Transportation
Tugboat & Barge Operators
SOC 53-5022
Operate tugboats and barges to push and tow cargo on waterways.
The job
Median pay
$48k
$43k to $69k typical range
Outlook, 2025 to 2035
Growing fast
+4.9% projected
Openings a year
300
BLS projection
Typical education
High school plus USCG license
Our model
AI displacement risk
Very low
How much of this job AI may do instead of the person
Works with AI
36/100
AI alongside the person rather than instead of them
AI exposure
47th pct
More exposed than 47% of occupations · modeled estimate · 1st pct in Microsoft's data
Future-proof
52/100
Key skills
- Speaking
- Monitoring
- Active Listening
- Critical Thinking
- Reading Comprehension
- 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hawaii | 330 | 0.5 | 33.0× | $76k |
| Texas | 270 | 0.0 | 1.2× | $50k |
| California | 190 | 0.0 | 0.7× | $35k |
| Florida | 170 | 0.0 | 1.1× | $47k |
| Louisiana | 160 | 0.1 | 5.2× | $46k |
| New York | 116 | 0.0 | 0.8× | $62k~ |
| Pennsylvania | 104 | 0.0 | 1.1× | $48k~ |
| Ohio | 96 | 0.0 | 1.1× | $46k~ |
| Georgia | 95 | 0.0 | 1.2× | $45k~ |
| North Carolina | 82 | 0.0 | 1.0× | $42k~ |
All 51 states
| State | Jobs | Per 1,000 | vs national | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Washington | 80 | 0.0 | 1.4× | $64k |
| Michigan | 68 | 0.0 | 1.0× | $47k~ |
| Indiana | 65 | 0.0 | 1.3× | $47k~ |
| Tennessee | 60 | 0.0 | 1.1× | $42k |
| Virginia | 59 | 0.0 | 0.9× | $47k~ |
| Wisconsin | 50 | 0.0 | 1.1× | $49k~ |
| Arizona | 49 | 0.0 | 0.9× | $48k~ |
| Missouri | 45 | 0.0 | 1.0× | $46k~ |
| Massachusetts | 42 | 0.0 | 0.7× | $45k~ |
| Minnesota | 42 | 0.0 | 0.9× | $51k~ |
| Kentucky | 41 | 0.0 | 1.3× | $48k~ |
| Colorado | 40 | 0.0 | 0.9× | $50k~ |
| Illinois | 40 | 0.0 | 0.4× | $68k |
| New Jersey | 40 | 0.0 | 0.6× | $44k |
| Maryland | 39 | 0.0 | 0.9× | $48k~ |
| Alabama | 38 | 0.0 | 1.1× | $41k~ |
| South Carolina | 37 | 0.0 | 1.0× | $41k~ |
| Oregon | 31 | 0.0 | 1.0× | $50k~ |
| Oklahoma | 28 | 0.0 | 1.0× | $40k~ |
| Iowa | 27 | 0.0 | 1.1× | $49k~ |
| Nevada | 27 | 0.0 | 1.1× | $45k~ |
| Arkansas | 24 | 0.0 | 1.1× | $41k~ |
| Kansas | 24 | 0.0 | 1.1× | $48k~ |
| Utah | 24 | 0.0 | 0.9× | $49k~ |
| Connecticut | 23 | 0.0 | 0.8× | $46k~ |
| Mississippi | 22 | 0.0 | 1.2× | $41k~ |
| Nebraska | 17 | 0.0 | 1.0× | $48k~ |
| Idaho | 13 | 0.0 | 0.9× | $48k~ |
| New Mexico | 12 | 0.0 | 0.9× | $44k~ |
| West Virginia | 11 | 0.0 | 1.0× | $40k~ |
| Maine | 9 | 0.0 | 0.9× | $48k~ |
| New Hampshire | 9 | 0.0 | 0.8× | $47k~ |
| Delaware | 8 | 0.0 | 1.0× | $49k~ |
| North Dakota | 8 | 0.0 | 1.2× | $53k~ |
| Montana | 7 | 0.0 | 0.9× | $49k~ |
| South Dakota | 7 | 0.0 | 1.0× | $43k~ |
| Alaska | 6 | 0.0 | 1.2× | $54k~ |
| Rhode Island | 6 | 0.0 | 0.8× | $48k~ |
| Wyoming | 5 | 0.0 | 1.1× | $51k~ |
| Vermont | 4 | 0.0 | 0.8× | $49k~ |
| Washington DC | 3 | 0.0 | 0.3× | $53k~ |
Top metro areas
- San Juan-Bayamon-Caguas, PR140 jobs · $27k median
- Urban Honolulu, HI140 jobs · $81k median
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA80 jobs · $35k median
- Kahului-Wailuku, HI70 jobs · $83k median
- New Orleans-Metairie, LA70 jobs · $49k median
- Barnstable Town, MA60 jobs · $45k median
- Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX50 jobs · $61k median
- Corpus Christi, TX50 jobs · $43k median
Explore the rankings
Explore Tugboat & Barge 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.