Lathe and Turning Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic Salary

Yes — at the median salary of $72K, rent takes 25.6% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,187/month. That stays under the 30% guideline most financial planners use.

The 10th-percentile wage — what new lathe and turning machine tool setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastics typically earn — is $56K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $3,374/month.

Local pay is 42% above the national median — $72K here vs. $51K nationally.

Colorado pays $72K median vs. the U.S. average of $51K — that’s +42%.

The median is $71,670 a year, that works out to about $34 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $56,230, and experienced lathe and turning machine tool setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastics can clear $91,160. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.

On that salary, you'd take home roughly $4,638/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,187/month, which eats 25.6% of your paycheck. That's under the 30% guideline most financial planners use, so the numbers work.

Colorado has a Regional Price Parity of 100 (100 is the national average). That's right at the national average. After cost-of-living adjustment, the median lathe and turning machine tool setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic salary is worth about $71,670 in national-average purchasing power.

The table above ranks every state by median pay for this role. Keep in mind that the highest-paying states tend to have the highest costs of living, so the top salary doesn't always mean the most money in your pocket.