Careers / Painting, Coating, and Decorating Workers

Painting, Coating, and Decorating Workers — Career Decision Dashboard

United States

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Median annual wage

$41,600

United States, 2025

Employment

7,940

United States, 2025

Typical education

Less than a High School Diploma

Job Zone 2

Skills identified

35

10 related careers

Career overview

Paint, coat, or decorate articles, such as furniture, glass, plateware, pottery, jewelry, toys, books, or leather.

O*NET code
51-9123.00
Job zone
2
Experience required
None

Typical tasks

  • Apply coatings, such as paint, ink, or lacquer, to protect or decorate workpiece surfaces, using spray guns, pens, or brushes.
  • Examine finished surfaces of workpieces to verify conformance to specifications and retouch any defective areas.
  • Clean and maintain tools and equipment, using solvents, brushes, and rags.
  • Read job orders and inspect workpieces to determine work procedures and materials required.
  • Select and mix ingredients to prepare coating substances according to specifications, using paddles or mechanical mixers.
  • Place coated workpieces in ovens or dryers for specified times to dry or harden finishes.
  • Clean surfaces of workpieces in preparation for coating, using cleaning fluids, solvents, brushes, scrapers, steam, sandpaper, or cloth.
  • Conceal blemishes in workpieces, such as nicks and dents, using fillers such as putty.

Choose a location

Salary analysis — United States

$31,470
10th
$37,030
25th
$41,600
Median
$50,360
75th
$60,820
90th

10th percentile

$31,470

25th percentile

$37,030

75th percentile

$50,360

90th percentile

$60,820

Most important skills

  • Coordination2.9
  • Active Listening2.9
  • Monitoring2.9
  • Social Perceptiveness2.9
  • Speaking2.8
  • Critical Thinking2.8
  • Reading Comprehension2.8
  • Time Management2.6
  • Judgment and Decision Making2.5
  • Service Orientation2.4
  • Writing2.3
  • Management of Personnel Resources2.1

What skills do you need?

No skill ratings are recorded for this occupation in the current O*NET release.

Related careers

How salary varies by location

LocationMedianEmploymentYear
New York, NY$72,6101802025
WA$61,210902025
Las Vegas, NV$60,1902025
NV$60,1902025
Seattle, WA$59,170702025
Denver, CO$57,360702025
Boston, MA$57,000702025
MA$54,0702102025
CO$54,0701702025
Washington, DC$53,290602025
NJ$52,160902025
CT$50,720502025
Kansas City, MO$50,160502025
Sacramento, CA$49,750602025
Elkhart, IN$49,610602025
St. Louis, MO$49,440502025
OH$49,0802302025
Atlanta, GA$48,850302025
Richmond, VA$48,570502025
MO$48,5601402025
All locations with published data

Career transition paths

Compare the skills of a career you hold today with Painting, Coating, and Decorating Workers 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.