$Who Earns What

How much does a instrument repairer make?

US Musical Instrument Repairers and Tuners

Answer: A typical instrument repairer in the United States makes $46,420 a year (median, May 2025, US Bureau of Labor Statistics).

Yearly pay of a typical person doing this job in the US
$46,420

Line up 100 people; this is the one in the middle (median). about 5,000 people work in this job. About the same as the US-wide typical pay ($50,980).

Lower earner
$31,220
10th from the bottom of 100
Typical person
$46,420
Right in the middle (median)
Higher earner
$71,600
10th from the top of 100

If 100 people had this job

Lowest at bottom-left, highest at top-right

Hover over a person to see their yearly pay

54 of 100
more than half

Instrument repairer pay in the United States (May 2025, median and spread)

Instrument repairer pay in the United States (May 2025, median and spread) — Data: US BLS OEWS, May 2025
Lower earner (10th from bottom)Typical person (median)Higher earner (10th from top)People in this job
$31,220$46,420$71,600about 5,000
States where instrument repairers earn the most (median, May 2025)
StateTypical person (median)People in this job
Texas$48,250about 580
California$47,580about 520

Why does pay differ?

In the United States, experience and in-demand skills can raise pay; a specialist who handles complex repairs may be valued differently from a beginner. Location, employer type, such as a shop, retailer, school, or maker, and useful credentials can also make a difference.

What if you lived in a different state?

Pay varies a lot by state in the US
Whole US$46,420
Michigan$59,570
New Jersey$58,730
Tennessee$58,730
Maryland$55,130
Oregon$54,800
Oklahoma$31,160
Georgia$29,640
Mississippi$23,980

Top 5 and bottom 3 states, typical (median) yearly pay.

What does a instrument repairer do?

Repair percussion, stringed, reed, or wind instruments. May specialize in one area, such as piano tuning. Excludes “Audiovisual Equipment Installers and Repairers" (49-2097) who repair electrical and electronic musical instruments.

What's a typical day like?

They inspect and play an instrument to find what sounds or works wrong, then take it apart and repair or replace worn parts. They put it back together and use hand tools or an electronic tuner to tune and test it.

How to get this job

Finish high school, then train at a repair school or apprentice with an experienced technician, often starting as a helper. Some U.S. apprenticeships start at 18; registered paths include piano, wind, fretted-instrument, and pipe-organ repair.

Vocational school or a few years' experience (preparation level 3 of 5)

Good for people who like building and doing and keeping things organized.

Did you know?

A piano uses about 220 steel strings to make 88 notes, and a tuner adjusts their tension in a careful order.

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Sources and data

Source: US Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (bls.gov); descriptions and related jobs from O*NET 31.0. Figures as of May 2025, full-time yearly pay (hourly × 2,080 hours). bls.gov/oes · O*NET OnLine

Pages used for the text

Data: US BLS OEWS, May 2025 · 1 USD = 150 JPY