Set up and operate digital, letterpress, lithographic, flexographic, gravure, or other printing machines. Includes short-run offset printing presses.
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Licensing, certifications and working conditions
State licensing. CareerOneStop's licensing data records no state license for Printing Press Operators, which usually means it is not a licensed occupation. Requirements can still vary by employer and state.
Certifications. CareerOneStop directly links 4 professional certifications to Printing Press Operators. 1 of them are in CareerOneStop's "Core" group, for example: Press Operator Certification. Certifications are voluntary credentials offered by the organizations named; listing one is not an endorsement.
Working conditions. On average, workers stand or walk about 7.4 hours and sit about 1.2 hours per day. The typical heaviest weight lifted or carried is about 40.0 pounds. For 59.5% of workers the job requires medium strength. Shares of workers who interact with the general public (30.4%), have a consistently fast work pace (58.3%), cannot pause their work (71.1%), and are exposed to the outdoors (under 0.5%). From the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Requirements Survey (2023 estimates); figures describe the occupation on average.
Sources: CareerOneStop (licenses and certifications), part of the CareerOneStop suite of web products, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (working conditions, wages). MajorPays has reorganized this information; these agencies have not approved or endorsed it. See it interactively, with state-by-state detail →
More data on this career
Pay by education level. Among full-time, year-round printing press operators ages 25 to 64, median yearly pay is $45,700 with a high school diploma or GED, $46,700 with some college or an associate's degree and $43,800 with a bachelor's degree (Census Bureau American Community Survey, 2024 dollars). Pay differs for many reasons besides education, such as experience, employer and location.
Industries that employ this career. The largest shares of printing press operators work in Manufacturing (83%), Retail Trade (5%), Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services (2%) and Information (2%) (Census Bureau American Community Survey, 2024).
Where the jobs are, and what they pay by industry. Nationwide, the industries that employ the most printing press operators are Printing and Related Support Activities (62% of the jobs counted, median pay $45,910), Converted Paper Product Manufacturing (6% of the jobs counted, median pay $54,090), Advertising, Public Relations, and Related Services (5% of the jobs counted, median pay $40,270), Plastics Product Manufacturing (3% of the jobs counted, median pay $48,790) (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025). Among large industries, the highest median pay is in Converted Paper Product Manufacturing ($54,090), Plastics Product Manufacturing ($48,790), Newspaper, Periodical, Book, and Directory Publishers ($47,190). Pay differs by industry for many reasons, including the mix of jobs and where employers are located.
What workers studied. Among printing press operators with a bachelor's degree or higher, the most common fields of the bachelor's degree are Commercial Art and Graphic Design (12%), Fine Arts (7%) and General Business (6%) (Census Bureau American Community Survey, 2024).
Injury and illness rates. For printing press operators, employers reported 83.7 nonfatal injury and illness cases with days away from work per 10,000 full-time workers, compared with 94.6 for all U.S. workers; the median case kept the worker away 5 days (all workers: 8) (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2023-2024). Rates reflect the work setting as well as the occupation.
Union membership. In the broad group "Production", which includes this career, 11.9% of wage and salary workers belong to a union (all U.S. workers: 10.0%); median weekly pay is $1,161 for union members and $945 for workers not in a union (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey, 2025). This is a group figure, not specific to printing press operators.
Employer benefits. In the broad group "Production", which includes this career, 75% of civilian workers had access to an employer retirement plan, 80% had access to employer medical care benefits, and 77% had paid sick leave, 90% paid vacation and 92% paid holidays (all civilian workers: 75%, 74%, 83%, 77% and 79%) (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, National Compensation Survey, March 2026). This is a group figure, not specific to printing press operators, and having access to a benefit does not mean every worker uses it. The Bureau of Labor Statistics has not endorsed this presentation. Employers spent about $37.63 per hour worked on total compensation for the occupational group "Production" in June 2026 ($25.21 in wages and salaries and $12.42 in benefits, 33.0% of the total; all civilian workers: $49.46, with 31.6% in benefits) (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employer Costs for Employee Compensation).
Work environment. In O*NET's survey of workers in this occupation, the conditions most often placed at the two highest levels for printing press operators are: indoors, environmentally controlled (100%), time pressure (95%), spend time using your hands to handle, control, or feel objects, tools, or controls (93%), spend time standing (90%), importance of being exact or accurate (88%), face-to-face discussions with individuals and within teams (87%). Each percentage is the share of respondents choosing the top two levels for that condition (for example 'most of the time' or 'continually'), so it describes how common the condition is in the job, not how a particular workplace is (O*NET 31.0 Database, U.S. Dept. of Labor, ETA, CC BY 4.0).
Typical preparation. In O*NET's survey of workers in this occupation, for related work experience, the most common answer (46% of 25 respondents) was "over 2 years, up to and including 4 years"; for on-site or in-plant training, the most common answer (28% of 24 respondents) was "none"; for on-the-job training, the most common answer (46% of 25 respondents) was "over 1 month, up to and including 3 months". These are what workers report is needed to do the job; employers' requirements and individual paths vary (O*NET 31.0 Database, U.S. Dept. of Labor, ETA, CC BY 4.0).
Related careers. O*NET lists these occupations as similar to printing press operators in the work done and the skills used: Paper Goods Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Prepress Technicians and Workers, Photographic Process Workers and Processing Machine Operators, Adhesive Bonding Machine Operators and Tenders, Print Binding and Finishing Workers, Cutting, Punching, and Press Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic, Cutting and Slicing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Milling and Planing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic (O*NET 31.0 Database, U.S. Dept. of Labor, ETA, CC BY 4.0).
Pay by state. See what printing press operators earn in each state, with the pay range and number of jobs: Printing Press Operators salary by state (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025).
Compare printing press operators with other careers (pay, growth, openings and education side by side).
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2024 PUMS (MajorPays' own estimates from the survey; Census is credited as the source of the original data and has not endorsed them); BLS Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses; BLS Current Population Survey; BLS National Compensation Survey (employee benefits); HRSA National Center for Health Workforce Analysis; U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Foreign Labor Certification (LCA disclosure data, FY2025). MajorPays has selected and reorganized these figures; these agencies have not approved or endorsed them. See it interactively →
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