High paying production jobs in St. Joseph, MO-KS

Every production occupation below is ranked by its median annual wage in St. Joseph, MO-KS. Read the percentile range, not just the median: the gap between the 10th and 90th inside a single production job is usually wider than the gap between two different ones, so where you land in a field matters more than which field you pick.

Cost of living: prices in St. Joseph, MO-KS run 13.6% below the national average (2024), so a St. Joseph, MO-KS salary is worth about 1.16× its face value in national terms. That scales every wage here by the same factor — it changes what the numbers mean, not their order.

Local wage estimates are suppressed more often than state ones — BLS withholds any figure too few local employers report — so an occupation missing here simply has no published local estimate.

Wages: BLS OEWS, May 2025 · Cost of living: BEA regional price parities, 2024

Find production jobs in St. Joseph, MO-KS

OccupationMedian, St. Joseph, MO-KS · Employed

1First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers$77,370
High school diploma or equivalent
$55,560 – $103,230580
2Machinists$66,390
High school diploma or equivalent
$38,190 – $73,69080
3Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers$66,060
High school diploma or equivalent
$47,040 – $66,060610
4Computer Numerically Controlled Tool Operators$60,960
High school diploma or equivalent
$40,590 – $74,51040
5Coating, Painting, and Spraying Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders$55,190
High school diploma or equivalent
$35,900 – $66,840160
6Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators$54,400
High school diploma or equivalent
$30,020 – $71,3901,360
7Molding, Coremaking, and Casting Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic$51,020
High school diploma or equivalent
$38,650 – $59,94070
8Packaging and Filling Machine Operators and Tenders$50,930
High school diploma or equivalent
$39,330 – $58,6401,120
9Cutting and Slicing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders$50,930
High school diploma or equivalent
$46,220 – $54,58060
10Water and Wastewater Treatment Plant and System Operators$50,670
High school diploma or equivalent
$39,350 – $74,27090
11Crushing, Grinding, and Polishing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders$50,640
High school diploma or equivalent
$49,780 – $60,71060
12Multiple Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic$50,560
High school diploma or equivalent
$41,430 – $60,190120
13Chemical Equipment Operators and Tenders$49,880
High school diploma or equivalent
$44,060 – $61,780200
14Inspectors, Testers, Sorters, Samplers, and Weighers$49,370
High school diploma or equivalent
$38,330 – $71,480340
15Mixing and Blending Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders$48,440
High school diploma or equivalent
$42,980 – $60,240170
16Food and Tobacco Roasting, Baking, and Drying Machine Operators and Tenders$47,440
No formal educational credential
$40,590 – $51,38090
17Food Processing Workers, All Other$45,200
No formal educational credential
$37,800 – $45,200100
18Production Workers, All Other$43,420
High school diploma or equivalent
$31,860 – $62,700190
19Extruding, Forming, Pressing, and Compacting Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders$42,410
High school diploma or equivalent
$32,380 – $50,70040
20Meat, Poultry, and Fish Cutters and Trimmers$41,890
No formal educational credential
$38,850 – $47,850660
21Food Batchmakers$40,160
High school diploma or equivalent
$38,540 – $50,590100
22Butchers and Meat Cutters$39,400
No formal educational credential
$29,970 – $53,78050
23Helpers--Production Workers$39,300
High school diploma or equivalent
$38,360 – $52,270410
24Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic$35,630
High school diploma or equivalent
$35,630 – $49,36050
25Bakers$34,540
No formal educational credential
$30,320 – $45,44070
26Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers$30,470
No formal educational credential
$28,600 – $49,19070

Bars run from the 10th to the 90th percentile; the middle half is shaded darker, and the tick is the median.

#	Occupation	MedianSt. Joseph, MO-KS	10th–90th percentilemiddle half shaded darker	Employed
1	First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating WorkersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$77,370	$55,560 – $103,230	580
2	MachinistsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$66,390	$38,190 – $73,690	80
3	Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and BrazersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$66,060	$47,040 – $66,060	610
4	Computer Numerically Controlled Tool OperatorsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$60,960	$40,590 – $74,510	40
5	Coating, Painting, and Spraying Machine Setters, Operators, and TendersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$55,190	$35,900 – $66,840	160
6	Miscellaneous Assemblers and FabricatorsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$54,400	$30,020 – $71,390	1,360
7	Molding, Coremaking, and Casting Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and PlasticHigh school diploma or equivalent	$51,020	$38,650 – $59,940	70
8	Packaging and Filling Machine Operators and TendersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$50,930	$39,330 – $58,640	1,120
9	Cutting and Slicing Machine Setters, Operators, and TendersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$50,930	$46,220 – $54,580	60
10	Water and Wastewater Treatment Plant and System OperatorsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$50,670	$39,350 – $74,270	90
11	Crushing, Grinding, and Polishing Machine Setters, Operators, and TendersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$50,640	$49,780 – $60,710	60
12	Multiple Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and PlasticHigh school diploma or equivalent	$50,560	$41,430 – $60,190	120
13	Chemical Equipment Operators and TendersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$49,880	$44,060 – $61,780	200
14	Inspectors, Testers, Sorters, Samplers, and WeighersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$49,370	$38,330 – $71,480	340
15	Mixing and Blending Machine Setters, Operators, and TendersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$48,440	$42,980 – $60,240	170
16	Food and Tobacco Roasting, Baking, and Drying Machine Operators and TendersNo formal educational credential	$47,440	$40,590 – $51,380	90
17	Food Processing Workers, All OtherNo formal educational credential	$45,200	$37,800 – $45,200	100
18	Production Workers, All OtherHigh school diploma or equivalent	$43,420	$31,860 – $62,700	190
19	Extruding, Forming, Pressing, and Compacting Machine Setters, Operators, and TendersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$42,410	$32,380 – $50,700	40
20	Meat, Poultry, and Fish Cutters and TrimmersNo formal educational credential	$41,890	$38,850 – $47,850	660
21	Food BatchmakersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$40,160	$38,540 – $50,590	100
22	Butchers and Meat CuttersNo formal educational credential	$39,400	$29,970 – $53,780	50
23	Helpers--Production WorkersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$39,300	$38,360 – $52,270	410
24	Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and PlasticHigh school diploma or equivalent	$35,630	$35,630 – $49,360	50
25	BakersNo formal educational credential	$34,540	$30,320 – $45,440	70
26	Laundry and Dry-Cleaning WorkersNo formal educational credential	$30,470	$28,600 – $49,190	70

Ranked among the occupations common enough to employ roughly one in every three thousand workers in St. Joseph, MO-KS. The rarer ones are real jobs — but a 1,190-person occupation at the top of a list answers a different question than the one most readers are asking.

More for St. Joseph, MO-KS

Other metro areas in MO

By field in St. Joseph, MO-KS

Without a degree

The same fields, narrowed to what you can enter without one. Fields missing here have too few such occupations in St. Joseph, MO-KS to rank honestly.

High paying production jobs in St. Joseph, MO-KS

More for St. Joseph, MO-KS

Other metro areas in MO

By field in St. Joseph, MO-KS

Without a degree

High paying production jobs in each state