Mechanical Drafting Technicians: Job, Salary, and School Information from The Riley Guide

Job Numbers and Growth

There are about 78,000 jobs for people working as mechanical drafting technicians. People pursuing jobs in this occupation should expect a low overall unemployment rate.

Part-Time Work and Self-Employment

Government survey data shows that 6% of employees work fewer than 40 hours per week. Some 6% of mechanical drafting technicians work primarily as a consultant.

Training and Education

Having a postsecondary vocational award may make it easier to find a job. Employees with a bachelor's degree or higher are 25% of the total. About 62% of mechanical drafting technicians have some college education, but do not have a degree. High school was all the education required by 13% of workers to get a job. Recommended schools are shown in the column to the right; request information from them to help you decide which, if any, could help you with this career.

Area Job Conditions

Cities with few jobs per capita for employees are West Palm Beach (Florida), Bakersfield (California), and Miami (Florida). The most jobs are found in Columbus (Indiana), Racine (Wisconsin), and Sheboygan (Wisconsin).

Within the US, the highest salaries for mechanical drafting technicians are found in Provo (Utah), Winston-Salem (North Carolina), and San Jose (California), and the lowest are found in Flint (Michigan), Lubbock (Texas), and Santa Barbara (California).

Career Overview Video About Mechanical Drafting Technicians

Mechanical Drafting Technicians: Job and Salary Data by Metropolitan Area

The table below shows data for Mechanical Drafting Technicians, as of 2008. The Popularity in Area number tells you how common jobs for Mechanical Drafting Technicians are in the area, compared to other US metro areas. A value of 1.0 means an average number of people in the position for area population. Lower numbers mean fewer of these positions in the metro area. The most popular areas for Mechanical Drafting Technicians are starred .

