How much do Metal-Refining Furnace Operators and Tenders make in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX?

Percentile spread

For Metal-Refining Furnace Operators and Tenders, the published 10th percentile is $39,960 and the 90th percentile is $78,140. The difference is $38,180, which is 77.2% 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 $42,970 to the 75th at $63,940, covers $20,970.

The mean annual wage is $55,400, which sits above the median of $49,440. Median and mean measure different points in the same distribution.

National and state comparison

The Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX median is 9.2% lower than the national median of $54,430 for Metal-Refining Furnace Operators and Tenders. In 2024 national prices the local median is $50,127, which is 7.9% lower than that same national median. The national figure is already in national prices because the United States parity is 100.

It is 5.9% higher than the Texas median of $46,670.

Price-adjusted pay

The 2024 all-items regional price parity for Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX is 98.629, with the United States at 100. The Bureau of Economic Analysis released those parities on February 19, 2026. Dividing the May 2025 median of $49,440 by that parity and multiplying by 100 puts Metal-Refining Furnace Operators and Tenders at $50,127 in national prices. The wage year and the price year are different. Compare this wage after prices.

Nearby metros

One other metropolitan area within 200 miles publishes a annual median for Metal-Refining Furnace Operators and Tenders. Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX ranks 1st of 2 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).).

• Killeen-Temple, TX is 175 miles away, with a median of $45,580 and employment of 40. That median is 7.8% lower than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $50,015, against $50,127 here.

Employment share

Metal-Refining Furnace Operators and Tenders accounts for 0.00% of wage-and-salary employment in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX (130 of 3,289,720). Nationally the occupation is 0.01% of employment (16,780 of 155,495,730). The local share is 0.37 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.