How much does a Natural Gas Operator make in the United States?
As of October 01, 2026, the average salary for a Natural Gas Operator in the United States is $48,974 per year, which breaks down to an hourly rate of $24.
However, a Natural Gas Operator's salary can vary significantly. Here’s a look at the typical salary range:
Top Earners (90th percentile): $60,901
Majority Range (25th-75th percentile): $46,290 to $55,217
Key Factors That Influence Natural Gas Operator Salaries
A Natural Gas Operator's salary isn't a fixed number. It's shaped by several important factors.
Below, we'll explore how geographic location
and company size
can directly affect your earning potential.
How Do Natural Gas Operator Salaries Vary from State to State?
Your salary can change significantly depending on where you work. States with a higher cost of living and strong industrial sectors often pay more to attract Natural Gas Operators. For example, consider the average annual salaries in these key locations:
District of Columbia: $54,224.
California: $54,018.
Massachusetts: $53,298.
District of Columbia$54,224
California$54,018
Massachusetts$53,298
Washington$53,102
New Jersey$53,083
Alaska$53,014
Connecticut$52,338
New York$52,064
Hawaii$51,187
Rhode Island$50,776
Maryland$50,497
Minnesota$50,115
Colorado$49,968
Illinois$49,919
Oregon$49,733
Delaware$49,596
New Hampshire$49,509
Virginia$49,317
Pennsylvania$48,753
Nevada$48,469
North Dakota$48,376
Michigan$48,229
Wisconsin$48,175
Vermont$48,068
Texas$47,769
Maine$47,749
Arizona$47,720
Ohio$47,686
Georgia$47,235
Indiana$47,010
Wyoming$46,966
Utah$46,897
Iowa$46,868
Kansas$46,633
Louisiana$46,564
North Carolina$46,540
Missouri$46,530
Florida$46,339
Montana$46,236
Nebraska$46,138
Kentucky$46,084
South Carolina$45,888
Tennessee$45,766
Idaho$45,717
New Mexico$45,359
Oklahoma$45,281
Alabama$44,992
South Dakota$44,507
Arkansas$44,243
West Virginia$44,101
Mississippi$43,675
Top Paying Cities for Natural Gas Operators
Salaries can also vary between different cities.
Major metropolitan areas or cities with a high demand for technicians often offer more competitive pay.
Here are a few examples of average annual salaries in different U.S. cities:
San Jose: $61,771
San Francisco: $61,094
Oakland: $59,807
San Jose, CA$61,771
San Francisco, CA$61,094
Oakland, CA$59,807
New York, NY$56,388
Paramus, NJ$55,702
Queens Village, NY$55,700
Passaic, NJ$55,653
Bergenfield, NJ$55,649
Stamford, CT$55,541
Huntington, NY$55,521
Newark, NJ$55,159
Bridgeport, CT$55,056
Vallejo, CA$54,958
New Brunswick, NJ$54,939
Petaluma, CA$54,909
Middlesex, NJ$54,816
Somerset, NJ$54,782
Santa Cruz, CA$54,718
Boston, MA$54,420
Monterey, CA$54,248
Seattle, WA$54,136
Santa Rosa, CA$54,126
Los Angeles, CA$54,111
Juneau, AK$53,984
Washington, DC$53,930
Orange, CA$53,755
Santa Ana, CA$53,626
Long Beach, CA$53,577
Anaheim, CA$53,567
Anchorage, AK$53,543
Santa Maria, CA$53,396
Everett, WA$53,386
Danbury, CT$53,214
Bremerton, WA$53,146
Tacoma, WA$52,970
New Suffolk, NY$52,969
Sacramento, CA$52,955
Santa Barbara, CA$52,901
Trenton, NJ$52,848
San Diego, CA$52,848
Brockton, MA$52,794
Fairbanks, AK$52,674
Lompoc, CA$52,549
Lowell, MA$52,509
Ventura, CA$52,500
Nashua, NH$52,490
Stockton, CA$52,485
Modesto, CA$52,128
Poughkeepsie, NY$52,020
Olympia, WA$51,927
Kennewick, WA$51,927
New Haven, CT$51,907
Lawrence, MA$51,731
Hartford, CT$51,682
Riverside, CA$51,672
New Bedford, MA$51,623
