Instrument Salary
$32K - $38K
6% of jobs
$38K - $44K
12% of jobs
$48.6K is the 25th percentile. Wages below this are outliers.
$44K - $50K
9% of jobs
$50K - $56K
14% of jobs
The median wage is $59.4K / yr.
$56K - $62K
15% of jobs
$62K - $68K
11% of jobs
$72.5K is the 75th percentile. Wages above this are outliers.
$68K - $74K
10% of jobs
$74K - $80K
8% of jobs
$80K - $86K
6% of jobs
$86K - $92K
5% of jobs
$92K - $98K
3% of jobs
$32K
$60K
$97K
$62,743
/year
$30.16
/hour
Instrument Salary Comparison by Location
Nationwide
United States
$62,743
Columbus
Ohio
$60,603
Do you get a good deal as an Instrument?
Take The Breakroom Quiz to find out if your job offers fair pay and conditions. The 3-minute quiz lets you compare your pay, hours, benefits, and more.
Take The Breakroom Quiz
How much does an Instrument make?
As of Aug 14, 2026, the average annual pay for an Instrument in the United States is $62,743 a year.
Just in case you need a simple salary calculator, that works out to be approximately $30.16 an hour. This is the equivalent of $1,206/week or $5,228/month.
While ZipRecruiter is seeing annual salaries as high as $97,000 and as low as $32,000, the majority of Instrument salaries currently range between $48,500 (25th percentile) to $74,500 (75th percentile) with top earners (90th percentile) making $88,500 annually across the United States. The average pay range for an Instrument varies greatly (by as much as 26000), which suggests there may be many opportunities for advancement and increased pay based on skill level, location and years of experience.
An Instrument in your area makes on average $60,603 per year, or $2,140 (3.411%) less than the national average annual salary of $62,743. Ohio ranks number 38 out of 50 states nationwide for Instrument salaries.
To estimate the most accurate annual salary range for Instrument jobs, ZipRecruiter continuously scans its database of millions of active jobs published locally throughout America.
Find your next high paying job as an Instrument on ZipRecruiter today.
What are Top 10 Highest Paying Cities for Instrument Jobs
We've identified 10 cities where the typical salary for an Instrument job is above the national average. Topping the list is Surry, VA, , with Two Rivers, WI, and Berkeley, CA, close behind in the second and third positions. Berkeley, CA, beats the national average by $14,082 (22.4%), and Surry, VA, furthers that trend with another $27,496 (43.8%) above the $62,743 average.
With these 10 cities having average salaries higher than the national average, the opportunities for economic advancement by changing locations as an Instrument appears to be exceedingly fruitful.
However, another factor to consider is the average salary for these top 10 cities varies modestly at 21% between Surry, VA, and Daly City, CA, , suggesting it may be difficult to see much positive wage advancement. The possibility of a lower cost of living may help determine the balance between location and salary for an Instrument role.
City | Annual Salary | Hourly Wage |
|---|---|---|
Surry, VA | $90,239 | $43.38 |
Two Rivers, WI | $84,662 | $40.70 |
Berkeley, CA | $76,825 | $36.94 |
Sitka, AK | $75,585 | $36.34 |
South San Francisco, CA | $75,397 | $36.25 |
Fremont, CA | $74,353 | $35.75 |
Sunnyvale, CA | $73,638 | $35.40 |
Livermore, CA | $73,597 | $35.38 |
San Jose, CA | $73,534 | $35.35 |
Daly City, CA | $72,700 | $34.95 |
What are Top 5 Best Paying Related Instrument Jobs in the U.S.
Analyzing some similar jobs related to the Instrument job category, we found that Entry Level Computer Programmer jobs have average salaries greater than Instrument jobs.
Significantly, Entry Level Computer Programmer jobs pay $2,231 (3.6%) more than the average Instrument salary of $62,743. If you're qualified, finding work as an Entry Level Computer Programmer may help you make more money than that of the average Instrument position.
Job Title | Annual Salary | Hourly Wage |
|---|---|---|
Entry Level Computer Programmer | $64,974 | $31.24 |
Instrument Technician | $62,743 | $30.16 |
Survey Instrument Operator | $45,383 | $21.82 |
Field Collector | $36,920 | $17.75 |
Total Station | $35,489 | $17.06 |
About Our Data
ZipRecruiter salary estimates, histograms, trends and comparisons are derived from both employer job postings and third party data sources.
