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Average Forging Machine Setters, Operators, And Tenders, Metal And Plastic Salary in Columbus, IN

Forging Machine Setters, Operators, And Tenders, Metal And Plastic in Columbus, IN earn a median annual salary of $52,060, which is +6.2% compared to the national median. There are 140 workers employed locally in this occupation.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey, May 2025 estimates for Columbus, IN (metro area).

$52,060
Columbus, IN median annual wage
$25/hour median
+6.2%
Difference vs national median
National median is $49,030
140
Local employment
2.9 jobs per 1,000 workers
50.32
Location quotient
Above 1.00 means the occupation is more concentrated here than nationally
Pay distribution

Local wage range

10th
$39,410
25th
$49,130
Median
$52,060
75th
$58,020
90th
$59,900

All values are percentiles of annual wages.

This local range is the useful part of the page. The median tells you the center of the market in Columbus, IN, while the percentile band shows how compressed or wide the local pay distribution actually is.

Regional price parity

Cost-of-living context

All-items regional price parity
93.0%
Exact metro RPP match
Median wage adjusted to the national price level
$55,977
Goods: 94.3%
Services: 86.6%
Rents: 75.5%
Comparison links

Comparable metros for this occupation

The point of this table is not random nearby places. It is to show the other labor markets where this same occupation looks stronger or weaker on the same OEWS release.

Area context

Top occupations in Columbus, IN

Occupation Median annual wage LQ
Physicians, All Other $369,300 1.14
Architectural And Engineering Managers $180,830 4.44
Marketing Managers $166,610 0.35
Managers, All Other $147,910 0.21
Financial Managers $143,590 0.66
Computer And Information Systems Managers $139,430 0.44
Pharmacists $137,330 0.51
Administrative Services Managers $134,150 1.00

Columbus, IN has salary data for 190 occupations. The highest-paid occupation in this area is Physicians, All Other.

Historical series

Trend for Forging Machine Setters, Operators, And Tenders, Metal And Plastic in Columbus, IN

Historical trend data is not yet available for this occupation in this area.

Interpretation

Outlook and page notes

Nationally, Forging Machine Setters, Operators, And Tenders, Metal And Plastic are projected to change by -18.9% from 2024 to 2034, with 600 annual openings.

Use this page to answer three separate questions: what the occupation pays here, how large the local market is, and whether this market is unusually concentrated for the occupation.

For metro pages in particular, read long-term trend rows as directional until the area comparability layer is fully wired. OEWS area definitions can change over time, and that matters more at the metro level than at the state level.