Postal Service Mail Sorters, Processors, and Processing Machine Operators pay in the U.S.
$59,430avg. a year
$28.57 an hour · 105,200 employed
Postal Service Mail Sorters, Processors, and Processing Machine Operators in the U.S. earn an average of $59,430 a year and a median of $58,470. Pay is highest in District of Columbia ($63,580) and lowest in Indiana ($53,940).
$58,470Median pay
$28.57Average hourly
+16%Avg. pay since 2020
105,200Jobs in the U.S.
Top-paying states for postal service mail sorters, processors, and processing machine operators
Average pay by state. Swipe to see the top 10.
1400 jobs
District of Columbia
$63,580
$30.57 an hour
2210 jobs
South Dakota
$62,850
$30.22 an hour
3110 jobs
Vermont
$62,580
$30.09 an hour
43,660 jobs
New Jersey
$62,250
$29.93 an hour
5120 jobs
Wyoming
$61,790
$29.71 an hour
610,090 jobs
California
$61,530
$29.58 an hour
7440 jobs
Maine
$61,420
$29.53 an hour
81,840 jobs
Minnesota
$61,360
$29.50 an hour
91,020 jobs
Connecticut
$61,320
$29.48 an hour
10410 jobs
Delaware
$61,060
$29.36 an hour
Why people trust JobPayFacts
Official government dataEvery number comes from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics wage survey of employers, not self-reported salaries.
Every state and city830 jobs across all 50 states, D.C. and 199 large metro areas.
Updated every yearNew figures each spring when BLS releases them. This site uses May 2025 data.
Postal Service Mail Sorters, Processors, and Processing Machine Operators pay, charted
Pay over time
United States, annual wage, May of each year
AverageMedian
Where the jobs are
Employment by state, May 2025
Average pay by state
May 2025 · tap a state
AKMEWIVTNHWAIDMTNDMNILMINYMAORNVWYSDIAINOHPANJCTRICAUTCONEMOKYWVVAMDDEAZNMKSARTNNCSCDCOKLAMSALGAHITXFL
Under $59k$59k–$60k$60k–$61k$61k+
Top-paying metro areas
Average pay, May 2025 (areas with 100+ jobs)
| Metro area | Avg. pay | Hourly |
|---|---|---|
| Wichita, KS | $65,800 | $31.63 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | $64,200 | $30.86 |
| Lansing-East Lansing, MI | $63,130 | $30.35 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | $63,020 | $30.30 |
| Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA | $63,000 | $30.29 |
| Madison, WI | $62,590 | $30.09 |
| McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, TX | $62,430 | $30.01 |
| Evansville, IN | $62,370 | $29.99 |
Related jobs
Average U.S. pay, May 2025
Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS
Postal Service Mail Sorters, Processors, and Processing Machine Operators pay in every state
States without a figure had too few jobs or too little survey data for BLS to publish.
| State | Avg. pay | Median | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $58,770 | $57,430 | 1,150 |
| Alaska | $56,360 | $55,350 | 230 |
| Arizona | $56,670 | $55,350 | 2,180 |
| Arkansas | $60,020 | $58,470 | 570 |
| California | $61,530 | $59,490 | 10,090 |
| Colorado | $60,490 | $58,470 | 1,910 |
| Connecticut | $61,320 | $58,470 | 1,020 |
| Delaware | $61,060 | $58,470 | 410 |
| District of Columbia | $63,580 | $66,750 | 400 |
| Florida | $58,730 | $57,430 | 7,240 |
| Georgia | $56,260 | $53,290 | 3,050 |
| Hawaii | $60,290 | $59,490 | 370 |
| Idaho | $58,760 | $57,430 | 250 |
| Illinois | $59,390 | $58,300 | 5,370 |
| Indiana | $53,940 | $48,880 | 2,600 |
| Iowa | $60,640 | $60,530 | 1,040 |
| Kansas | $55,710 | $54,540 | 870 |
| Kentucky | $57,960 | $57,430 | 950 |
| Louisiana | $59,310 | $58,470 | 1,200 |
| Maine | $61,420 | $59,490 | 440 |
| Maryland | $60,450 | $58,470 | 2,430 |
| Massachusetts | $60,320 | $58,470 | 2,910 |
| Michigan | $60,850 | $59,490 | 3,370 |
| Minnesota | $61,360 | $59,740 | 1,840 |
| Mississippi | $58,480 | $57,800 | 350 |
| Missouri | $58,680 | $57,430 | 2,730 |
| Montana | $59,460 | $57,430 | 270 |
| Nebraska | $60,920 | $59,490 | 640 |
| Nevada | $58,680 | $58,470 | 920 |
| New Hampshire | $59,890 | $58,300 | 690 |
| New Jersey | $62,250 | $60,530 | 3,660 |
| New Mexico | $59,420 | $58,470 | 350 |
| New York | $60,690 | $58,470 | 8,290 |
| North Carolina | $56,620 | $55,350 | 4,040 |
| North Dakota | $60,290 | $59,840 | 240 |
| Ohio | $59,390 | $58,470 | 3,700 |
| Oklahoma | $59,370 | $58,470 | 790 |
| Oregon | $60,450 | $57,890 | 1,090 |
| Pennsylvania | $59,390 | $57,430 | 5,630 |
| Rhode Island | $60,360 | $59,490 | 600 |
| South Carolina | $59,230 | $58,390 | 1,280 |
| South Dakota | $62,850 | $61,570 | 210 |
| Tennessee | $56,980 | $56,390 | 2,850 |
| Texas | $58,240 | $56,390 | 7,900 |
| Utah | $59,140 | $57,430 | 860 |
| Vermont | $62,580 | $59,490 | 110 |
| Virginia | $59,050 | $58,300 | 2,420 |
| Washington | $61,010 | $59,490 | 1,770 |
| West Virginia | $60,250 | $58,470 | 410 |
| Wisconsin | $60,740 | $58,470 | 1,420 |
| Wyoming | $61,790 | $60,530 | 120 |
Metro areas with the most jobs
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ
$61,560
9,010 jobsChicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN$59,210
4,920 jobsLos Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA$60,710
4,700 jobsDallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX
$57,690
3,850 jobsPhiladelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD
$59,660
2,870 jobsAtlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA
$55,680
2,750 jobsMiami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL
$58,740
2,400 jobsDetroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI
$60,940
2,320 jobsQuestions and answers
How much do postal service mail sorters, processors, and processing machine operators make?
The average is $59,430 a year across the U.S. Half earn more than $58,470 and half earn less (the median).
What is the hourly pay?
The average hourly wage is $28.57, and the median is $28.11 an hour.
Which state pays postal service mail sorters, processors, and processing machine operators the most?
District of Columbia, with an average of $63,580 a year. The best-paying metro area is Wichita, KS at $65,800.
What is the pay range?
The lowest-paid 10% earn under $45,530 a year, and the top 10% earn over $75,280.
Sources and notes. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 (trend: May 2020–May 2025), occupation code 43-5053. Wages are gross pay before taxes and don't include overtime premiums, tips, bonuses or benefits; self-employed workers aren't included. Year-to-year changes can partly reflect survey method changes, so treat the trend as a guide. How we use the data. JobPayFacts isn't affiliated with BLS.