New Manufacturing Marketing Guide 2026

Last updated: May 4, 2026

Production Planner Salary by State 2026

Production planners sit right in the middle of the factory. They balance raw material availability, customer due dates, finite machine capacity, and the chaos that hits when one hot order blows up the schedule. The latest O*NET wage tables for Production, Planning, and Expediting Clerks show a national median annual wage of $57,770, with state medians running from $46,940 in New Mexico to $66,580 in Wyoming.

This page pulls every available O*NET local wage page and state trend page for production planning into one place. If you're benchmarking compensation, opening a new plant, recruiting schedulers, or selling ERP, APS, and supply chain software into manufacturing, this is a cleaner way to compare pay, demand, and market size. We compiled 459 core data points and 104 source links, and every core number links back to the original source.

Production planner salary, quick snapshot

$57,770

National median annual pay, O*NET wage data

388,800

US employment, BLS outlook page

-2%

National projected growth through 2034

34,100

Projected annual openings nationwide

Table of contents

  1. National production planner salary overview
  2. Top-paying states
  3. Lower-paying states
  4. Fastest-growth states
  5. States with the most openings
  6. Full salary and openings table
  7. How manufacturers should read this data
  8. What actually drives production planner pay
  9. A hiring playbook for production planners
  10. FAQ
  11. Cite this page
  12. Sources

National production planner salary overview

At the national level, production planners are paid like the people who keep work flowing across departments. The current wage table shows a median annual wage of $57,770, a 75th percentile wage of $71,480, and a 90th percentile wage of $84,810. Source: O*NET occupation summary.

Demand is still large even though the long-run outlook is slightly negative at the national level. BLS shows 388,800 jobs in 2024 and still expects 34,100 annual openings through 2034. That matters because planners are replacement critical. Shops can survive a while with an open machinist seat if supervisors absorb the pain. They struggle much faster when no one is sequencing jobs, releasing work orders, tracking shortages, and updating customers on what will actually ship.

Across the states with published wage data, the average state median is $56,812. The spread from New Mexico to Wyoming is $19,640, or about 42%. That's wide enough that national compensation bands break down fast. A planner supporting a complex aerospace, medical, or multi-plant environment usually commands more than a planner updating a simpler repetitive schedule.

What this means on the shop floor

When planning is weak, throughput looks worse than it should. Expedites jump, setups increase, buyers over-order, and customer service burns time chasing updates. Good planners protect on-time delivery and working capital at the same time. That's why salary benchmarks for production planning matter more than they first appear.

Top-paying states for production planners

The highest-paying markets usually combine three factors, more plant complexity, tighter labor pools, and a higher cost base. Wyoming, Connecticut, California, Hawaii, and Alaska sit near the top of the current table. Some of those states are small, but the employers operating there still need people who can plan around long inbound lead times, variable freight windows, and limited backup labor.

For manufacturers, the lesson is simple. Planner pay rises when the role owns more than a spreadsheet. If the job includes ERP cleanup, MRP release timing, supplier follow-up, and daily production firefighting, you are already competing for a stronger tier of talent.

RankStateMedian annual payProjected growthAnnual openings
1Wyoming$66,58013%20
2Washington$64,71012%1,370
3District of Columbia$63,7402%50
4Rhode Island$63,16011%100
5Michigan$62,9302%920
6Hawaii$62,8705%110
7Minnesota$62,2406%900
8Delaware$61,64013%60
9Nevada$61,43023%280
10Connecticut$61,40011%510

Lower-paying states for production planners

Lower-paying states are not always easier hiring markets. Some simply have lower overall wage structures. Others rely on smaller plants where planning responsibilities get split across customer service, buyers, and supervisors. That can suppress published pay while still leaving employers with real recruiting pressure.

RankStateMedian annual payProjected growthAnnual openings
1New Mexico$46,94016%160
2Montana$48,14013%40
3Mississippi$48,39016%340
4South Dakota$49,0607%80
5Tennessee$49,66017%1,700
6North Carolina$49,8308%1,200
7Florida$50,13013%2,240
8Texas$50,98016%3,680
9Missouri$51,0902%780
10Oklahoma$52,4505%640

If your plant sits in one of these states but expects planners to own ERP accuracy, customer promise dates, shortage management, and line balancing, the market median may understate what you really need to pay.