Richland, WA$51,623
Bakersfield, CA$51,555
San Bernardino, CA$51,535
New Britain, CT$51,530
Atlantic City, NJ$51,530
New London, CT$51,511
Norwich, CT$51,496
Portsmouth, NH$51,486
Boulder, CO$51,382
Portland, OR$51,315
Worcester, MA$51,310
Minneapolis, MN$51,158
Philadelphia, PA$51,089
Honolulu, HI$50,928
Saint Paul, MN$50,904
Vineland, NJ$50,893
Providence, RI$50,751
Chicago, IL$50,609
Bellingham, WA$50,551
Springfield, MA$50,511
Baltimore, MD$50,497
Chico, CA$50,374
Pittsfield, MA$50,242
Manchester, NH$50,149
Spokane, WA$49,934
Denver, CO$49,929
Albany, NY$49,699
Troy, NY$49,679
Nassau, NY$49,627
Schenectady, NY$49,576
Wilmington, DE$49,537
Burlington, VT$49,468
Salem, OR$49,449
Portland, ME$49,297
Yakima, WA$49,248
Rochester, MN$49,096
Reno, NV$49,072
Fresno, CA$49,072
Milwaukee, WI$49,028
Detroit, MI$48,979
Ann Arbor, MI$48,970
Allentown, PA$48,964
Colorado Springs, CO$48,881
Syracuse, NY$48,856
Carson City, NV$48,856
Houston, TX$48,788
Eugene, OR$48,763
Gary, IN$48,704
Springfield, OR$48,665
Bismarck, ND$48,655
Galveston, TX$48,621
Medford, OR$48,548
Fort Collins, CO$48,528
Concord, NH$48,504
Austin, TX$48,489
Mesa, AZ$48,386
Reading, PA$48,381
Phoenix, AZ$48,376
Dallas, TX$48,362
Saint Cloud, MN$48,315
Madison, WI$48,249
Utica, NY$48,117
Rochester, NY$48,038
Des Moines, IA$48,033
Raleigh, NC$48,029
Atlanta, GA$47,955
Battle Creek, MI$47,940
Salt Lake City, UT$47,926
Lancaster, PA$47,852
Harrisburg, PA$47,784
Kansas City, MO$47,735
Champaign, IL$47,725
Kansas City, KS$47,725
Fort Worth, TX$47,720
Columbus, OH$47,712
Boca Raton, FL$47,700
Pittsburgh, PA$47,681
Richmond, VA$47,661
Indianapolis, IN$47,651
Cleveland, OH$47,647
Las Vegas, NV$47,588
Cincinnati, OH$47,588
Petersburg, VA$47,514
Huntsville, AL$47,441
Lansing, MI$47,408
Lebanon, PA$47,402
Pueblo, CO$47,397
Appleton, WI$47,382
Buffalo, NY$47,362
Dayton, OH$47,348
Racine, WI$47,338
Charlotte, NC$47,333
Saint Louis, MO$47,318
York, PA$47,289
Elkhart, IN$47,289
Gastonia, NC$47,280
Billings, MT$47,268
Beaumont, TX$47,255
Lorain, OH$47,245
Benton Harbor, MI$47,235
Toledo, OH$47,225
Binghamton, NY$47,201
Rock Hill, SC$47,196
Rockford, IL$47,171
Springfield, IL$47,152
Elyria, OH$47,147
Fargo, ND$47,147
Flagstaff, AZ$47,113
Fort Lauderdale, FL$47,083
Duluth, MN$47,054
Miami, FL$47,054
Cheyenne, WY$47,020
Grand Forks, ND$47,020
Bangor, ME$46,912
Cedar Rapids, IA$46,858
Durham, NC$46,837
Louisville, KY$46,834
Grand Rapids, MI$46,824
Hialeah, FL$46,819
Casper, WY$46,750
Scranton, PA$46,692
New Orleans, LA$46,677
Virginia Beach, VA$46,672
Akron, OH$46,647
Peoria, IL$46,584
Sarasota, FL$46,574
Nashville, TN$46,540
Omaha, NE$46,540
Green Bay, WI$46,540
Baton Rouge, LA$46,515
Charleston, SC$46,505
Jamestown, NY$46,481
Davenport, IA$46,481
Tucson, AZ$46,456
Saint Petersburg, FL$46,427
Tampa, FL$46,417
Evansville, IN$46,388
Port Arthur, TX$46,388
Bradenton, FL$46,368
Santa Fe, NM$46,280
Orlando, FL$46,192
Clearwater, FL$46,177
Canton, OH$46,074
La Crosse, WI$46,074
Albuquerque, NM$46,045
Newport News, VA$46,040
High Point, NC$46,025
Ogden, UT$46,006
Corpus Christi, TX$45,967
Norfolk, VA$45,937
Laramie, WY$45,937
Rock Island, IL$45,908
Saginaw, MI$45,898
Jacksonville, FL$45,893
Salisbury, NC$45,883
Boise, ID$45,874
Moline, IL$45,849
Fort Myers, FL$45,834
Memphis, TN$45,825
Tulsa, OK$45,800
Waterloo, IA$45,771
Spartanburg, SC$45,722
Lincoln, NE$45,697
Fort Wayne, IN$45,688
Provo, UT$45,683
Cedar Falls, IA$45,624
