Skilled Trades
Sewing Machine Operators
Operate or tend sewing machines to join, reinforce, decorate, or perform related sewing operations in the manufacture of garment or nongarment products.
Median salary
$36,000
Typical range
$27k – $47k
Job outlook
See national outlook
AI exposure
Plan a path to Sewing Machine Operators
Education
Typical entry: No degree required
Plan my path to this →Typical progression
Junior Sewing Machine Operators
Entry / Junior
$26,860
~2 yrs to advance
Sewing Machine Operators
Established
$36,000
~3 yrs to advance
Senior Sewing Machine Operators
Senior
$41,530
Key skills
A typical day
- •Monitor machine operation to detect problems such as defective stitching, breaks in thread, or machine malfunctions.
- •Place spools of thread, cord, or other materials on spindles, insert bobbins, and thread ends through machine guides and components.
- •Position items under needles, using marks on machines, clamps, templates, or cloth as guides.
- •Guide garments or garment parts under machine needles and presser feet to sew parts together.
- •Remove holding devices and finished items from machines.
Fields of study
Any field
Top colleges for Skilled Trades
Explore all- Purdue University50% admit · $78,000 grad pay
- Ohio State University53% admit · $68,000 grad pay
- Pennsylvania State University55% admit · $70,000 grad pay
Reputation-based selection; stats shown are outcome data per school.