Fastest-growth states for production planner demand

Growth rates show where planning complexity is expanding, not just where wages are high. Utah, South Carolina, New Mexico, Arizona, and Nevada rank near the top. Those states have seen ongoing investment in advanced manufacturing, warehousing, and supply chain infrastructure, which creates more need for planners who can connect purchasing, scheduling, and fulfillment.

RankStateProjected growthCurrent employmentAnnual openings
1Utah24%5,130700
2Nevada23%2,070280
3Idaho18%1,140150
4South Carolina17%5,710730
5Tennessee17%13,4501,700
6Mississippi16%2,740340
7New Mexico16%1,280160
8Texas16%29,2603,680
9Arizona15%10,9601,360
10Delaware13%48060

States with the most production planner openings

Openings tell you where recruiting volume is concentrated. California and Texas lead on sheer scale, followed by Ohio, Illinois, Minnesota, and Michigan. These are the states where big manufacturing footprints, dense logistics networks, and multi-site operations create a constant need for planning talent.

RankStateAnnual openingsCurrent employmentMedian annual pay
1California6,54058,800$61,320
2Texas3,68029,260$50,980
3Florida2,24018,600$50,130
4Georgia1,85015,410$53,270
5Tennessee1,70013,450$49,660
6Ohio1,69016,120$56,660
7Washington1,37010,470$64,710
8Arizona1,36010,960$56,270
9North Carolina1,20010,560$49,830
10Pennsylvania1,20011,330$57,210

Production planner salary and openings by state

StateMedian pay10th pct90th pctEmploymentGrowthOpenings
Alabama$56,980$36,910$80,7402,8509%330
Alaska$60,900$35,360$76,9604307%50
Arizona$56,270$39,310$84,96010,96015%1,360
Arkansas$52,600$37,890$83,5702,5109%290
California$61,320$42,880$96,60058,8007%6,540
ColoradoN/AN/AN/A4,65011%550
Connecticut$61,400$44,890$99,7904,34011%510
Delaware$61,640$40,860$94,27048013%60
District of Columbia$63,740$44,920$117,8404502%50
Florida$50,130$36,080$78,26018,60013%2,240
Georgia$53,270$38,760$79,10015,41013%1,850
Hawaii$62,870$43,240$108,9301,0805%110
Idaho$58,240$38,550$101,3401,14018%150
Illinois$60,740$43,380$93,69010,2604%1,100
Indiana$57,760$42,020$82,4907,3006%800
Iowa$56,830$42,450$83,4703,9909%460
Kansas$54,990$38,270$85,0103,9406%440
Kentucky$54,560$37,240$80,0704,9109%570
Louisiana$59,950$37,610$101,7402,0808%240
Maine$56,550$34,650$90,1501,0500%110
Maryland$55,850$41,250$85,8206,2409%710
Massachusetts$58,780$40,860$81,1902,0803%220
Michigan$62,930$42,490$84,2708,8902%920
Minnesota$62,240$45,830$83,7408,1806%900
Mississippi$48,390$36,120$84,5402,74016%340
Missouri$51,090$34,320$80,3207,5602%780
Montana$48,140$36,670$75,25030013%40
Nebraska$55,190$37,640$76,3501,2608%140
Nevada$61,430$41,930$99,2502,07023%280
New Hampshire$59,800$36,670$90,2901,4406%160
New Jersey$60,490$40,100$83,02010,5307%1,170
New Mexico$46,940$31,400$84,4901,28016%160
New York$59,800$41,060$87,52053,15011%590
North Carolina$49,830$35,520$76,49010,5608%1,200
North Dakota$57,800$46,740$87,0503908%40
Ohio$56,660$38,910$80,42016,1203%1,690
Oklahoma$52,450$33,750$82,1505,8605%640
Oregon$58,180$43,530$80,0903,64012%440
Pennsylvania$57,210$39,460$82,29011,3303%1,200
Rhode Island$63,160$39,260$97,21083011%100
South Carolina$53,230$37,440$86,3705,71017%730
South Dakota$49,060$39,520$63,7306807%80
Tennessee$49,660$36,040$79,34013,45017%1,700
Texas$50,980$30,330$84,61029,26016%3,680
Utah$53,110$38,180$84,6405,13024%700
Vermont$56,820$36,400$78,1005104%50
Virginia$60,440$38,130$91,1007,2705%790
Washington$64,710$44,130$95,43010,47012%1,370
West Virginia$53,680$38,880$84,06074012%90
Wisconsin$55,230$39,950$77,6208,0807%900
Wyoming$66,580$39,040$93,10015013%20

How manufacturers should read this data

A production planner salary benchmark only tells part of the story. In one shop, the planner prints travelers and updates due dates. In another, the planner runs the daily dispatch list, works shortage reports, updates routings, coordinates outside processing, and fields sales pressure all day long. Same title, different job.

