How much does a machine assembler make in Japan?
Answer: The average machine assembler in Japan makes $34,834 (¥5.23M) a year (monthly pay × 12 plus bonus, 2025, Japan's Basic Survey on Wage Structure).
Monthly pay $2,309 × 12 + bonus $7,122. Average age 42.3; about 132,000 people work in this job. About the same as the Japan-wide average ($33,720).
Machine assembler pay in Japan (2025, averages by company size and sex)
| Company size | Everyone | Men | Women | Age |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Any size | $34,834 | $36,177 | $26,094 | 42.3 |
| Big company | $38,703 | $40,061 | $29,221 | 40.7 |
| Mid-size | $32,723 | $34,180 | $25,267 | 42.1 |
| Small company | $31,717 | $32,780 | $20,930 | 45.5 |
Why does pay differ?
In Japan, pay can differ with experience, useful certificates or licenses, and the kind of machine a worker specializes in. Employer size and pay rules, location, and full-time versus shorter hours or overtime and holiday shifts can also change earnings.
What if you were…
In Japan, age and company size matter mostPick a company size, sex or age to see that group's average here.
How it changes with age
Tap an age to update the number above (Any company size, men and women combined)
How it changes with company size
What does a machine assembler do?
What's a typical day like?
Workers check the drawings, parts, and tools, then build the frame and smaller units with hand tools, lifts, or cranes. They attach the units, connect pipes and wires, and adjust and test the finished machine.
How to get this job
In Japan, many start after technical high school or vocational college and learn on the job; no specific degree or certificate is required. A finishing-skills test can prove skill, while crane or welding work may require a license.
Did you know?
A machine may be taken apart into modules for delivery, rebuilt at the customer's factory, and tested with the factory's existing equipment.
What about the US?
Nearly the same jobJapan's figure is the average and the US figure is the median. Prices and exchange rates matter too, so it's a rough comparison.
Similar jobs
Manufacturing and construction jobsEarn more in the same field
Manufacturing and construction jobs that pay a bit moreSources and data
Source: MHLW Basic Survey on Wage Structure 2025 (regular workers, by occupation) (e-Stat). Yearly pay = monthly contractual cash earnings × 12 + annual bonus. Averages for regular workers at firms with 10+ employees. Public employees (teachers, police, firefighters) and company executives are not in this survey. e-stat.go.jp
Pages used for the text
- shigoto.mhlw.go.jp/User/Occupation/Detail/265
- www.mhlw.go.jp/toukei/list/chinginkouzou_b.html
- www.mhlw.go.jp/stf/seisakunitsuite/bunya/koyou_roudou/jinzaikaihatsu/ability_ski
Data: MHLW Basic Survey on Wage Structure 2025 · 1 USD = 150 JPY