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Salary data from BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics

Computer Numerically Controlled Tool Operators Salary: Louisiana vs Pennsylvania

Computer Numerically Controlled Tool Operators earn a median of $50,400 in Louisiana and $55,610 in Pennsylvania. That is a nominal gap of $5,210 (-9.4%), with Pennsylvania paying more before any cost-of-living adjustment.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey, May 2024 estimates. Cost-of-living adjustment uses BEA Regional Price Parities, most recent release.

$50,400
Louisiana median
$57,138 after COL
$55,610
Pennsylvania median
$56,994 after COL
-9.4%
Nominal gap
Pennsylvania leads
+0.3%
Adjusted gap
Louisiana leads after COL

The story behind the numbers

On raw wages, Pennsylvania pays $5,210 more per year than Louisiana for computer numerically controlled tool operators, a gap of +9.4%.

After adjusting for cost of living, the picture flips. Louisiana actually offers more purchasing power, effectively paying $145 more in national-price-level terms (a +0.3% real gap). The higher nominal wage in the other location is eaten up by higher local prices.

Full breakdown by location

Detailed wage, employment, and cost-of-living figures for computer numerically controlled tool operators in each location. Click through to the full local salary page for percentiles, outlook, and peer areas.

Computer Numerically Controlled Tool Operators

Louisiana

Median salary
$50,400
Mean salary
$53,350
Employment
520
Location quotient
0.24
Jobs per 1,000
0.3
COL-adjusted median
$57,138
Regional Price Parity
88.2%

Exact state RPP match.

Full Computer Numerically Controlled Tool Operators page for Louisiana →

Computer Numerically Controlled Tool Operators

Pennsylvania

Median salary
$55,610
Mean salary
$57,310
Employment
10,700
Location quotient
1.55
Jobs per 1,000
1.8
COL-adjusted median
$56,994
Regional Price Parity
97.6%

Exact state RPP match.

Full Computer Numerically Controlled Tool Operators page for Pennsylvania →

Related pages

Keep digging into computer numerically controlled tool operators from a different angle.

Common questions about this comparison

What does the cost-of-living adjustment actually do? +

It divides each location's nominal median wage by its Regional Price Parity (RPP), which measures how local prices compare to the national average (100 = national). A wage of $100,000 in an area with RPP 120 has the same purchasing power as roughly $83,000 nationally.

Why would the nominal and adjusted winners disagree? +

High-cost metros often pay higher salaries, but not by enough to fully offset the higher cost of housing, goods, and services. When that happens, the location with the lower nominal wage actually offers more real purchasing power.

What is a location quotient? +

The location quotient measures how concentrated an occupation is in a given area versus the national average. A value of 2.0 means the occupation is twice as common there as nationally. It is a signal of what a state specializes in.