State	Area	Positions	Typical Pay	Popularity in Area
Alabama	Birmingham	170	$52,490	0.6
Alabama	Huntsville	160	$53,330	1.5
Alabama	Mobile	160	$61,240	1.7
Alabama	Montgomery	130	$39,780	1.5
Alabama	Tuscaloosa	30	$31,860	0.7
Alaska	Anchorage	60		0.7
Arizona	Phoenix	2,310	$45,050	2.4
Arizona	Tucson	180	$47,180	0.9
Arkansas	Fayetteville	140	$44,200	1.4
Arkansas	Fort Smith	70	$45,280	1.2
Arkansas	Little Rock	100	$40,820	0.6
California	Bakersfield	40	$50,440	0.3
California	Fresno	90	$39,740	0.5
California	Modesto	40	$50,320	0.5
California	Oakland	250	$56,420	0.5
California	Oxnard	110	$50,990	0.7
California	Riverside	440	$51,720	0.7
California	Sacramento	350	$52,040	0.8
California	San Diego	400	$44,750	0.6
California	San Francisco	180	$58,920	0.3
California	San Jose	350	$67,620	0.7
California	Santa Ana	740	$48,720	0.9
California	Santa Barbara	70	$35,180	0.8
California	Santa Rosa	40	$63,130	0.4
California	Stockton	40	$53,430	0.4
Colorado	Boulder	80	$51,120	1
Colorado	Colorado Springs	170	$47,440	1.3
Colorado	Denver	310	$56,010	0.5
Colorado	Fort Collins	50	$48,590	0.8
Connecticut	Bridgeport	210	$52,250	0.9
Connecticut	Danbury	100	$49,550	3
Connecticut	Hartford	450	$53,270	1.5
Connecticut	New Haven	170	$54,870	1.2
Delaware	Wilmington	190	$59,750	1.1
District of Columbia	Washington	450	$49,960	0.4
Florida	Deltona	40	$38,740	0.5
Florida	Fort Lauderdale	140	$46,110	0.4
Florida	Gainesville	40	$43,100	0.7
Florida	Jacksonville	180	$43,980	0.6
Florida	Lakeland	50	$42,580	0.5
Florida	Miami	90	$43,310	0.2
Florida	Ocala	60	$40,530	1.3
Florida	Orlando	260	$43,640	0.5
Florida	Palm Bay	50	$36,650	0.5
Florida	Pensacola	70	$41,020	0.9
Florida	Sarasota	80	$44,990	0.6
Florida	Tampa	300	$44,850	0.5
Florida	West Palm Beach	90	$53,400	0.3
Georgia	Atlanta	730	$48,950	0.6
Georgia	Augusta	40	$58,550	0.4
Georgia	Columbus	40	$46,080	0.7
Georgia	Gainesville	40	$62,280	1.2
Illinois	Chicago	1,290	$54,170	0.6
Illinois	Rockford	150	$45,290	2
Indiana	Bloomington	70	$43,460	2.2
Indiana	Columbus	180	$50,610	9.5
Indiana	Elkhart	170	$41,830	2.7
Indiana	Evansville	170	$44,700	1.9
Indiana	Fort Wayne	250	$41,610	2.3
Indiana	Gary	150	$55,760	1
Indiana	Indianapolis	510	$47,420	1.1
Indiana	Lafayette	40	$54,150	1.1
Indiana	Michigan City	30	$40,200	1.6
Indiana	South Bend	220	$44,880	3.3
Iowa	Ames	30	$40,940	1.8
Iowa	Cedar Rapids	160	$53,680	2.4
Iowa	Davenport	90	$51,180	1
Iowa	Des Moines	100	$41,070	0.6
Iowa	Dubuque	40	$37,080	1.7
Iowa	Sioux City	40	$45,840	1.2
Iowa	Waterloo	90	$49,700	2.2
Kansas	Topeka	100	$38,430	1.9
Kansas	Wichita	320	$47,130	2
Kentucky	Lexington	260	$41,070	2.1
Kentucky	Louisville	370	$41,540	1.1
Louisiana	Baton Rouge	210	$47,120	1.1
Louisiana	Lafayette	140	$37,390	1.9
Louisiana	Lake Charles	120	$66,500	2.9
Louisiana	Shreveport	40	$41,370	0.5
Maine	Portland	90	$45,180	0.9
Maryland	Baltimore	730	$46,590	1.1
Maryland	Bethesda	160	$51,230	0.5
Maryland	Hagerstown	40	$52,690	0.8
Maryland	Salisbury	60	$41,340	2.5
Massachusetts	Boston	830	$73,470	0.9
Massachusetts	Brockton	30	$50,130	0.7
Massachusetts	Framingham	80	$56,820	1
Massachusetts	Haverhill	40	$48,000	1.1
Massachusetts	Lawrence	30	$63,760	1.1
Massachusetts	Leominster	60	$54,070	2.6
Massachusetts	Lowell	50	$69,440	0.8
Massachusetts	New Bedford	30	$46,570	1
Massachusetts	Springfield	180	$53,930	1.2
Massachusetts	Worcester	210	$60,040	1.7
Michigan	Detroit	460	$54,700	1.2
Michigan	Flint	70	$32,380	1
Michigan	Grand Rapids	490	$52,420	2.5
Michigan	Holland	160	$42,500	3.2
Michigan	Jackson	60	$45,980	2.5
Michigan	Kalamazoo	110	$47,230	1.6
Michigan	Lansing	270	$57,510	2.8
Michigan	Muskegon	30	$41,830	1.1
Michigan	Niles	120	$46,210	4.2
Michigan	Saginaw	80	$45,480	2.2
Michigan	Warren	1,890	$56,820	3.1
Minnesota	Duluth	90	$49,840	1.4
Minnesota	Minneapolis	1,590	$52,310	1.7
Minnesota	Rochester	90	$47,290	2
Minnesota	St Cloud	70	$37,920	1.4
Mississippi	Gulfport	30	$42,100	0.6
Mississippi	Jackson	120	$40,370	0.9
Missouri	Jefferson City	40		1.2
Missouri	Kansas City	450	$47,110	0.8
Missouri	Springfield	50	$37,950	0.5
