As of March 01, 2025, the average annual salary for an Instrument Technician I in the United States is $55,818. Salary.com reports that pay typically ranges from $48,219 to $66,597, with most professionals earning between $41,300 and $76,411.
| Annual Salary |
Monthly Pay |
Weekly Pay |
Hourly Wage |
|
| 75th Percentile | $66,597 | $5,550 | $1,281 | $32 |
| Average | $55,818 | $4,651 | $1,073 | $27 |
| 25th Percentile | $48,219 | $4,018 | $927 | $23 |
An entry-level Instrument Technician I with less than 1 year of experience earns about $54,547. With 1-2 years of experience, the average salary increases to $55,424. For 2-4 years of experience, the pay typically rises to $57,807. Senior-level professionals with 5-8 years of experience earn around $58,283, and those with over 8 years of experience can expect an average of $58,601.
| Levels | Salary |
|---|---|
| Entry Level Instrument Technician I | $54,547 |
| Intermediate Level Instrument Technician I | $55,424 |
| Senior Level Instrument Technician I | $57,807 |
| Specialist Level Instrument Technician I | $58,283 |
| Expert Level Instrument Technician I | $58,601 |
| Entry Level | 2% |
| Mid Level | 1% |
| Senior Level | 4% |
| Top Level | 4% |
| Experienced | 5% |
Salaries in the United States differ widely between states due to factors like cost of living, local economies, and industry presence.
What Am I Worth?
Salaries in the United States can vary greatly between cities due to factors like cost of living, local economies, and industry presence.
As of March 01, 2025, our research reveals a significant shift in Instrument Technician I compensation over the past six years. For example, the median salary increased from $49,256 in 2023 to approximately $49,218 in 2024. (For a detailed analysis of Instrument Technician I salary trends, click here.)
Key factors like location, experience, industry demand, and economic growth significantly influence salary variations, making them important to consider.
Salary.com job board provides millions of Instrument Technician I information for you to search for. Click on search button below to see Instrument Technician I job openings or enter a new job title here.
Here are companies hiring for Instrument Technician I and their salaries, click below for more details.
| Core Compensation | ||||
| Core Compensation | Median | % of Total | ||
| Base Salary | $55,818 | 67.6% | ||
| Bonus | $606 | 0.7% | ||
| Value of Benefits | ||||
| Core Compensation | Median | % of Total | ||
| Social Security | $4,316 | 5.2% | ||
| 401K/403B | $2,370 | 2.9% | ||
| Disability | $1,128 | 1.4% | ||
| Healthcare | $8,352 | 10.1% | ||
| Pension | $3,047 | 3.7% | ||
| Time Off | $6,944 | 8.4% | ||
| Total Compensation | $82,582 | 100% | ||
| Degree Level | % of user with this level of education |
|---|---|
| No Diploma | 1.7% |
| High School | 34.5% |
| Associates | 37.9% |
| Bachelors | 24.1% |
| Masters | 1.7% |
What Am I Worth?
The average annual salary of Instrument Technician I is $55,818. In case you are finding an easy salary calculator, the average hourly pay of Instrument Technician I is $27; the average weekly pay of Instrument Technician I is $1,073; the average monthly pay of Instrument Technician I is $4,651.
An Instrument Technician I's earning potential can vary widely depending on several factors, including location, industry, experience, education, and the specific employer. According to the latest salary data by Salary.com, an Instrument Technician I earns the most in San Jose, CA, where the annual salary of an Instrument Technician I is $70,051.
The highest pay for Instrument Technician I is $76,411.
The lowest pay for Instrument Technician I is $41,300.
Instrument Technician I assembles, installs, tests, and calibrates electrical wiring control panels and associated components used for manufacturing systems, automotive equipment, or other devices. Follows blueprints, bill of materials, schematics, or piping and instrumentation diagrams (P&ID). Being an Instrument Technician I selects, measures, and prepares electrical wiring or coaxial cabling. Connects wiring and labels to panels. Additionally, Instrument Technician I performs instrument startup, calibration, functional, and safety testing. Requires a high school diploma or graduation from a technical or trade school. Typically reports to a supervisor or manager. The Instrument Technician I works under moderate supervision. Gaining or has attained full proficiency in a specific area of discipline. To be an Instrument Technician I typically requires 1-3 years of related experience.
Specify the abilities and skills that a person needs in order to carry out the specified job duties. Each competency has five to ten behavioral assertions that can be observed, each with a corresponding performance level (from one to five) that is required for a particular job.
Troubleshooting: Troubleshooting is a form of problem solving, often applied to repair failed products or processes on a machine or a system. It is a logical, systematic search for the source of a problem in order to solve it, and make the product or process operational again. Troubleshooting is needed to identify the symptoms. Determining the most likely cause is a process of elimination—eliminating potential causes of a problem. Finally, troubleshooting requires confirmation that the solution restores the product or process to its working state. In general, troubleshooting is the identification or diagnosis of "trouble" in the management flow of a system caused by a failure of some kind. The problem is initially described as symptoms of malfunction, and troubleshooting is the process of determining and remedying the causes of these symptoms. A system can be described in terms of its expected, desired or intended behavior (usually, for artificial systems, its purpose). Events or inputs to the system are expected to generate specific results or outputs. (For example, selecting the "print" option from various computer applications is intended to result in a hardcopy emerging from some specific device). Any unexpected or undesirable behavior is a symptom. Troubleshooting is the process of isolating the specific cause or causes of the symptom. Frequently the symptom is a failure of the product or process to produce any results. (Nothing was printed, for example). Corrective action can then be taken to prevent further failures of a similar kind.
Preventive Maintenance: Preventive maintenance is the act of performing regularly scheduled maintenance activities to help prevent unexpected failures in the future. Put simply, it's about fixing things before they break.
Data Acquisition: Data acquisition is the process of sampling signals that measure real-world physical conditions and converting the resulting samples into digital numeric values that can be manipulated by a computer.
Salary.com provides salary estimates, histograms, trends, and comparisons using data from employer job postings and third-party sources.
We offer detailed salary information across multiple percentiles for your reference. (Click here to learn Why the Salary Midpoint Formula Is Crucial for Achieving Pay Equity.)
With the most extensive online, real-time compensation data available, Salary.com helps you pinpoint your exact pay target.
