Updated · 2026 tax rules · Data: IRS, BLS, BEA, HUD · How we calculate

Plating Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic Salary in Los Angeles, CA

Plating Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic in the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA metro area earn a median $46,420 a year — 6% more than the national median. After 2026 taxes, that is $38,029 take-home, or $3,169 a month.

Median salary
$46,420
$22.32 per hour
Typical range
$36,690 – $58,630
10th to 90th percentile
Jobs in Los Angeles, CA
3,160
2.42× national concentration
▲0.1%
Pay trend: The median for plating machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic in Los Angeles, CA rose from $46,390 (May 2024) to $46,420 (May 2025). That trailed inflation (2.4%), so buying power slipped about 2.3%.

Take-home pay calculator

Pre-filled with the median plating machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic salary in Los Angeles, CA. Enter your own offer to see your paycheck.

Plating Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic in Los Angeles, CA
Deductions, kids & local tax

2026 tax year. Federal brackets from IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32.

Your take-home pay
$38,029
per year · effective tax rate 18.1%
$3,169Monthly
$1,585Twice a month
$1,463Every 2 weeks
$18.28Hourly
  • Federal income tax$3,390
  • Social Security (6.2%)$2,878
  • Medicare (1.45%)$673
  • California income tax$846
  • CA State Disability Insurance (SDI)$603
  • Take-home pay$38,029

Marginal rate: 12% federal + 4.00% state

Got an offer somewhere else? Compare it with this one after taxes and rent →

Plating Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic pay by experience in Los Angeles, CA

PercentileSalaryHourlyTake-home / yrPer month
10th percentile (entry level)$36,690$17.64$30,727$2,561
25th percentile$38,210$18.37$31,867$2,656
Median (50th)$46,420$22.32$38,029$3,169
75th percentile$50,330$24.20$40,897$3,408
90th percentile (top earners)$58,630$28.19$46,960$3,913

Wages: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. Take-home: single filer, California resident, 2026 tax rules.

What $46,420 buys in Los Angeles, CA

Prices in Los Angeles, CA are 13.6% higher than the U.S. average (housing costs are 1.70× the national average). Adjusted for local prices, a median plating machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic's $38,029 take-home pay has the buying power of $33,486 in a typical American city.

1-bedroom rent
$2,245
71% of monthly take-home
2-bedroom rent
$2,755
87% of monthly take-home
Left after 1-BR rent
$924
per month for everything else

Rents: HUD Fair Market Rents, FY2026 (40th-percentile gross rent incl. utilities). Price levels: BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024.

Los Angeles, CA has 2.4× the national concentration of plating machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic jobs — a strong local market for this occupation.

Best-paying cities for plating machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic, adjusted for cost of living

Los Angeles, CA ranks #1 of 1 metro areas once taxes and local prices are taken into account.

#Metro areaMedian salaryTake-homeReal value*
1Los Angeles, CA $46,420$38,029$33,486

*Take-home pay divided by the BEA price level, so every city is measured in U.S.-average dollars. See all 1 metros →

About the job: plating machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic

Set up, operate, or tend plating machines to coat metal or plastic products with chromium, zinc, copper, cadmium, nickel, or other metal to protect or decorate surfaces. Typically, the product being coated is immersed in molten metal or an electrolytic solution.

Typical education
High school diploma or equivalent
Work experience
None required
On-the-job training
Moderate-term on-the-job training
Job outlook, 2025–35
-9.7% (declining)

Source: BLS Standard Occupational Classification and Employment Projections, 2025–35.

Frequently asked questions

How much does a plating machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic make in Los Angeles, CA?

The median plating machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic salary in the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA metro area is $46,420 a year, or about $22.32 an hour, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (May 2025). The middle half earn between $38,210 and $50,330.

What is a plating machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic’s take-home pay in Los Angeles, CA?

On the median $46,420 salary, a single filer living in California takes home about $38,029 a year ($3,169 a month) after federal tax, Social Security, Medicare and $1,450 in California taxes in 2026.

Is Los Angeles, CA a good place to work as a plating machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic?

Pay here is 6% above the national median of $43,960. Local prices are 13.6% above the U.S. average, so the take-home pay buys what $33,486 would in a typical U.S. city. Los Angeles, CA ranks #1 of 1 metro areas for cost-of-living-adjusted pay in this job.

Can a plating machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic afford rent in Los Angeles, CA?

HUD’s fair market rent for a one-bedroom in Los Angeles, CA is $2,245 a month ($2,755 for two bedrooms) — 71% of a median plating machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic’s monthly take-home pay. Financial planners usually suggest keeping rent under about 30%.

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