Careers / Ophthalmic Laboratory Technicians
Ophthalmic Laboratory Technicians — Career Decision Dashboard
United States
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Report generated from official BLS OEWS and O*NET data — United States.
Median annual wage
$39,460
United States, 2025
Employment
18,660
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
Cut, grind, and polish eyeglasses, contact lenses, or other precision optical elements. Assemble and mount lenses into frames or process other optical elements. Includes precision lens polishers or grinders, centerer-edgers, and lens mounters.
- O*NET code
- 51-9083.00
- Job zone
- 2
- Experience required
- Over 1 year, up to and including 2 years
Typical tasks
- Mount and secure lens blanks or optical lenses in holding tools or chucks of cutting, polishing, grinding, or coating machines.
- Inspect lens blanks to detect flaws, verify smoothness of surface, and ensure thickness of coating on lenses.
- Set up machines to polish, bevel, edge, or grind lenses, flats, blanks, or other precision optical elements.
- Inspect, weigh, and measure mounted or unmounted lenses after completion to verify alignment and conformance to specifications, using precision instruments.
- Shape lenses appropriately so that they can be inserted into frames.
- Clean finished lenses and eyeglasses, using cloths and solvents.
- Mount, secure, and align finished lenses in frames or optical assemblies, using precision hand tools.
- Examine prescriptions, work orders, or broken or used eyeglasses to determine specifications for lenses, contact lenses, or other optical elements.
Choose a location
Salary analysis — United States
10th percentile
$33,530
25th percentile
$36,470
75th percentile
$47,010
90th percentile
$57,380
Most important skills
- Operation and Control3.3
- Operations Monitoring3.1
- Time Management3.1
- Quality Control Analysis3.1
- Reading Comprehension3.0
- Monitoring3.0
- Critical Thinking3.0
- Judgment and Decision Making3.0
- Speaking2.9
- Active Listening2.9
- Service Orientation2.8
- Writing2.8
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 8 identified skills
Matched
0
Missing
8
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Quality Control Analysis | 3.1 | 3.4 | Not selected | 3.4 |
| Operation and Control | 3.3 | 3.1 | Not selected | 3.1 |
| Operations Monitoring | 3.1 | 2.9 | Not selected | 2.9 |
| Reading Comprehension | 3.0 | 2.9 | Not selected | 2.9 |
| Monitoring | 3.0 | 2.9 | Not selected | 2.9 |
| Critical Thinking | 3.0 | 2.9 | Not selected | 2.9 |
| Time Management | 3.1 | 2.8 | Not selected | 2.8 |
| Judgment and Decision Making | 3.0 | 2.6 | Not selected | 2.6 |
Ordered by required level gap multiplied by O*NET importance. No prediction or recommendation is implied.
Related careers
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National median $47,260
Compare with Ophthalmic Laboratory TechniciansHow salary varies by location
| Location | Median | Employment | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| CT | $62,410 | 170 | 2025 |
| NH | $59,460 | 180 | 2025 |
| Denver, CO | $52,510 | 120 | 2025 |
| San Francisco, CA | $51,090 | 180 | 2025 |
| Seattle, WA | $50,770 | 190 | 2025 |
| Los Angeles, CA | $50,120 | 870 | 2025 |
| WA | $49,230 | 260 | 2025 |
| Eugene, OR | $48,860 | 30 | 2025 |
| CO | $48,540 | 320 | 2025 |
| Madison, WI | $48,530 | 40 | 2025 |
| Jacksonville, FL | $48,410 | 190 | 2025 |
| Boston, MA | $48,140 | — | 2025 |
| Riverside, CA | $47,470 | 110 | 2025 |
| RI | $47,440 | 70 | 2025 |
| Providence, RI | $47,440 | 90 | 2025 |
| NJ | $47,420 | — | 2025 |
| Manchester, NH | $47,410 | 60 | 2025 |
| CA | $47,410 | 1,630 | 2025 |
| Baltimore, MD | $47,100 | 260 | 2025 |
| MD | $47,100 | 360 | 2025 |
Career transition paths
Compare the skills of a career you hold today with Ophthalmic Laboratory Technicians 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.