Production
Sewing Machine Operators
SOC 51-6031
Operate industrial sewing machines to assemble garments and textile products.
The job
Median pay
$37k
$32k to $43k typical range
Outlook, 2025 to 2035
Declining
-15% projected
Openings a year
10k
BLS projection
Typical education
No formal credential
Our model
AI displacement risk
High
How much of this job AI may do instead of the person
Works with AI
4/100
AI alongside the person rather than instead of them
AI exposure
84th pct
More exposed than 84% of occupations · modeled estimate · 8th pct in Microsoft's data
Future-proof
22/100
Key skills
- Monitoring
- Active Listening
- Critical Thinking
- Reading Comprehension
- Speaking
- Active Learning
Pay and jobs by state
BLS OEWS May 2025, 51 states. Sorted by jobs; per 1,000 is jobs per thousand workers in the state; vs national compares that rate with the country's. A tilde marks a figure estimated from the parent occupation group where BLS publishes none.
| State | Jobs | Per 1,000 | vs national | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| California | 13,240 | 0.7 | 1.1× | $38k |
| North Carolina | 8,290 | 1.7 | 2.5× | $35k |
| Texas | 6,950 | 0.5 | 0.7× | $31k |
| Florida | 6,790 | 0.7 | 1.0× | $33k |
| New York | 6,130 | 0.6 | 0.9× | $38k |
| Ohio | 4,100 | 0.7 | 1.1× | $36k |
| Illinois | 4,060 | 0.7 | 1.0× | $36k |
| Georgia | 3,420 | 0.7 | 1.0× | $35k |
| Indiana | 3,400 | 1.1 | 1.6× | $38k |
| Pennsylvania | 3,390 | 0.6 | 0.8× | $36k |
All 51 states
| State | Jobs | Per 1,000 | vs national | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tennessee | 3,300 | 1.0 | 1.5× | $34k |
| Michigan | 3,210 | 0.7 | 1.1× | $37k |
| Kentucky | 2,750 | 1.4 | 2.0× | $29k |
| New Jersey | 2,750 | 0.6 | 0.9× | $36k |
| South Carolina | 2,460 | 1.1 | 1.6× | $38k |
| Wisconsin | 2,370 | 0.8 | 1.2× | $40k |
| Missouri | 2,320 | 0.8 | 1.2× | $36k |
| Alabama | 2,300 | 1.1 | 1.6× | $31k |
| Mississippi | 2,270 | 2.0 | 2.9× | $38k |
| Virginia | 2,010 | 0.5 | 0.7× | $36k |
| Minnesota | 1,890 | 0.6 | 0.9× | $39k |
| Washington | 1,600 | 0.5 | 0.7× | $43k |
| Massachusetts | 1,540 | 0.4 | 0.6× | $43k |
| Arizona | 1,420 | 0.4 | 0.7× | $40k |
| Maryland | 1,390 | 0.5 | 0.8× | $36k |
| Oregon | 1,250 | 0.6 | 0.9× | $40k |
| Utah | 1,020 | 0.6 | 0.9× | $36k |
| Colorado | 970 | 0.3 | 0.5× | $44k |
| Nevada | 910 | 0.6 | 0.9× | $46k |
| Arkansas | 860 | 0.7 | 1.0× | $36k |
| Maine | 700 | 1.1 | 1.6× | $44k |
| Kansas | 650 | 0.5 | 0.7× | $35k |
| Louisiana | 610 | 0.3 | 0.5× | $30k |
| Iowa | 590 | 0.4 | 0.6× | $36k |
| Oklahoma | 580 | 0.3 | 0.5× | $33k |
| Connecticut | 480 | 0.3 | 0.4× | $38k |
| Idaho | 410 | 0.5 | 0.7× | $37k |
| Nebraska | 300 | 0.3 | 0.4× | $37k |
| South Dakota | 300 | 0.7 | 1.0× | $39k |
| Hawaii | 280 | 0.4 | 0.7× | $39k |
| Rhode Island | 270 | 0.5 | 0.8× | $39k |
| New Mexico | 220 | 0.3 | 0.4× | $35k |
| Vermont | 220 | 0.7 | 1.1× | $41k |
| Montana | 190 | 0.4 | 0.6× | $37k |
| New Hampshire | 190 | 0.3 | 0.4× | $42k |
| West Virginia | 180 | 0.3 | 0.4× | $29k |
| North Dakota | 110 | 0.3 | 0.4× | $36k |
| Wyoming | 110 | 0.4 | 0.6× | $37k |
| Washington DC | 61 | 0.1 | 0.1× | $47k~ |
| Delaware | 60 | 0.1 | 0.2× | $38k |
| Alaska | 40 | 0.1 | 0.2× | $44k |
Top metro areas
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA9,310 jobs · $37k median
- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ6,700 jobs · $38k median
- Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL3,680 jobs · $31k median
- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN3,450 jobs · $36k median
- Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX2,420 jobs · $35k median
- Mayaguez, PR2,370 jobs · $22k median
- Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC1,860 jobs · $47k median
- Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC1,640 jobs · $35k median
Explore the rankings
Explore Sewing Machine Operators interactively →Pay and outlook from BLS (OEWS 2025, Employment Projections 2025-2035). Skills and work activities from O*NET 30.3. AI exposure and future-proof scores are modeled estimates. How these numbers are made.