Excavation Worker Salary in USA

$23/hr

Compare excavation-labor offers with matching duties and project conditions; excavator operators and licensed trades need separate wage comparisons.

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What Excavation Workers Earn in the United States

For excavation construction labor, current national employee wages span $16.87–$37.54/hr, or $35,090–$78,090/year. Tasks can include digging, backfilling and supporting underground work. BLS includes this labor within construction laborers, without a separate excavation-worker percentile series. Machine operators have different benchmarks. Location, employer and duties affect offers. Editorial experience bands do not guarantee progression or replace registered-apprenticeship pay schedules; compare actual responsibilities before accepting a rate.

Hourly rates by level in USA

What excavation workers earn at each stage of the trade in USA, before overtime or per-diem.

Entry · 0–2 yrs
$16.87–$18.57/hr
▲ 0.85% from last year
Skilled · 3–7 yrs
$18.57–$28.72/hr
▲ 0.85% from last year
Lead · 7+ yrs
$28.72–$37.54/hr
▲ 0.85% from last year

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Where do you stand?

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What are you making?

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$/ hr

Use your base rate, not what you take home after overtime.

You're right around the middle

$32.00 is above roughly 52% of this market. The top quarter starts at $37.00, and the median sits at $31.50.

10th
$18
25th
$25
Median
$32
75th
$37
90th
$50
YOU · $32.00
Your percentile
52th
Among this market
Your annual · 40 hrs
$66,560
Before overtime and per diem
Gap to median
+$1,040
Above the median

Calculate pay with extra credentials

Pick your level, add credentials, select shift — the estimate updates live.

1Your level

2Certifications you hold

3Shift & work type

4Overtime & per diem

Weekly overtime hours8 hrs
Per diem (per day away)$0
American RecruitsEstimate
Skilled Excavation Worker
USA · Day Shift
Base rate$23.65
+ OSHA 10-Hour Construction$0.38
+ NCCER Heavy Equipment Operations$1.12
Effective hourly$25.15
Straight · 40 hrs$1,006
Overtime · 8 hrs @ 1.5×$302
Weekly gross$1,308
Annualised · 50 weeks
$65,377
8 OT hrs/week · USA

Who pays the most in USA

Road earthwork, specialty site preparation and utility installation are compared through broader construction-laborer medians. Traffic, changing sites and underground interfaces distinguish these selected sectors; the ranked wages do not isolate excavation work.

01 / 03$24.08/hr

Highway, Street and Bridge Construction

Earthwork support on infrastructure projects.

+ Infrastructure experience
+ Larger crews
– Traffic exposure
– Weather interruptions
02 / 03$22.79/hr

Other Specialty Trade Contractors

Specialist site preparation and construction services.

+ Diverse sites
+ Practical learning
– Changing locations
– Uneven workloads
03 / 03$22.47/hr

Utility System Construction

Labor supporting underground utility installation.

+ Technical coordination
+ Infrastructure exposure
– Utility interfaces
– Excavation hazards

Which states pay excavation workers the most

Median hourly across every state with a published guide for this trade. Cost of living is not netted out — compare take-home, not just the rate.

  1. 01California$28.98/hr
  2. 02Virginia$20.94/hr

What each certification is worth

Sorted by payback speed.

CertificationRate bumpExtra / yearCostPayback
Traffic Flagger Certification+$0.38$790$604 weeks
Fall Protection+$0.75$1,560$1625 weeks
OSHA 10+$0.38$790$906 weeks
NCCER HEO+$1.12$2,330$2756 weeks
First Aid/CPR+$0.25$520$758 weeks

What overtime actually adds

At $22.66/hr.

40 hr week
$906
No OT
50 hr week
$1,246
+$16,995/yr
60 hr week
$1,586
+$33,990/yr
70 hr week
$1,926
+$50,985/yr

Questions workers ask

Is waiting for utility clearance necessarily unpaid?▾
No. Required waiting while you remain on duty and available can count as working time. Being genuinely released from duty is different. Record the instructions and delay length; paused digging does not automatically mean that the paid workday has stopped.
Do digging and cleanup have separate overtime clocks?▾
Not simply because the tasks differ. Covered, nonexempt work for the same employer generally combines within the workweek. Different rates may require a weighted regular-rate calculation. Keep the hours and agreed rate for each assignment.
Can my public-project wage change with my duties?▾
Yes. On covered Davis-Bacon work, classifications follow the work performed and local practice. Ask which rate applies when duties change, and record those changes; a general excavation title does not establish every project wage.

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Source: Current BLS national construction laborer employee wages, SOC 47-2061; excavation labor is included, machine operators are separate.

Last updated October 15, 2026. Rates are market estimates, not guarantees.