Careers / Print Binding and Finishing Workers
Print Binding and Finishing Workers — Career Decision Dashboard
United States
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Report generated from official BLS OEWS and O*NET data — United States.
Median annual wage
$42,290
United States, 2025
Employment
33,180
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
Bind books and other publications or finish printed products by hand or machine. May set up binding and finishing machines.
- O*NET code
- 51-5113.00
- Job zone
- 2
- Experience required
- Over 2 years, up to and including 4 years
Typical tasks
- Examine stitched, collated, bound, or unbound product samples for defects, such as imperfect bindings, ink spots, torn pages, loose pages, or loose or uncut threads.
- Read work orders to determine instructions and specifications for machine set-up.
- Install or adjust bindery machine devices, such as knives, guides, rollers, rounding forms, creasing rams, or clamps, to accommodate sheets, signatures, or books of specified sizes.
- Trim edges of books to size, using cutting machines, book trimming machines, or hand cutters.
- Stitch or glue endpapers, bindings, backings, or signatures, using sewing machines, glue machines, or glue and brushes.
- Monitor machine operations to detect malfunctions or to determine whether adjustments are needed.
- Maintain records, such as daily production records, using specified forms.
- Lubricate, clean, or make minor repairs to machine parts to keep machines in working condition.
Choose a location
Salary analysis — United States
10th percentile
$32,220
25th percentile
$36,910
75th percentile
$49,130
90th percentile
$59,150
Most important skills
- Operations Monitoring3.4
- Critical Thinking3.3
- Judgment and Decision Making3.1
- Monitoring3.1
- Reading Comprehension3.1
- Speaking3.0
- Quality Control Analysis3.0
- Complex Problem Solving3.0
- Active Listening2.9
- Operation and Control2.9
- Equipment Maintenance2.9
- Repairing2.9
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operations Monitoring | 3.4 | 3.1 | Not selected | 3.1 |
| Critical Thinking | 3.3 | 3.0 | Not selected | 3.0 |
| Monitoring | 3.1 | 3.0 | Not selected | 3.0 |
| Reading Comprehension | 3.1 | 2.9 | Not selected | 2.9 |
| Quality Control Analysis | 3.0 | 2.9 | Not selected | 2.9 |
| Complex Problem Solving | 3.0 | 2.9 | Not selected | 2.9 |
| Judgment and Decision Making | 3.1 | 2.8 | Not selected | 2.8 |
| Speaking | 3.0 | 2.8 | Not selected | 2.8 |
Ordered by required level gap multiplied by O*NET importance. No prediction or recommendation is implied.
Related careers
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Compare with Print Binding and Finishing WorkersSupplemental
National median $35,650
Compare with Print Binding and Finishing WorkersHow salary varies by location
| Location | Median | Employment | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| DC | $108,080 | 200 | 2025 |
| MS | $91,850 | 110 | 2025 |
| AK | $57,200 | 30 | 2025 |
| Trenton, NJ | $56,380 | 40 | 2025 |
| Bridgeport, CT | $49,920 | 60 | 2025 |
| Portland, ME | $49,470 | 50 | 2025 |
| Washington, DC | $49,420 | 680 | 2025 |
| Chicago, IL | $49,250 | 1,160 | 2025 |
| Durham, NC | $49,110 | 130 | 2025 |
| Burlington, VT | $49,010 | 60 | 2025 |
| VT | $48,930 | 80 | 2025 |
| NH | $48,850 | 140 | 2025 |
| Worcester, MA | $48,820 | 60 | 2025 |
| ND | $48,760 | 80 | 2025 |
| San Jose, CA | $48,740 | 80 | 2025 |
| Minneapolis, MN | $48,610 | 1,290 | 2025 |
| Boston, MA | $48,470 | 460 | 2025 |
| Hartford, CT | $48,450 | 200 | 2025 |
| MN | $48,390 | 1,710 | 2025 |
| ME | $48,230 | 180 | 2025 |
Career transition paths
Compare the skills of a career you hold today with Print Binding and Finishing Workers 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.