Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products Career, Salary and Skills
Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products have a BLS-reported national median annual wage of $35,730 based on the 2025 OEWS dataset, with reported national employment of 25,180. Wage data is published for 82 locations.
Occupation description
Grade, sort, or classify unprocessed food and other agricultural products by size, weight, color, or condition.
O*NET code
45-2041.00
Job zone
2
Typical education
Less than a High School Diploma
Experience
None
National salary and employment
Median annual
$35,730
Hourly median
$17.18
Employment
25,180
Data year
2025
National salary distribution
Top skills
| Skill | Importance | Level |
|---|---|---|
| Monitoring | 2.88 | 2.12 |
| Active Listening | 2.75 | 2.25 |
| Speaking | 2.75 | 2.25 |
| Critical Thinking | 2.50 | 2.25 |
| Coordination | 2.50 | 2.50 |
| Writing | 2.25 | 1.38 |
| Reading Comprehension | 2.25 | 1.62 |
| Judgment and Decision Making | 2.25 | 1.88 |
| Time Management | 2.25 | 1.88 |
| Active Learning | 2.12 | 1.50 |
Typical tasks
- Place products in containers according to grade and mark grades on containers.
- Weigh products or estimate their weight, visually or by feel.
- Discard inferior or defective products or foreign matter, and place acceptable products in containers for further processing.
- Grade and sort products according to factors such as color, species, length, width, appearance, feel, smell, and quality to ensure correct processing and usage.
- Record grade or identification numbers on tags or on shipping, receiving, or sales sheets.
Technology
- Microsoft Access
- Microsoft Active Server Pages ASP
- Microsoft Excel
- Microsoft Office software
- Microsoft Outlook
- Microsoft PowerPoint
- Microsoft Word
Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products salary by location
Areas with the highest reported employment for this occupation.
- Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products Salary in CAMedian $36,330 · Employment 5,750
- Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products Salary in WAMedian $34,950 · Employment 2,830
- Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products Salary in TXMedian $36,090 · Employment 1,950
- Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products Salary in GAMedian $35,450 · Employment 1,700
- Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products Salary in ARMedian $35,310 · Employment 1,650
- Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products Salary in Yakima, WAMedian $34,750 · Employment 1,250
- Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products Salary in MSMedian $30,140 · Employment 1,140
- Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products Salary in PAMedian $38,430 · Employment 970
- Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products Salary in Fresno, CAMedian $35,010 · Employment 950
- Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products Salary in FLMedian $27,470 · Employment 880
- Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products Salary in ALMedian $35,390 · Employment 840
- Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products Salary in ORMedian $34,660 · Employment 730
Related careers
- Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, HandNational median $40,240
- Agricultural InspectorsNational median $49,940
- Log Graders and ScalersNational median $46,330
- Food Science TechniciansNational median $52,130
- Cutting and Slicing Machine Setters, Operators, and TendersNational median $46,570
- Cleaning, Washing, and Metal Pickling Equipment Operators and TendersNational median $43,530
- Extruding, Forming, Pressing, and Compacting Machine Setters, Operators, and TendersNational median $45,760
- Crushing, Grinding, and Polishing Machine Setters, Operators, and TendersNational median $48,540
Career and skills data: O*NET 31.0 (onetcenter.org). Salary and employment data: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS, 2025 (bls.gov/oes). Figures are published survey estimates, not real-time market data.