Riggers Salary
Riggers in St. Louis, MO-IL make a median of $81,350 a year, or about $39.11 an hour. The range runs from $47K at the entry level to $84K for experienced workers. Adjusted for local prices (RPP 95.09), that's roughly $85,551 in purchasing power. Rent on a 2-bedroom averages $1,218/month, or 23.7% of estimated take-home pay.
So what does $81K get you in St. Louis?
Groceries, utilities, transportation, and healthcare scaled from national averages by St. Louis’s Regional Price Parity (95.09). Rent from HUD Fair Market Rents. Taxes estimated for single filer, standard deduction. * Healthcare is the employee-paid share only (premiums + out-of-pocket). Actual costs vary by coverage type: employer-sponsored, ACA marketplace, or uninsured.
About riggers
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What this looks like in St. Louis
St. Louis sits well above the national pay line for riggers, local pay runs about 30% higher than the U.S. median of $63K. Housing is manageable: a 2-bedroom at the HUD median costs $1,218/month, 23.4% of take-home, well inside the 30% guideline. Cost of living (RPP 95.09) is near the national average, so spending patterns here track the typical American budget fairly closely. Combined with manageable housing costs, St. Louis offers a genuinely strong financial position for riggerss at the median.
Compared to nearby metros
Median pay for riggers in metros near St. Louis, adjusted for local cost of living.
| Metro | Median pay | COL-adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| Omaha | $63K | $68K |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin | $82K | $79K |
| Knoxville | $38K | $42K |
| Tulsa | $45K | $50K |
COL-adjusted = median salary ÷ (BEA Regional Price Parity ÷ 100). Expresses purchasing power in national-average dollars.
Compensation breakdown
Annual earnings by percentile, St. Louis, MO-IL
Entry-level riggers (10th percentile) start around $47K. Mid-career wages sit at $81K. Top earners bring in $84K or more, a $37K spread from bottom to top.
Riggers pay across states
Median income ranked highest to lowest, compared to the national figure
View Riggers salary in all states
| State | Median salary | vs. national | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| New York | $106K | +69% | 650 |
| Oregon | $94K | +51% | 290 |
| Utah | $94K | +49% | 490 |
| Maryland | $91K | +46% | 230 |
| Minnesota | $87K | +39% | 190 |
| California | $86K | +37% | 2,260 |
| Hawaii | $84K | +35% | 170 |
| New Jersey | $82K | +31% | 200 |
| Illinois | $82K | +31% | 120 |
| Nevada | $82K | +30% | 860 |
| North Dakota | $78K | +24% | 140 |
| Washington | $77K | +23% | 910 |
| Colorado | $74K | +18% | 310 |
| Idaho | $73K | +16% | 60 |
| Connecticut | $68K | +8% | 350 |
| Georgia | $67K | +7% | 700 |
| Maine | $65K | +4% | 330 |
| Rhode Island | $64K | +3% | 160 |
| Virginia | $64K | +2% | 1,920 |
| Mississippi | $63K | +1% | 320 |
| Iowa | $62K | -0% | 200 |
| Nebraska | $61K | -2% | 100 |
| Pennsylvania | $60K | -4% | 360 |
| Arkansas | $60K | -5% | 120 |
| Michigan | $58K | -7% | 380 |
| Ohio | $58K | -7% | 290 |
| Alaska | $58K | -7% | 40 |
| Alabama | $58K | -7% | 460 |
| North Carolina | $57K | -10% | 440 |
| Missouri | $54K | -13% | 190 |
| Massachusetts | $54K | -15% | 240 |
| Florida | $52K | -16% | 910 |
| Arizona | $52K | -16% | 250 |
| Texas | $52K | -17% | 3,770 |
| South Carolina | $51K | -19% | 470 |
| Kentucky | $50K | -20% | N/A |
| Wisconsin | $50K | -21% | 170 |
| Oklahoma | $48K | -23% | 300 |
| Tennessee | $47K | -25% | 310 |
| Indiana | $46K | -26% | 330 |
| Louisiana | $44K | -30% | 1,840 |
| Kansas | $41K | -34% | 40 |
| New Mexico | $37K | -40% | 230 |
Showing 1–10 of 43 states with published data
BLS does not publish data for every state when sample sizes are too small
Track riggers salary changes
BLS updates this data quarterly. We'll email you when St. Louis numbers change.
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Frequently asked questions
Can a rigger afford a 2BR apartment alone in St. Louis?
Yes — at the median salary of $81K, rent takes 23.4% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,218/month. That stays under the 30% guideline most financial planners use.
What’s the entry-level salary for riggers in St. Louis?
The 10th-percentile wage — what new riggers typically earn — is $47K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $2,790/month. At HUD’s $1,218/month FMR, rent would take 44% of that take-home — above the 30% guideline, so a 1-bedroom or shared housing is likely necessary starting out.
Is rigger a high-paying job in St. Louis?
Local pay is 30% above the national median — $81K here vs. $63K nationally.
How does St. Louis compare to the national average for riggers?
St. Louis pays $81K median vs. the U.S. average of $63K — that’s +30%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 95.09), the purchasing-power equivalent is $86K — still ahead of the national median.
How much do riggers make in St. Louis, MO-IL?
The median is $81,350 a year, that works out to about $39 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $46,500, and experienced riggers can clear $83,610. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.
Is $81K enough to live in St. Louis?
On that salary, you'd take home roughly $5,210/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,218/month, which eats 23.4% of your paycheck. That's under the 30% guideline most financial planners use, so the numbers work.
How far does a riggers salary go in St. Louis?
St. Louis has a Regional Price Parity of 95.09 (100 is the national average). That's below average, your money stretches further here than the raw salary number suggests. After cost-of-living adjustment, the median riggers salary is worth about $85,551 in national-average purchasing power.
Where do riggers get paid the most?
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.