Careers / Musical Instrument Repairers and Tuners

Musical Instrument Repairers and Tuners — Career Decision Dashboard

United States

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Median annual wage

$46,420

United States, 2025

Employment

5,380

United States, 2025

Typical education

Post-Secondary Certificate

Job Zone 3

Skills identified

35

10 related careers

Career overview

Repair percussion, stringed, reed, or wind instruments. May specialize in one area, such as piano tuning.

O*NET code
49-9063.00
Job zone
3
Experience required
Over 1 year, up to and including 2 years

Typical tasks

  • Assemble and install new pipe organs and pianos in buildings.
  • Deliver pianos to purchasers or to locations of their use.
  • Adjust string tensions to tune instruments, using hand tools and electronic tuning devices.
  • Compare instrument pitches with tuning tool pitches to tune instruments.
  • Play instruments to evaluate their sound quality and to locate any defects.
  • Disassemble instruments and parts for repair and adjustment.
  • Repair or replace musical instrument parts and components, such as strings, bridges, felts, and keys, using hand and power tools.
  • Reassemble instruments following repair, using hand tools and power tools and glue, hair, yarn, resin, or clamps, and lubricate instruments as necessary.

Choose a location

Salary analysis — United States

$31,220
10th
$37,670
25th
$46,420
Median
$58,430
75th
$71,600
90th

10th percentile

$31,220

25th percentile

$37,670

75th percentile

$58,430

90th percentile

$71,600

Most important skills

  • Quality Control Analysis3.9
  • Troubleshooting3.8
  • Repairing3.8
  • Critical Thinking3.6
  • Service Orientation3.1
  • Judgment and Decision Making3.1
  • Complex Problem Solving3.1
  • Time Management3.0
  • Equipment Selection3.0
  • Speaking3.0
  • Reading Comprehension3.0
  • Equipment Maintenance3.0

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 13 identified skills

Matched

0

Missing

13

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

SkillImportanceRequired levelYour levelGap
Quality Control Analysis3.93.6Not selected3.6
Critical Thinking3.63.6Not selected3.6
Repairing3.83.4Not selected3.4
Troubleshooting3.83.3Not selected3.3
Judgment and Decision Making3.13.1Not selected3.1
Complex Problem Solving3.13.0Not selected3.0
Time Management3.03.0Not selected3.0
Speaking3.03.0Not selected3.0
Reading Comprehension3.03.0Not selected3.0
Active Listening3.03.0Not selected3.0
Equipment Selection3.02.9Not selected2.9
Equipment Maintenance3.02.9Not selected2.9
Service Orientation3.12.8Not selected2.8

Ordered by required level gap multiplied by O*NET importance. No prediction or recommendation is implied.

Related careers

How salary varies by location

LocationMedianEmploymentYear
Allentown, PA$63,800302025
Lansing, MI$61,490602025
Nashville, TN$61,3002402025
MI$59,5702102025
Austin, TX$59,250502025
NJ$58,7302002025
TN$58,7303002025
New York, NY$58,7303102025
Chicago, IL$58,1701502025
Baltimore, MD$55,4702025
MD$55,1301602025
OR$54,800402025
NY$53,4202702025
Dallas, TX$53,1101702025
CT$52,940402025
Washington, DC$51,8801602025
UT$50,180602025
Boston, MA$50,090702025
Philadelphia, PA$49,9501202025
IL$49,2502002025
All locations with published data

Career transition paths

Compare the skills of a career you hold today with Musical Instrument Repairers and Tuners to see shared skills, target-only skills and skill overlap.

Build a transition comparison

Career 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.