Updated May 2026 · BLS OEWS 2024
Crane Operator Salary in St. Louis
2024 BLS OEWS Data · Heavy Equipment · COL Index: 90
Crane Operators in St. Louis, MO earn a median annual wage of $45,360 per 2024 BLS OEWS data, with the 10th percentile at $39,870 and the 90th at $127,960. After cost of living, that translates to $50,400 in U.S.-average purchasing power. Trade Pay Score: D (53/100).
What Crane Operators Take Home in St. Louis
The $88,090 spread between entry-level and top-decile crane operators in St. Louis is wide — about 194% of the median. That breadth points to a trade where specialization, certifications, and supervisory roles meaningfully change earning potential. Top-decile workers can earn substantially more than the headline median suggests, particularly in industrial or commercial-grade work.
St. Louis's cost-of-living index of 90 sits below the U.S. average, so the $45,360 median wage for crane operators here actually translates upward — to roughly $50,400 in U.S.-average purchasing power. Below-average rent, groceries, and services mean wages tend to go further here than nominal numbers suggest.
With a Trade Pay Score of 53 (D), this trade-city pairing is below average. That typically reflects either weak nominal wages, sluggish 5-year wage growth, a high cost of living that hollows out real pay, or some combination. Workers should examine both the per-trade page (other cities for the same trade) and the per-city page (other trades in the same metro) to find a stronger fit.
Salary Distribution
Percentile Breakdown
| Level | Salary | COL-Adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| 10th Percentile (Apprentice / Entry) | $39,870 | $44,300 |
| 25th Percentile (Early Career) | $40,090 | $44,544 |
| 50th Percentile (Journeyman / Median) | $45,360 | $50,400 |
| 75th Percentile (Experienced) | $86,520 | $96,133 |
| 90th Percentile (Master / Foreman) | $127,960 | $142,178 |
How These Numbers Are Calculated
Every wage figure here comes from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) program at bls.gov/oes — a survey of about 1.2 million employers per release covering more than 800 occupations and every U.S. metropolitan statistical area. The Trade Pay Score combines raw median pay (30%), 5-year wage growth (25%), employment depth (25%), and cost-of-living-adjusted purchasing power (20%) into a single 0-100 grade. Read the full methodology.
Career outlook detail — projected 2032 employment levels for crane operators, typical entry-level requirements, on-the-job training expectations — comes from the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook at bls.gov/ooh. Apprenticeship programs in St. Louis are listed at apprenticeship.gov. All three are public-domain federal data sources.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does a Crane Operator make in St. Louis?
Per 2024 BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics data, the median crane operator salary in St. Louis, MO is $45,360. The 10th percentile is $39,870 (typical for entry-level or apprentice-tier positions); the 90th percentile reaches $127,960 (master, foreman, or specialty roles).
How does St. Louis pay compare for Crane Operators?
With a Trade Pay Score of 53/100 and a grade of D, the St. Louis-Crane Operator pairing is below average — workers should consider whether a different metro for the same trade might deliver a higher grade.
What is the apprenticeship path for Crane Operators in St. Louis?
Crane Operators typically complete a 3-year registered apprenticeship before reaching journeyman pay, starting around the 10th percentile ($39,870) and progressing toward the median. Registered apprenticeship programs in the area are listed at https://www.apprenticeship.gov/.
How does cost of living affect Crane Operator pay in St. Louis?
St. Louis has a cost-of-living index of 90. The median crane operator salary of $45,360 translates to $50,400 in U.S.-average purchasing power — an upward adjustment because the metro is less expensive than average.
Where does this salary data come from?
Every wage figure on this page is a real BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics median or percentile from the 2024 release at https://www.bls.gov/oes/, which surveys roughly 1.2 million U.S. employers per release. Career outlook context (projected employment growth through 2032) comes from the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook at https://www.bls.gov/ooh/. Both are public-domain U.S. government data sources.
Crane Operators in St. Louis, MO earn a median annual wage of $45,360 per 2024 BLS OEWS data, with the 10th percentile at $39,870 and the 90th at $127,960. After cost of living, that translates to $50,400 in U.S.-average purchasing power. Trade Pay Score: D (53/100).
this entity is one of the data points covered by this site’s U.S. skilled-trade wage data dataset. The detail above comes directly from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey; the context that follows situates the headline numbers against the broader distribution across U.S. trades, cities, and states.
Every number on this page links back to the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey; the methodology page describes the inputs, refresh cadence, and known limitations of the underlying data product.
Practical use of this page is in combination with the comparison and ranking pages elsewhere on the site, which surface the same data for this entity’s peers within U.S. trades, cities, and states. A single-entity reading without peer context can be misleading when an entity is an outlier on one axis but typical on another.