Conveyor Operators and Tenders
Median $42,420
Occupation · SOC 53-7081
Refuse and Recyclable Material Collectors: pay and where the jobs are
What refuse and recyclable material collectors earn in the U.S., how pay varies across workers and states, and tools to plan around it.
National pay, May 2025
$49,690 median annual wage
- Mean (average) annual wage
- $52,820
- Median hourly wage
- $23.89
- Mean hourly wage
- $25.39
- Employment
- 147,240
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 53-7081.
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See where your pay falls among refuse and recyclable material collectors nationally and in your state. Nothing you type leaves your browser.
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How much do refuse and recyclable material collectors make?
The median annual wage for refuse and recyclable material collectors was $49,690 in May 2025, so half of workers earned more and half earned less. The lowest-paid 10% earned less than $33,590 and the highest-paid 10% more than $75,900. As an hourly rate, the median is $23.89. About 147,240 people work in this occupation nationwide. The highest state medians are in Illinois ($75,050), Washington ($74,620) and New York ($64,950). Illinois also comes out on top after taxes and local prices.
Pay ladder
What each step of the pay range for refuse and recyclable material collectors looks like per month. Take-home here includes federal tax, Social Security and Medicare for a single filer; add your state in the paycheck calculator.
| Step | Annual | Hourly | Monthly gross | Monthly after federal tax & FICA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $33,590 | $16.15 | $2,799 | $2,431 |
| 25th percentile | $39,080 | $18.79 | $3,257 | $2,798 |
| Median | $49,690 | $23.89 | $4,141 | $3,509 |
| 75th percentile | $62,020 | $29.82 | $5,168 | $4,334 |
| 90th percentile | $75,900 | $36.49 | $6,325 | $5,185 |
Refuse and Recyclable Material Collectors: pay by state
53 states and territories have a published median, sorted from highest to lowest. The last two columns are our estimates: the median after 2026 federal and state taxes, and that take-home restated in national-average prices.
1
$58,082 take-home in national prices
2
$56,339 take-home in national prices
3
$55,741 take-home in national prices
Where a median refuse and recyclable material collector paycheck goes furthest after 2026 taxes and BEA price levels.
| State | Employment | Median | 10th pct. | 90th pct. | Median after tax* | In national prices† |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Illinois | 4,910 | $75,050 | $38,790 | $88,640 | $58,057 | $58,082 |
| Washington | 3,750 | $74,620 | $54,070 | $88,990 | $60,290 | $56,339 |
| New York | 11,630 | $64,950 | $42,740 | $86,720 | $51,145 | $47,391 |
| California | 13,930 | $64,890 | $45,970 | $90,370 | $51,510 | $46,523 |
| Oregon | 2,500 | $63,210 | $53,270 | $72,440 | $48,369 | $46,796 |
| Minnesota | 2,500 | $62,570 | $47,260 | $71,450 | $49,448 | $50,140 |
| Nevada | 770 | $61,310 | $48,030 | $81,950 | $51,443 | $51,453 |
| Delaware | 600 | $61,290 | $38,700 | $74,590 | $48,457 | $48,550 |
| Colorado | 3,700 | $60,310 | $39,580 | $75,330 | $48,428 | $46,994 |
| Wisconsin | 1,550 | $59,810 | $33,360 | $64,200 | $48,177 | $51,201 |
| Utah | 960 | $59,310 | $42,990 | $72,930 | $47,628 | $48,175 |
