High paying production jobs in Sioux City, IA-NE-SD with no degree

The best paid production occupations in Sioux City, IA-NE-SD that require no bachelor's degree — a high school diploma, a certificate, or an associate's degree is the typical entry. This is the narrowest cut on the site, so it is also the shortest list: where a field has only two or three such occupations, there is no page at all rather than a page pretending otherwise.

Cost of living: prices in Sioux City, IA-NE-SD run 13.5% below the national average (2024), so a Sioux City, IA-NE-SD 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 Sioux City, IA-NE-SD

OccupationMedian, Sioux City, IA-NE-SD · Employed

1First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers$82,170
High school diploma or equivalent
$55,810 – $102,950670
2Water and Wastewater Treatment Plant and System Operators$59,760
High school diploma or equivalent
$47,310 – $76,24080
3Crushing, Grinding, and Polishing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders$58,670
High school diploma or equivalent
$48,330 – $63,28070
4Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers$58,230
High school diploma or equivalent
$39,270 – $72,800440
5Separating, Filtering, Clarifying, Precipitating, and Still Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders$56,850
High school diploma or equivalent
$43,780 – $63,68030
6Machinists$56,350
High school diploma or equivalent
$37,840 – $63,14080
7Multiple Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic$54,980
High school diploma or equivalent
$36,470 – $62,40080
8Inspectors, Testers, Sorters, Samplers, and Weighers$54,800
High school diploma or equivalent
$43,570 – $63,800410
9Mixing and Blending Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders$53,000
High school diploma or equivalent
$41,560 – $65,170120
10Food and Tobacco Roasting, Baking, and Drying Machine Operators and Tenders$52,650
No formal educational credential
$23,700 – $63,34060
11Extruding, Forming, Pressing, and Compacting Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders$51,670
High school diploma or equivalent
$39,260 – $57,53040
12Food Cooking Machine Operators and Tenders$51,600
High school diploma or equivalent
$39,270 – $57,390190
13Welding, Soldering, and Brazing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders$51,320
High school diploma or equivalent
$49,790 – $60,25060
14Slaughterers and Meat Packers$49,600
No formal educational credential
$44,680 – $49,6001,120
15Computer Numerically Controlled Tool Operators$49,470
High school diploma or equivalent
$41,100 – $73,210170
16Cutting and Slicing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders$48,300
High school diploma or equivalent
$44,900 – $48,300100
17Meat, Poultry, and Fish Cutters and Trimmers$47,580
No formal educational credential
$43,730 – $47,5801,700
18Coating, Painting, and Spraying Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders$47,060
High school diploma or equivalent
$35,340 – $62,30090
19Food Processing Workers, All Other$46,350
No formal educational credential
$41,740 – $46,4001,710
20Food Batchmakers$46,010
High school diploma or equivalent
$35,900 – $62,270350
21Structural Metal Fabricators and Fitters$45,750
High school diploma or equivalent
$31,210 – $62,32080
22Helpers--Production Workers$44,170
High school diploma or equivalent
$44,170 – $49,230180
23Packaging and Filling Machine Operators and Tenders$43,700
High school diploma or equivalent
$38,810 – $49,070810
24Butchers and Meat Cutters$42,740
No formal educational credential
$30,670 – $46,830270
25Cutting, Punching, and Press Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic$40,680
High school diploma or equivalent
$34,060 – $59,85060
26Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators$39,660
High school diploma or equivalent
$30,420 – $58,240370
27Printing Press Operators$38,230
High school diploma or equivalent
$28,890 – $49,62050
28Sewing Machine Operators$36,300
No formal educational credential
$29,150 – $45,71030
29Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers$33,880
No formal educational credential
$29,020 – $46,250130
30Bakers$30,460
No formal educational credential
$22,920 – $45,760130

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

#	Occupation	MedianSioux City, IA-NE-SD	10th–90th percentilemiddle half shaded darker	Employed
1	First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating WorkersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$82,170	$55,810 – $102,950	670
2	Water and Wastewater Treatment Plant and System OperatorsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$59,760	$47,310 – $76,240	80
3	Crushing, Grinding, and Polishing Machine Setters, Operators, and TendersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$58,670	$48,330 – $63,280	70
4	Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and BrazersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$58,230	$39,270 – $72,800	440
5	Separating, Filtering, Clarifying, Precipitating, and Still Machine Setters, Operators, and TendersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$56,850	$43,780 – $63,680	30
6	MachinistsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$56,350	$37,840 – $63,140	80
7	Multiple Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and PlasticHigh school diploma or equivalent	$54,980	$36,470 – $62,400	80
8	Inspectors, Testers, Sorters, Samplers, and WeighersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$54,800	$43,570 – $63,800	410
9	Mixing and Blending Machine Setters, Operators, and TendersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$53,000	$41,560 – $65,170	120
10	Food and Tobacco Roasting, Baking, and Drying Machine Operators and TendersNo formal educational credential	$52,650	$23,700 – $63,340	60
11	Extruding, Forming, Pressing, and Compacting Machine Setters, Operators, and TendersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$51,670	$39,260 – $57,530	40
12	Food Cooking Machine Operators and TendersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$51,600	$39,270 – $57,390	190
13	Welding, Soldering, and Brazing Machine Setters, Operators, and TendersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$51,320	$49,790 – $60,250	60
14	Slaughterers and Meat PackersNo formal educational credential	$49,600	$44,680 – $49,600	1,120
15	Computer Numerically Controlled Tool OperatorsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$49,470	$41,100 – $73,210	170
16	Cutting and Slicing Machine Setters, Operators, and TendersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$48,300	$44,900 – $48,300	100
17	Meat, Poultry, and Fish Cutters and TrimmersNo formal educational credential	$47,580	$43,730 – $47,580	1,700
18	Coating, Painting, and Spraying Machine Setters, Operators, and TendersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$47,060	$35,340 – $62,300	90
19	Food Processing Workers, All OtherNo formal educational credential	$46,350	$41,740 – $46,400	1,710
20	Food BatchmakersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$46,010	$35,900 – $62,270	350
21	Structural Metal Fabricators and FittersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$45,750	$31,210 – $62,320	80
22	Helpers--Production WorkersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$44,170	$44,170 – $49,230	180
23	Packaging and Filling Machine Operators and TendersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$43,700	$38,810 – $49,070	810
24	Butchers and Meat CuttersNo formal educational credential	$42,740	$30,670 – $46,830	270
25	Cutting, Punching, and Press Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and PlasticHigh school diploma or equivalent	$40,680	$34,060 – $59,850	60
26	Miscellaneous Assemblers and FabricatorsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$39,660	$30,420 – $58,240	370
27	Printing Press OperatorsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$38,230	$28,890 – $49,620	50
28	Sewing Machine OperatorsNo formal educational credential	$36,300	$29,150 – $45,710	30
29	Laundry and Dry-Cleaning WorkersNo formal educational credential	$33,880	$29,020 – $46,250	130
30	BakersNo formal educational credential	$30,460	$22,920 – $45,760	130

Ranked among the occupations common enough to employ roughly one in every three thousand workers in Sioux City, IA-NE-SD. 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 Sioux City, IA-NE-SD

Other metro areas in IA

By field in Sioux City, IA-NE-SD

Without a degree

The same fields, narrowed to what you can enter without one. Fields missing here have too few such occupations in Sioux City, IA-NE-SD to rank honestly.

High paying production jobs in Sioux City, IA-NE-SD with no degree

More for Sioux City, IA-NE-SD

Other metro areas in IA

By field in Sioux City, IA-NE-SD

Without a degree

High paying production jobs in each state with no degree