Tool Grinders, Filers, and Sharpeners Salary
In St. Louis, MO-IL, tool grinders, filers, and sharpeners earn $61,550 at the median, or about $29.59 an hour. The range runs from $52K at the entry level to $63K for experienced workers. Adjusted for local prices (RPP 95.09), that's roughly $64,728 in purchasing power. A 2-bedroom apartment runs $1,218/month, about 30.1% of take-home, which is tight.
Where the paycheck goes
What $62K actually covers in St. Louis, month by month
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 tool grinders, filers, and sharpeners
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What this looks like in St. Louis
St. Louis sits well above the national pay line for tool grinders, filers, and sharpeners, local pay runs about 23% higher than the U.S. median of $50K. Rent runs $1,218/month for a 2-bedroom (HUD FMR), taking 29.6% of the median take-home. That's within the 30% rule, though not by much. Cost of living (RPP 95.09) is near the national average, so spending patterns here track the typical American budget fairly closely. Use the affordability calculator above to model your specific situation.
Compensation breakdown
Annual earnings by percentile, St. Louis, MO-IL
Entry-level tool grinders, filers, and sharpeners (10th percentile) start around $52K. Mid-career wages sit at $62K. Top earners bring in $63K or more, a $11K spread from bottom to top.
Tool Grinders, Filers, and Sharpeners pay across states
Median income ranked highest to lowest, compared to the national figure
View Tool Grinders, Filers, and Sharpeners salary in all states
| State | Median salary | vs. national | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Washington | $75K | +50% | 410 |
| Oregon | $61K | +21% | 430 |
| Idaho | $59K | +18% | 100 |
| Ohio | $57K | +13% | 190 |
| Massachusetts | $57K | +13% | 40 |
| Louisiana | $56K | +13% | 40 |
| Mississippi | $56K | +11% | 50 |
| Kansas | $54K | +8% | N/A |
| Missouri | $53K | +5% | 150 |
| Minnesota | $52K | +4% | 90 |
| Iowa | $52K | +3% | 60 |
| California | $51K | +2% | 620 |
| Wisconsin | $51K | +2% | 110 |
| South Carolina | $50K | +0% | 80 |
| Montana | $50K | -1% | N/A |
| New Jersey | $49K | -1% | N/A |
| Indiana | $49K | -3% | 110 |
| Nebraska | $47K | -5% | 40 |
| New York | $47K | -6% | 170 |
| Georgia | $47K | -7% | 240 |
| Maine | $47K | -7% | 60 |
| New Hampshire | $46K | -7% | 40 |
| Texas | $46K | -8% | 530 |
| North Carolina | $46K | -9% | 160 |
| Oklahoma | $46K | -9% | 60 |
| Kentucky | $44K | -12% | 50 |
| Michigan | $43K | -13% | 260 |
| Alabama | $42K | -17% | 220 |
| Connecticut | $40K | -21% | 130 |
| Pennsylvania | $40K | -21% | 170 |
| Arkansas | $38K | -23% | 160 |
| Virginia | $38K | -23% | 80 |
| Tennessee | $37K | -26% | 200 |
| Florida | $37K | -26% | 120 |
| Colorado | $34K | -32% | N/A |
Showing 1–10 of 35 states with published data
BLS does not publish data for every state when sample sizes are too small
Track tool grinders, filers, and sharpeners salary changes
BLS updates this data annually. We'll email you when St. Louis numbers change.
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Quick answers
The stuff people actually ask about this job
Can a tool grinders, filers, and sharpener afford a 2BR apartment alone in St. Louis?
Yes — at the median salary of $62K, rent takes 29.6% 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 tool grinders, filers, and sharpeners in St. Louis?
The 10th-percentile wage — what new tool grinders, filers, and sharpeners typically earn — is $52K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $3,511/month. At HUD’s $1,218/month FMR, rent would take 35% of that take-home — above the 30% guideline, so a 1-bedroom or shared housing is likely necessary starting out.
Is tool grinders, filers, and sharpener a high-paying job in St. Louis?
Local pay is 23% above the national median — $62K here vs. $50K nationally.
How does St. Louis compare to the national average for tool grinders, filers, and sharpeners?
St. Louis pays $62K median vs. the U.S. average of $50K — that’s +23%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 95.09), the purchasing-power equivalent is $65K — still ahead of the national median.
How much do tool grinders, filers, and sharpeners make in St. Louis, MO-IL?
The median is $61,550 a year, that works out to about $30 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $52,000, and experienced tool grinders, filers, and sharpeners can clear $63,000. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.
Is $62K enough to live in St. Louis?
On that salary, you'd take home roughly $4,113/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,218/month, which eats 29.6% of your paycheck. That's under the 30% guideline most financial planners use, so the numbers work.
How far does a tool grinders, filers, and sharpeners 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 tool grinders, filers, and sharpeners salary is worth about $64,728 in national-average purchasing power.
Where do tool grinders, filers, and sharpeners 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.