Butchers and Meat Cutters
Median $40,140
Occupation · SOC 51-3023
Slaughterers and Meat Packers: pay and where the jobs are
What slaughterers and meat packers earn in the U.S., how pay varies across workers and states, and tools to plan around it.
National pay, May 2025
$40,130 median annual wage
- Mean (average) annual wage
- $41,770
- Median hourly wage
- $19.29
- Mean hourly wage
- $20.08
- Employment
- 69,950
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 51-3023.
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How much do slaughterers and meat packers make?
The median annual wage for slaughterers and meat packers was $40,130 in May 2025, so half of workers earned more and half earned less. The lowest-paid 10% earned less than $33,340 and the highest-paid 10% more than $51,090. As an hourly rate, the median is $19.29. About 69,950 people work in this occupation nationwide. The highest state medians are in Colorado ($50,480), Arizona ($49,020) and Nebraska ($48,910). After taxes and local prices, though, a median paycheck goes furthest in Nebraska.
Pay ladder
What each step of the pay range for slaughterers and meat packers 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 | $33,340 | $16.03 | $2,778 | $2,414 |
| 25th percentile | $36,150 | $17.38 | $3,013 | $2,602 |
| Median | $40,130 | $19.29 | $3,344 | $2,869 |
| 75th percentile | $46,870 | $22.54 | $3,906 | $3,320 |
| 90th percentile | $51,090 | $24.56 | $4,258 | $3,603 |
Slaughterers and Meat Packers: pay by state
48 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
$44,542 take-home in national prices
2
$43,355 take-home in national prices
3
$42,797 take-home in national prices
Where a median slaughterers and meat packer paycheck goes furthest after 2026 taxes and BEA price levels.
| State | Employment | Median | 10th pct. | 90th pct. | Median after tax* | In national prices† |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colorado | 1,590 | $50,480 | $38,910 | $59,520 | $41,006 | $39,791 |
| Arizona | 440 | $49,020 | $40,030 | $58,870 | $40,736 | $40,462 |
| Nebraska | 5,480 | $48,910 | $40,590 | $55,310 | $40,133 | $44,542 |
| Kansas | 2,170 | $48,240 | $39,180 | $57,660 | $39,049 | $43,355 |
| Montana | 80 | $46,700 | $37,450 | $53,680 | $38,265 | $40,430 |
| South Carolina | 250 | $46,000 | $33,740 | $47,260 | $38,407 | $40,968 |
| Oregon | 360 | $45,980 | $36,180 | $50,770 | $35,954 | $34,785 |
| Oklahoma | 1,560 | $45,970 | $33,290 | $45,970 | $37,594 | $42,797 |
| Michigan | 2,920 | $45,850 | $37,230 | $53,120 | $37,323 | $38,790 |
| New Jersey | 1,050 | $45,230 | $35,560 | $57,580 | $37,191 | $34,181 |
| Washington | 840 | $45,100 | $40,610 | $55,740 | $37,792 | $35,316 |
| Illinois | 3,360 | $44,950 | $33,970 | $49,910 | $36,217 | $36,232 |
| Missouri | 1,280 | $44,490 | $34,020 | $49,460 | $36,774 | $40,492 |
| South Dakota | 740 | $44,410 | $34,950 | $48,080 | $37,863 | $42,742 |
| Utah | 560 | $44,040 | $36,460 | $46,810 | $36,237 | $36,653 |
| Iowa | 4,220 | $43,820 | $33,750 | $46,060 | $36,376 | $41,448 |
| Indiana | 1,210 | $43,770 | $36,430 | $48,300 | $36,087 | $38,667 |
| Minnesota | 2,820 | $43,360 | $37,710 | $44,030 | $35,328 | $35,822 |
| Texas | 2,950 | $43,160 | $27,270 | $49,910 | $36,859 | $37,977 |
| Vermont | 50 | $42,220 | $31,970 | $58,060 | $35,123 | $35,855 |
| Idaho | 450 | $40,370 | $37,720 | $47,680 | $33,586 | $35,171 |
| Louisiana | 650 | $40,120 | $23,890 | $45,160 | $33,599 | $38,091 |
| North Carolina | 6,120 | $39,930 | $31,200 | $49,550 | $33,179 | $35,175 |
| North Dakota | 160 | $39,730 | $35,720 | $70,660 | $34,103 | $38,336 |
| California | 6,170 | $39,420 | $35,050 | $49,400 | $32,782 | $29,608 |
| New Hampshire | 40 | $39,270 | $31,670 | $64,440 | $33,733 | $32,385 |
| Hawaii | 120 | $38,890 | $34,770 | $48,450 | $31,984 | $29,089 |
| Maine | 50 | $38,740 | $33,420 | $51,500 | $32,085 | $33,060 |
| Kentucky | 320 | $38,330 | $36,600 | $42,400 | $31,754 | $35,220 |
| Arkansas | 2,140 | $37,800 | $33,870 | $43,700 | $31,641 | $36,396 |
| Massachusetts | 170 | $37,780 | $34,730 | $49,920 | $30,693 | $29,023 |
| Maryland | 130 | $37,650 | $31,200 | $51,070 | $31,009 | $29,544 |
| Rhode Island | 280 | $37,570 | $36,640 | $51,190 | $31,162 | $30,468 |
| Wisconsin | 2,620 | $37,510 | $30,130 | $53,210 | $31,358 | $33,326 |
| Virginia | 1,480 | $37,430 | $29,350 | $37,690 | $30,917 | $30,579 |
| Pennsylvania | 4,410 | $37,330 | $30,130 | $45,970 | $31,002 | $31,774 |
| Ohio | 2,440 | $36,800 | $30,350 | $45,520 | $31,187 | $33,616 |
| Georgia | 3,660 | $36,770 | $31,690 | $41,470 | $30,638 | $31,818 |
| Alabama | 240 | $36,360 | $27,600 | $45,080 | $29,926 | $33,692 |
| Connecticut | 70 | $36,290 | $34,880 | $49,000 | $30,135 | $29,085 |
| Tennessee | 650 | $35,790 | $29,770 | $46,880 | $30,937 | $33,675 |
| Florida | 400 | $34,430 | $28,680 | $39,420 | $29,845 | $28,859 |
| New York | 1,750 | $33,880 | $32,240 | $59,110 | $27,992 | $25,938 |
| Mississippi | 1,100 | $33,650 | $27,720 | $37,740 | $28,604 | $32,896 |
| Delaware | 50 | $31,200 | $31,200 | $31,910 | $26,070 | $26,120 |
| New Mexico | Not published | $30,560 | $28,500 | $33,720 | $26,366 | $28,593 |
| Nevada | 140 | $30,430 | $29,630 | $40,870 | $26,631 | $26,636 |
| Puerto Rico | 290 | $22,710 | $21,840 | $27,780 | — | — |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 51-3023. *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.