SOC 47-2073 · Construction and Extraction Occupations · May 2025

How much do Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators make in Bismarck, ND?

In the May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics estimates, released May 15, 2026, the median annual wage for Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators in Bismarck, ND is $62,150. The 10th percentile is $48,030 and the 90th percentile is $87,290. Employment is 580.

Median annual wage

$62,150

10th percentile
$48,030
25th percentile
$53,400
Median
$62,150
75th percentile
$73,110
90th percentile
$87,290
Mean
$66,120

Annual wage from the May 2025 OEWS estimates.

A welder working in a workshop
A welder at a workshop bench. Photograph by ABDULIUMAR. Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0

Percentile spread

For Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators, the published 10th percentile is $48,030 and the 90th percentile is $87,290. The difference is $39,260, which is 63.2% 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 $53,400 to the 75th at $73,110, covers $19,710.

The mean annual wage is $66,120, which sits above the median of $62,150. Median and mean measure different points in the same distribution.

National and state comparison

The Bismarck, ND median is 3.8% higher than the national median of $59,850 for Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators. In 2024 national prices the local median is $68,279, which is 14.1% higher than that same national median. The national figure is already in national prices because the United States parity is 100.

It is about the same as the North Dakota median of $62,150.

Price-adjusted pay

The 2024 all-items regional price parity for Bismarck, ND is 91.024, with the United States at 100. The Bureau of Economic Analysis released those parities on February 19, 2026. Dividing the May 2025 median of $62,150 by that parity and multiplying by 100 puts Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators at $68,279 in national prices. The wage year and the price year are different. Compare this wage after prices.

Nearby metros

2 other metropolitan areas within 200 miles publish a annual median for Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators. Bismarck, ND ranks 2nd of 3 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).).

  • Minot, ND is 100 miles away, with a median of $62,990 and employment of 290. That median is 1.4% higher than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $72,379, against $68,279 here.
  • Fargo, ND-MN is 190 miles away, with a median of $61,690 and employment of 960. That median is 0.7% lower than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $67,887, against $68,279 here.

Employment share

Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators accounts for 0.81% of wage-and-salary employment in Bismarck, ND (580 of 71,270). Nationally the occupation is 0.31% of employment (478,090 of 155,495,730). The local share is 2.65 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 Bismarck, ND · Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators 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 Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators make in Bismarck, ND?

In the May 2025 OEWS estimates, released May 15, 2026, the median annual wage for Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators in Bismarck, ND is $62,150. The 10th percentile is $48,030 and the 90th percentile is $87,290. Employment is 580.

How does that compare with the national median for Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators?

The local median is 3.8% higher than the national median of $59,850.

What is Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators pay in Bismarck, ND after local prices?

The 2024 all-items regional price parity for Bismarck, ND is 91.024, with the United States at 100. In those national prices, the May 2025 median of $62,150 is $68,279. The wage is May 2025 and the parity is 2024.

How does Bismarck, ND compare with nearby metros for Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators?

Minot, ND is the closest metropolitan area within 200 miles with a published annual median, 100 miles away, at $62,990. Bismarck, ND ranks 2nd of 3 metros within 200 miles on that median. Distances use Census Bureau internal points.