That's why the best way to use this page is to read wages next to openings and market size. A state with modest pay but heavy openings can still be a hard market. A state with high pay but small employment may only have a few specialized employers, but those employers can be difficult to hire against because every experienced candidate is already known.

For owners and operations leaders, planner pay also connects directly to working capital. Strong planning reduces late PO releases, excess WIP, and avoidable overtime. In many plants, one reliable planner does more for margin than another layer of expediting after the fact.

What actually drives production planner pay

The first driver is system complexity. A planner working inside a disciplined ERP or APS environment can handle more volume with less guesswork. A planner cleaning up bad BOMs, wrong lead times, and stale inventory records is doing higher-stress work and usually earns more if the employer understands the value.

The second driver is product mix. High-mix, low-volume manufacturing creates more schedule volatility than repetitive production. Medical device, aerospace, job shop machining, and custom fabrication plants often need planners who understand revision control, outside processing, and customer-specific constraints.

The third driver is customer pressure. If your planner is also protecting key accounts, updating promise dates, and deciding what gets bumped when capacity gets tight, the role is much closer to a production control analyst than a basic clerical coordinator. That should show up in pay.

A hiring playbook for production planners

Start by writing the real job, not the HR-safe version. If your planner will own MRP exception messages, supplier coordination, finite scheduling, and customer reschedules, say that in the posting. Better candidates self-select when the position is described honestly.

Next, benchmark against your local market but price for consequences. A weak planner costs you through missed shipments, inflated WIP, and constant expedites. Paying five or ten thousand dollars more in base salary can be a cheap decision when the employee can stabilize the schedule, protect margin, and keep your manufacturing production line moving.

Finally, support the role. Production planners burn out when every department treats them like a message board instead of a decision maker. Give them clean data, clear priorities, and authority to push back when sales or operations tries to break the schedule every afternoon.

In practice, the strongest candidates usually bring a mix of ERP skill, scheduling judgment, and enough shop-floor credibility to challenge bad assumptions. Years of experience still matter, but so do education, system training, and the requirement to work across purchasing, production, and customer service without losing control of priorities.

If you are comparing compensation across the United States, think beyond the posted average salary. Total pay may include bonus plans, overtime eligibility, or benefit packages tied to shift coverage, attendance, and plant performance. Some employers advertise a competitive package but still lose people because the team lacks support, the program data is messy, or promotion potential is unclear.

That is why the average salary for a production planner only becomes useful when you pair it with qualification expectations. A planner supporting a New York medical supplier, for example, may need stronger compliance discipline than a planner in a simpler make-to-stock plant. The right hire depends on the process, the planning requirement, and the downstream cost of getting the schedule wrong.

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FAQ

What is the average production planner salary in the US?

Using the latest O*NET national wage table for Production, Planning, and Expediting Clerks, the national median annual wage is $57,770. The 90th percentile reaches $84,810, which shows how much pay can rise when the role supports more complex factory operations.

Which states pay production planners the most?

Wyoming, Connecticut, California, Hawaii, and Alaska rank among the highest-paying states in the current O*NET wage tables. These markets either have tighter labor pools, higher costs, or plants that need more advanced planning support.

Where is production planner demand strongest?

For raw hiring volume, California, Texas, Ohio, Illinois, and Minnesota stand out. For growth rate, Utah, New Mexico, Arizona, South Carolina, and Nevada are stronger signals. Use openings and growth together, not one number by itself.

Is production planning a good manufacturing career path?

Yes, especially for people who understand both systems and shop-floor reality. Strong planners often move into production control, purchasing, materials management, supply chain management, or plant operations roles because they learn how the whole factory fits together.

Cite This Data

If you reference this resource in a report, article, or presentation, please use the following citation:

Manufacturing Lead Generation. "Production Planner Salary by State (2025-2026): Pay, Growth & Openings Data." ManufacturingLeadGeneration.com, May 4, 2026. https://manufacturingleadgeneration.com/production-planner-salary-by-state/

Sources