Missouri	St Louis	590	$52,090	0.8
Montana	Billings	40	$35,840	1
Nebraska	Lincoln	160	$38,730	2
Nebraska	Omaha	230	$38,820	1
Nevada	Las Vegas	280	$53,800	0.6
Nevada	Reno	80	$45,970	0.8
New Hampshire	Manchester	30	$44,480	0.6
New Jersey	Camden	480	$54,850	1.7
New Jersey	Edison	390	$52,550	0.7
New Jersey	Newark	330	$54,740	0.6
New Jersey	Trenton	70	$55,880	0.6
New Mexico	Albuquerque	200	$50,170	1
New Mexico	Las Cruces	50	$38,420	1.8
New York	Albany	190	$51,740	0.8
New York	Binghamton	40	$39,020	0.8
New York	Buffalo	450	$47,690	1.6
New York	Elmira	60	$43,520	3.9
New York	Glens Falls	30	$46,220	1.2
New York	Kingston	40	$44,690	1.5
New York	Nassau	430	$59,630	0.7
New York	New York	1,890	$49,270	0.7
New York	Poughkeepsie	50	$48,340	0.4
New York	Rochester	250	$49,330	1
New York	Syracuse	290	$45,860	1.8
New York	Utica	70	$37,340	1.1
North Carolina	Charlotte	330	$50,680	0.7
North Carolina	Durham	130	$52,790	0.9
North Carolina	Greensboro	150	$54,950	0.8
North Carolina	Hickory	50	$48,640	0.6
North Carolina	Raleigh	230	$51,770	0.9
North Carolina	Wilmington	30	$48,420	0.4
North Carolina	Winston Salem	160	$64,540	1.5
North Dakota	Fargo	130	$35,250	2.3
Ohio	Akron	370	$44,990	2.1
Ohio	Canton	200	$41,890	2.3
Ohio	Cincinnati	780	$47,170	1.4
Ohio	Cleveland	830	$45,310	1.5
Ohio	Columbus	640	$43,990	1.3
Ohio	Dayton	360	$40,530	1.8
Ohio	Mansfield	30	$35,340	1.3
Ohio	Sandusky	30	$43,860	1.9
Ohio	Toledo	160	$44,590	1
Ohio	Youngstown	160	$38,620	1.3
Oklahoma	Oklahoma City	260	$41,370	0.9
Oklahoma	Tulsa	590	$50,080	2.6
Oregon	Eugene	140	$40,530	1.9
Oregon	Portland	660	$49,650	1.2
Oregon	Salem	50	$40,970	0.7
Pennsylvania	Allentown	330	$48,250	1.9
Pennsylvania	Erie	100	$40,670	1.6
Pennsylvania	Harrisburg	170	$45,830	1
Pennsylvania	Johnstown	30	$36,170	1.2
Pennsylvania	Lancaster	200	$45,420	1.7
Pennsylvania	Lebanon	40	$44,590	1.9
Pennsylvania	Philadelphia	1,200	$52,940	1.2
Pennsylvania	Pittsburgh	860	$44,290	1.4
Pennsylvania	Reading	100	$46,870	1.2
Pennsylvania	Scranton	150	$43,550	1.1
Pennsylvania	Williamsport	40	$40,000	1.7
Pennsylvania	York	230	$42,580	2.5
South Carolina	Anderson	60	$51,460	2.1
South Carolina	Charleston	90	$50,160	0.6
South Carolina	Columbia	190	$47,450	1
South Carolina	Florence	40	$47,480	1
South Carolina	Greenville	410	$62,680	2.6
South Carolina	Myrtle Beach	40	$45,610	0.7
South Carolina	Spartanburg	70	$49,880	1.2
South Dakota	Sioux Falls	60	$33,550	0.9
Tennessee	Chattanooga	260	$50,300	2.2
Tennessee	Knoxville	130	$47,980	0.8
Tennessee	Memphis	120	$55,000	0.4
Tennessee	Nashville	450	$48,570	1.1
Texas	Austin	540	$53,070	1.4
Texas	Beaumont	140	$52,960	1.8
Texas	Corpus Christi	60	$38,580	0.7
Texas	Dallas	1,400	$49,410	1.3
Texas	El Paso	50	$37,190	0.4
Texas	Fort Worth	1,030	$46,680	2.3
Texas	Houston	2,900	$54,110	2.1
Texas	Longview	90	$45,610	2
Texas	Lubbock	40	$31,480	0.7
Texas	Odessa	50	$46,880	1.9
Texas	San Antonio	280	$44,150	0.6
Texas	Tyler	40	$63,970	0.9
Texas	Waco	60	$47,850	1.3
Utah	Logan	30	$35,670	1.4
Utah	Ogden	100	$45,070	1
Utah	Provo	70	$62,150	0.8
Utah	Salt Lake City	370	$46,330	1.1
Vermont	Burlington	110	$57,590	2.1
Virginia	Lynchburg	70	$40,670	1.4
Virginia	Richmond	300	$51,030	1
Virginia	Roanoke	60	$42,230	0.8
Washington	Bellingham	50	$43,370	1.3
Washington	Seattle	1,630	$63,530	2.2
Washington	Spokane	110	$38,130	1
Washington	Tacoma	120	$51,190	0.9
West Virginia	Charleston	80	$44,240	1.1
West Virginia	Huntington	70	$44,790	1.3
West Virginia	Parkersburg	60	$33,440	1.8
West Virginia	Wheeling	50	$34,240	1.7
Wisconsin	Appleton	170	$46,540	3
Wisconsin	Eau Claire	140	$42,780	3.9
Wisconsin	Fond	80	$53,870	4.1
Wisconsin	Green Bay	270	$50,080	3.2
Wisconsin	Janesville	110	$50,440	3.6
Wisconsin	La Crosse	110	$43,350	3.4
Wisconsin	Madison	350	$51,990	2
Wisconsin	Milwaukee	1,210	$47,650	2.7
Wisconsin	Racine	170	$51,360	4.7
Wisconsin	Sheboygan	120	$43,130	4.6
Wisconsin	Wausau	120	$45,830	3.8
Wyoming	Cheyenne	30	$43,080	1.6

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Mechanical Drafting Technicians