Furniture Finishers — Career Decision Dashboard
United States
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Report generated from official BLS OEWS and O*NET data — United States.
Median annual wage
$44,540
United States, 2025
Employment
14,480
United States, 2025
Typical education
High School Diploma or the equivalent (such as a GED)
Job Zone 2
Skills identified
35
10 related careers
Career overview
Shape, finish, and refinish damaged, worn, or used furniture or new high-grade furniture to specified color or finish.
- O*NET code
- 51-7021.00
- Job zone
- 2
- Experience required
- None
Typical tasks
- Brush, spray, or hand-rub finishing ingredients, such as paint, oil, stain, or wax, onto and into wood grain and apply lacquer or other sealers.
- Fill and smooth cracks or depressions, remove marks and imperfections, and repair broken parts, using plastic or wood putty, glue, nails, or screws.
- Smooth, shape, and touch up surfaces to prepare them for finishing, using sandpaper, pumice stones, steel wool, chisels, sanders, or grinders.
- Remove accessories prior to finishing, and mask areas that should not be exposed to finishing processes or substances.
- Remove old finishes and damaged or deteriorated parts, using hand tools, stripping tools, sandpaper, steel wool, abrasives, solvents, or dip baths.
- Treat warped or stained surfaces to restore original contours and colors.
- Select appropriate finishing ingredients such as paint, stain, lacquer, shellac, or varnish, depending on factors such as wood hardness and surface type.
- Mix finish ingredients to obtain desired colors or shades.
Choose a location
Salary analysis — United States
10th percentile
$32,160
25th percentile
$37,670
75th percentile
$49,730
90th percentile
$61,020
Most important skills
- Active Listening3.1
- Monitoring3.1
- Critical Thinking3.1
- Judgment and Decision Making3.0
- Speaking3.0
- Operations Monitoring3.0
- Time Management3.0
- Service Orientation2.9
- Quality Control Analysis2.9
- Coordination2.9
- Complex Problem Solving2.9
- Instructing2.8
What skills do you need?
Select the skills you already have
Skills listed are those O*NET rates at importance 3.0 or above for this occupation. Set your own level on the same 0–7 O*NET scale.
Skill coverage
0%
0 of 7 identified skills
Matched
0
Missing
7
Your selected skills cover approximately 0% of the skills identified for this occupation in O*NET. This is a coverage measure of listed skills only — it is not a qualification, hiring or interview outcome.
Skills to develop
| Skill | Importance | Required level | Your level | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Critical Thinking | 3.1 | 3.1 | Not selected | 3.1 |
| Active Listening | 3.1 | 3.0 | Not selected | 3.0 |
| Operations Monitoring | 3.0 | 3.0 | Not selected | 3.0 |
| Monitoring | 3.1 | 2.9 | Not selected | 2.9 |
| Time Management | 3.0 | 2.9 | Not selected | 2.9 |
| Judgment and Decision Making | 3.0 | 2.8 | Not selected | 2.8 |
| Speaking | 3.0 | 2.4 | Not selected | 2.4 |
Ordered by required level gap multiplied by O*NET importance. No prediction or recommendation is implied.
Related careers
Supplemental
National median $46,550
Compare with Furniture FinishersSupplemental
National median $58,930
Compare with Furniture FinishersSupplemental
National median $37,800
Compare with Furniture FinishersSupplemental
National median $51,330
Compare with Furniture FinishersSupplemental
National median $49,400
Compare with Furniture FinishersSupplemental
National median $46,880
Compare with Furniture FinishersHow salary varies by location
| Location | Median | Employment | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Providence, RI | $61,940 | 120 | 2025 |
| CT | $59,830 | 90 | 2025 |
| Hartford, CT | $59,830 | 40 | 2025 |
| San Francisco, CA | $58,340 | 90 | 2025 |
| MA | $56,300 | 340 | 2025 |
| Boston, MA | $56,300 | 160 | 2025 |
| NH | $56,050 | 30 | 2025 |
| Minneapolis, MN | $51,070 | 160 | 2025 |
| Philadelphia, PA | $50,760 | 230 | 2025 |
| New York, NY | $50,020 | 870 | 2025 |
| CO | $50,000 | 170 | 2025 |
| Sacramento, CA | $49,850 | 50 | 2025 |
| Reading, PA | $49,760 | 70 | 2025 |
| Chicago, IL | $49,660 | 90 | 2025 |
| Denver, CO | $49,320 | 80 | 2025 |
| Cleveland, OH | $49,120 | 50 | 2025 |
| CA | $49,080 | 1,010 | 2025 |
| MN | $48,640 | 340 | 2025 |
| NY | $48,340 | 1,000 | 2025 |
| St. Cloud, MN | $48,140 | 40 | 2025 |
Career transition paths
Compare the skills of a career you hold today with Furniture Finishers to see shared skills, target-only skills and skill overlap.
Build a transition comparisonCareer and skills data: O*NET 31.0.
Salary and employment data: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS, 2025 (May 2025 release).
Figures are periodic published survey snapshots, not real-time market rates.