SOC 51-9011 · Production Occupations · May 2025

How much do Chemical Equipment Operators and Tenders make in Lexington-Fayette, KY?

In the May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics estimates, released May 15, 2026, the median annual wage for Chemical Equipment Operators and Tenders in Lexington-Fayette, KY is $45,820. The 10th percentile is $39,470 and the 90th percentile is $76,370. Employment is 270.

Median annual wage

$45,820

10th percentile
$39,470
25th percentile
$45,690
Median
$45,820
75th percentile
$57,730
90th percentile
$76,370
Mean
$51,870

Annual wage from the May 2025 OEWS estimates.

Two cooks working in a commercial kitchen in 1930
Cooks in a Washington state kitchen, 1930. Seattle Municipal Archives. Photograph by Seattle Municipal Archives. Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 2.0

Percentile spread

For Chemical Equipment Operators and Tenders, the published 10th percentile is $39,470 and the 90th percentile is $76,370. The difference is $36,900, which is 80.5% of the median. Ten percent of measured wages fall below the 10th percentile and ten percent fall above the 90th. How to read a percentile.

The middle half of the distribution, from the 25th percentile at $45,690 to the 75th at $57,730, covers $12,040.

The mean annual wage is $51,870, which sits above the median of $45,820. Median and mean measure different points in the same distribution.

National and state comparison

The Lexington-Fayette, KY median is 21.1% lower than the national median of $58,040 for Chemical Equipment Operators and Tenders. In 2024 national prices the local median is $49,328, which is 15% lower than that same national median. The national figure is already in national prices because the United States parity is 100.

It is 20.4% lower than the Kentucky median of $57,530.

Price-adjusted pay

The 2024 all-items regional price parity for Lexington-Fayette, KY is 92.889, with the United States at 100. The Bureau of Economic Analysis released those parities on February 19, 2026. Dividing the May 2025 median of $45,820 by that parity and multiplying by 100 puts Chemical Equipment Operators and Tenders at $49,328 in national prices. The wage year and the price year are different. Compare this wage after prices.

Nearby metros

15 other metropolitan areas within 200 miles publish a annual median for Chemical Equipment Operators and Tenders. Lexington-Fayette, KY ranks 16th of 16 on that median, counting itself. Distance is the great-circle mileage between Census Bureau internal points (U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 Gazetteer Files, Core Based Statistical Areas, internal points (INTPTLAT, INTPTLONG).).

  • Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN is 67 miles away, with a median of $60,820 and employment of 1,770. That median is 32.7% higher than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $63,773, against $49,328 here.
  • Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN is 69 miles away, with a median of $63,490 and employment of 920. That median is 38.6% higher than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $68,215, against $49,328 here.
  • Elizabethtown, KY is 85 miles away, with a median of $67,510 and employment of 240. That median is 47.3% higher than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $74,537, against $49,328 here.

Employment share

Chemical Equipment Operators and Tenders accounts for 0.09% of wage-and-salary employment in Lexington-Fayette, KY (270 of 286,910). Nationally the occupation is 0.09% of employment (139,630 of 155,495,730). The local share is 1.05 times the national share. That ratio is the location quotient computed from these May 2025 employment counts. It is not copied from the location-quotient column in the BLS bulk file.

Highest-paying jobs in Lexington-Fayette, KY · Chemical Equipment Operators and Tenders by metro · How to read these percentiles · Median and mean · When a wage is not published · How the figures are made · Compare this wage after prices

Questions this page answers

How much do Chemical Equipment Operators and Tenders make in Lexington-Fayette, KY?

In the May 2025 OEWS estimates, released May 15, 2026, the median annual wage for Chemical Equipment Operators and Tenders in Lexington-Fayette, KY is $45,820. The 10th percentile is $39,470 and the 90th percentile is $76,370. Employment is 270.

How does that compare with the national median for Chemical Equipment Operators and Tenders?

The local median is 21.1% lower than the national median of $58,040.

What is Chemical Equipment Operators and Tenders pay in Lexington-Fayette, KY after local prices?

The 2024 all-items regional price parity for Lexington-Fayette, KY is 92.889, with the United States at 100. In those national prices, the May 2025 median of $45,820 is $49,328. The wage is May 2025 and the parity is 2024.

How does Lexington-Fayette, KY compare with nearby metros for Chemical Equipment Operators and Tenders?

Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN is the closest metropolitan area within 200 miles with a published annual median, 67 miles away, at $60,820. Lexington-Fayette, KY ranks 16th of 16 metros within 200 miles on that median. Distances use Census Bureau internal points.