San Antonio, TX$45,604
Greensboro, NC$45,585
South Bend, IN$45,580
Savannah, GA$45,526
Muskegon, MI$45,506
Birmingham, AL$45,501
Winston Salem, NC$45,477
Lake Charles, LA$45,359
Anderson, IN$45,350
Lexington, KY$45,335
Augusta, GA$45,320
Greenville, SC$45,320
Lima, OH$45,281
Wichita, KS$45,276
Tuscaloosa, AL$45,276
Columbia, SC$45,232
Springfield, OH$45,222
Asheville, NC$45,144
Bloomington, IN$45,110
Knoxville, TN$44,933
Shreveport, LA$44,928
Wilmington, NC$44,865
Roanoke, VA$44,865
Topeka, KS$44,777
Frankfort, KY$44,771
Oklahoma City, OK$44,737
Chillicothe, OH$44,718
Longview, TX$44,713
Melbourne, FL$44,708
Sioux Falls, SD$44,630
Mobile, AL$44,625
Terre Haute, IN$44,605
Altoona, PA$44,576
Amarillo, TX$44,542
Killeen, TX$44,527
Fayetteville, AR$44,488
Chattanooga, TN$44,473
Sioux City, IA$44,429
Idaho Falls, ID$44,419
Lynchburg, VA$44,380
Gainesville, FL$44,316
Portsmouth, OH$44,292
Little Rock, AR$44,282
Lafayette, LA$44,262
Youngstown, OH$44,262
Daytona Beach, FL$44,233
Clarksville, TN$44,228
Pensacola, FL$44,223
Temple, TX$44,220
Hopkinsville, KY$44,076
Erie, PA$44,067
Florence, SC$44,047
Charleston, WV$43,969
Great Falls, MT$43,944
Macon, GA$43,876
Tallahassee, FL$43,871
Fayetteville, NC$43,861
Waco, TX$43,851
Helena, MT$43,817
Pine Bluff, AR$43,798
Vincennes, IN$43,738
Lubbock, TX$43,719
Alamogordo, NM$43,689
Twin Falls, ID$43,645
Rapid City, SD$43,631
Jackson, MS$43,543
Huntington, WV$43,539
Greenville, MS$43,538
Parkersburg, WV$43,488
Montgomery, AL$43,479
Wichita Falls, TX$43,430
Springfield, MO$43,430
Biloxi, MS$43,405
Monroe, LA$43,356
Johnstown, PA$43,322
Sumter, SC$43,303
Columbus, GA$43,298
Pascagoula, MS$43,205
Abilene, TX$43,205
Kingsport, TN$43,077
Albany, GA$43,077
Gulfport, MS$43,063
Alexandria, LA$42,901
Fort Smith, AR$42,779
El Paso, TX$42,646
Las Cruces, NM$42,426
Harlingen, TX$42,302
Pocatello, ID$42,294
Florence, AL$42,230
Brownsville, TX$42,220
Mcallen, TX$42,117
Dothan, AL$42,049
Columbus, MS$41,758
Altus, OK$41,530
Lawton, OK$41,437
Pierre, SD$41,260
Natural Gas Operator Salary: Hourly Rate, Weekly Pay, and Monthly Pay
Understanding how a Natural Gas Operator's annual salary breaks down can help with budgeting.
Below, you can see the average hourly rate, weekly pay, and monthly pay for this role.
Use the buttons to switch between different pay periods.
Hourly
Monthly
Weekly
Yearly
Table View
Last Updated on October 01, 2026
$46,290
Average$48,974/year
$55,217
$3,858
Average$4,081/month
$4,601
$890
Average$942/week
$1,062
$22
Average$24/hour
$27
Annual Salary
Monthly Pay
Weekly Pay
Hourly Wage
75th Percentile
$55,217
$4,601
$1,062
$27
Average
$48,974
$4,081
$942
$24
25th Percentile
$46,290
$3,858
$890
$22
Salaries of Jobs related to Natural Gas Operator
Natural Gas Trader$115,948
Natural Gas Engineer$97,935
Natural Gas Scheduler$87,686
Natural Gas Measurement Technician$80,673
Natural Gas Plant Operator$79,715
Natural Gas Utility Worker$77,769
Natural Gas Analyst$76,644
Natural Gas Technician$57,667
Natural Gas Broker$56,725
Natural Gas Mechanic$51,000
Natural Gas Inspector$48,319
Most common benefits for Natural Gas Operator
Social Security
401 (k)
Disability
Healthcare
Pension
Time Off (days)
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Where Does Our Salary Data Come From?
Salary.com provides salary estimates, histograms, trends, and comparisons using data from employer job postings and third-party sources.
