,080
California	11,100	0.62	0.85	$ 36.62	$ 76,170
Nevada	970	0.65	0.90	$ 35.48	$ 73,800
Washington	2,100	0.60	0.83	$ 35.38	$ 73,580
Alaska	290	0.92	1.27	$ 35.31	$ 73,440

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	5,680	0.60	0.82	$ 36.39	$ 75,700
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA	4,270	0.69	0.95	$ 32.56	$ 67,720
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX	2,660	0.67	0.92	$ 31.19	$ 64,870
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX	2,280	0.72	0.99	$ 30.43	$ 63,290
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI	2,230	0.50	0.68	$ 30.27	$ 62,950
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA	2,050	0.73	1.00	$ 30.00	$ 62,390
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL	1,930	0.71	0.97	$ 29.28	$ 60,900
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD	1,910	0.68	0.93	$ 30.00	$ 62,390
Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH	1,740	0.63	0.87	$ 34.98	$ 72,760
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ	1,690	0.74	1.02	$ 32.04	$ 66,640

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)
Florence, SC	230	2.59	3.57	$ 26.28	$ 54,650
Hattiesburg, MS	150	2.43	3.35	$ 24.84	$ 51,670
Bloomsburg-Berwick, PA	100	2.34	3.22	$ 26.10	$ 54,280
Morgantown, WV	140	2.20	3.03	$ 24.79	$ 51,570
Carbondale-Marion, IL	110	2.11	2.90	$ 25.51	$ 53,070
Rochester, MN	250	2.07	2.85	$ 35.17	$ 73,150
Dothan, AL	120	2.04	2.81	$ 18.65	$ 38,800
Jonesboro, AR	110	1.95	2.68	$ 23.86	$ 49,630
Enid, OK	40	1.86	2.55	$ 25.73	$ 53,520
Idaho Falls, ID	140	1.83	2.51	$ 26.07	$ 54,220