Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood Salary
The median pay for a sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, wood in Richmond, VA is $35,790/year ($17.21/hour), per BLS data. The range runs from $31K at the entry level to $45K for experienced workers. Adjusted for local prices (RPP 97.86), that's roughly $36,573 in purchasing power. A 2-bedroom apartment runs $1,655/month, about 67.8% of take-home, which is tight.
Where the paycheck goes
What $36K actually covers in Richmond, month by month
Groceries, utilities, transportation, and healthcare scaled from national averages by Richmond’s Regional Price Parity (97.86). 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 sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, woods
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What this looks like in Richmond
Pay for sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, wood in Richmond runs about 16% below the U.S. median of $43K. The catch: housing math doesn't keep up. A 2-bedroom at the HUD median rents for $1,655/month, which is 67.9% of the median worker's take-home, past the 30% guideline most planners use. Cost of living (RPP 97.86) is near the national average, so spending patterns here track the typical American budget fairly closely. That combination, below-market pay with high housing costs, makes this a financially demanding market for sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, wood.
Compared to nearby metros
Median pay for sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, woods in metros near Richmond, adjusted for local cost of living.
| Metro | Median pay | COL-adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk | $37K | $38K |
| Roanoke | $35K | $38K |
| Lynchburg | $37K | $41K |
| Huntington-Ashland | $32K | $36K |
COL-adjusted = median salary ÷ (BEA Regional Price Parity ÷ 100). Expresses purchasing power in national-average dollars.
Compensation breakdown
Annual earnings by percentile, Richmond, VA
Entry-level sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, woods (10th percentile) start around $31K. Mid-career wages sit at $36K. Top earners bring in $45K or more, a $14K spread from bottom to top.
Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood pay across states
Median income ranked highest to lowest, compared to the national figure
View Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood salary in all states
| State | Median salary | vs. national | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska | $53K | +23% | 100 |
| Washington | $52K | +21% | 1,720 |
| Minnesota | $51K | +20% | 500 |
| Connecticut | $51K | +20% | 110 |
| Oregon | $50K | +16% | 2,010 |
| Montana | $49K | +15% | 280 |
| Idaho | $48K | +13% | 700 |
| Iowa | $48K | +12% | 240 |
| California | $47K | +11% | 3,230 |
| Massachusetts | $47K | +10% | 60 |
| Maryland | $47K | +10% | 130 |
| Colorado | $47K | +10% | 350 |
| Nebraska | $47K | +10% | 140 |
| Louisiana | $47K | +9% | 500 |
| Illinois | $47K | +9% | 470 |
| Maine | $46K | +8% | 730 |
| New Hampshire | $46K | +8% | 130 |
| Vermont | $46K | +8% | 230 |
| Ohio | $45K | +5% | 2,180 |
| New Jersey | $45K | +4% | 80 |
| Wisconsin | $44K | +4% | 1,880 |
| Utah | $43K | +2% | 180 |
| Arizona | $43K | +0% | 310 |
| Indiana | $43K | -0% | 1,270 |
| New York | $42K | -1% | 1,010 |
| Pennsylvania | $41K | -5% | 1,720 |
| Michigan | $40K | -6% | 1,510 |
| Georgia | $40K | -7% | 1,930 |
| Wyoming | $39K | -8% | 70 |
| Nevada | $39K | -8% | 170 |
| South Carolina | $39K | -8% | 810 |
| Tennessee | $39K | -9% | 1,510 |
| Florida | $38K | -10% | 740 |
| North Carolina | $38K | -11% | 2,020 |
| Missouri | $38K | -11% | 1,380 |
| Alabama | $38K | -12% | 1,880 |
| South Dakota | $37K | -12% | 260 |
| Mississippi | $37K | -14% | 1,910 |
| Kansas | $37K | -14% | 110 |
| Kentucky | $37K | -14% | 1,050 |
| Texas | $37K | -14% | 1,680 |
| Arkansas | $37K | -14% | 1,240 |
| Oklahoma | $36K | -16% | 250 |
| Virginia | $36K | -16% | 1,580 |
| West Virginia | $36K | -17% | 360 |
| New Mexico | $35K | -19% | 70 |
Showing 1–10 of 46 states with published data
BLS does not publish data for every state when sample sizes are too small
Track sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, wood salary changes
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Related careers in Production & Manufacturing
Quick answers
The stuff people actually ask about this job
Can a sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, wood afford a 2BR apartment alone in Richmond?
It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $36K, rent takes 67.9% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,655/month. The 30% guideline puts the comfortable ceiling at roughly $700/month in rent — so roommates or a 1-bedroom would ease the math significantly.
What’s the entry-level salary for sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, woods in Richmond?
The 10th-percentile wage — what new sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, woods typically earn — is $31K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $2,168/month. At HUD’s $1,655/month FMR, rent would take 76% of that take-home — above the 30% guideline, so a 1-bedroom or shared housing is likely necessary starting out.
Is sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, wood a high-paying job in Richmond?
Local pay runs 16% below the national median — $36K here vs. $43K nationally.
How does Richmond compare to the national average for sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, woods?
Richmond pays $36K median vs. the U.S. average of $43K — that’s -16%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 97.86), the purchasing-power equivalent is $37K — below the national median.
How much do sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, woods make in Richmond, VA?
The median is $35,790 a year, that works out to about $17 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $31,450, and experienced sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, woods can clear $45,300. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.
Is $36K enough to live in Richmond?
On that salary, you'd take home roughly $2,438/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,655/month, which eats 67.9% of your paycheck. That's above the 30% rule of thumb, housing will be a stretch at the median salary, though you can manage with roommates or a smaller place.
How far does a sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, wood salary go in Richmond?
Richmond has a Regional Price Parity of 97.86 (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 sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, wood salary is worth about $36,573 in national-average purchasing power.
Where do sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, woods 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.