| North Dakota | 360 | $59,000 | $41,690 | $71,330 | $49,587 | $55,741 |
| Indiana | 3,180 | $58,900 | $36,000 | $64,680 | $47,798 | $51,215 |
| Hawaii | 770 | $56,270 | $30,760 | $65,740 | $44,635 | $40,596 |
| Rhode Island | 470 | $55,970 | $34,810 | $61,370 | $45,054 | $44,050 |
| District of Columbia | 540 | $55,490 | $39,810 | $76,020 | $44,603 | $40,585 |
| New Jersey | 4,330 | $54,630 | $37,590 | $71,230 | $44,185 | $40,609 |
| Vermont | 160 | $51,960 | $41,240 | $63,070 | $42,623 | $43,512 |
| Michigan | 4,020 | $51,030 | $34,150 | $76,360 | $41,265 | $42,887 |
| Massachusetts | 1,010 | $50,310 | $39,180 | $73,090 | $40,077 | $37,896 |
| Missouri | 1,930 | $50,010 | $31,760 | $71,270 | $40,950 | $45,091 |
| Idaho | 730 | $49,880 | $38,210 | $58,030 | $40,723 | $42,645 |
| Iowa | 1,780 | $49,850 | $38,220 | $63,350 | $40,992 | $46,708 |
| Montana | 370 | $49,420 | $37,080 | $60,730 | $40,323 | $42,604 |
| Nebraska | 910 | $49,390 | $37,210 | $59,400 | $40,497 | $44,945 |
| Ohio | 4,710 | $49,330 | $35,840 | $62,450 | $40,904 | $44,089 |
| Wyoming | 280 | $48,820 | $33,770 | $58,800 | $41,407 | $44,672 |
| Pennsylvania | 6,220 | $48,240 | $31,200 | $66,660 | $39,426 | $40,407 |
| Florida | 11,650 | $47,820 | $35,350 | $61,450 | $40,603 | $39,263 |
| New Mexico | 1,070 | $47,660 | $34,870 | $61,040 | $39,393 | $42,720 |
| Georgia | 4,830 | $46,960 | $31,680 | $60,330 | $38,318 | $39,793 |
| Arizona | 2,380 | $46,910 | $33,480 | $73,610 | $39,093 | $38,830 |
| New Hampshire | 340 | $46,580 | $37,920 | $59,810 | $39,607 | $38,023 |
| Virginia | 4,330 | $46,530 | $28,120 | $61,040 | $37,705 | $37,294 |
| Texas | 12,860 | $46,330 | $30,830 | $59,380 | $39,406 | $40,601 |
| Alabama | 2,790 | $46,240 | $29,500 | $61,000 | $37,430 | $42,140 |
| Alaska | 250 | $45,740 | $31,620 | $80,310 | $38,703 | $37,811 |
| Kansas | 910 | $45,510 | $29,100 | $57,090 | $37,008 | $41,088 |
| North Carolina | 7,250 | $44,670 | $25,140 | $58,570 | $36,799 | $39,012 |
| Maine | 770 | $43,360 | $34,590 | $61,950 | $35,506 | $36,585 |
| Tennessee | 2,550 | $43,270 | $28,390 | $61,400 | $36,947 | $40,217 |
| Kentucky | 1,580 | $43,100 | $29,610 | $56,170 | $35,420 | $39,286 |
| Oklahoma | 2,030 | $43,060 | $31,030 | $59,590 | $35,387 | $40,284 |
| Maryland | 3,120 | $41,870 | $35,900 | $61,210 | $34,200 | $32,584 |
| Mississippi | 1,970 | $39,170 | $29,420 | $58,340 | $32,818 | $37,743 |
| Louisiana | 2,200 | $38,810 | $27,840 | $59,010 | $32,586 | $36,942 |
| Connecticut | 810 | $38,220 | $34,980 | $62,330 | $31,499 | $30,401 |
| West Virginia | 1,000 | $35,840 | $26,520 | $47,960 | $30,066 | $33,594 |
| Arkansas | 1,600 | $35,640 | $26,590 | $51,570 | $29,986 | $34,491 |
| South Carolina | 2,020 | $34,880 | $22,340 | $50,600 | $29,810 | $31,798 |
| South Dakota | 340 | $32,950 | $27,380 | $47,700 | $28,655 | $32,347 |
| Guam | 40 | $32,520 | $28,070 | $42,190 | — | — |
| Puerto Rico | 1,800 | $21,840 | $21,840 | $23,140 | — | — |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 53-7081. *Our estimate for a single filer paid biweekly with no pre-tax deductions or local tax, 2026 federal and state rules. †Take-home ÷ BEA Regional Price Parity × 100 (2024 price levels).
Sources
- OEWS May 2025 (oesm25nat.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.
- OEWS May 2025 (oesm25st.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.