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Underwater Diver Salary in the United States

How much does an Underwater Diver make in the United States?

As of September 01, 2026, the average salary for an Underwater Diver in the United States is $42,466 per year, which breaks down to an hourly rate of $20.

However, an Underwater Diver's salary can vary significantly. Here’s a look at the typical salary range:

  • Top Earners (90th percentile): $50,137
  • Majority Range (25th-75th percentile): $38,772 to $46,481
  • Entry-Level (10th percentile): $35,408
Salary Factors Salary-Boosting Skills Salary by Experience Related Job Salaries Top Paying Cities Explore Related Jobs

Key Factors That Influence Underwater Diver Salaries

An Underwater Diver's salary isn't a fixed number. It's shaped by several important factors. Below, we'll explore how your years of experience, geographic location, education and company size can directly affect your earning potential.

How Experience Level Affects Underwater Diver Salaries?

Experience is a primary driver of an Underwater Diver's salary. As you build your skills and take on more complex tasks, your compensation generally increases. Here's how the average salary grows at different career stages:

  • Entry-Level (less than 1 year): $43,236
  • Early Career (1-2 years): $51,386
  • Mid-Level (2-4 years): $61,100
  • Senior-Level (5-8 years): $91,290
  • Expert (over 8 years): $101,288
Levels Salary
Underwate... Level Underwater Diver$43,236
Productio... Level Underwater Diver$51,386
Productio... Level Underwater Diver$61,100
Productio... Level Underwater Diver$91,290
Productio... Level Underwater Diver$101,288
View as Graph

How Do Underwater Diver 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 Underwater Divers. For example, consider the average annual salaries in these key locations:
  • District of Columbia: $47,018.
  • California: $46,840.
  • Massachusetts: $46,216.

Top Paying Cities for Underwater Divers

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: $53,562
  • San Francisco: $52,976
  • Oakland: $51,859

What Skills Can Increase an Underwater Diver's Salary?

Demanded Skills for the Role:

  • Communication Skills (Mentioned in 4.8% Job Postings): Communication skills are your ability to share or understand information, ideas, and feelings successfully.
  • Continuous Improvement (Mentioned in 2.48% Job Postings): A continual improvement process, also often called a continuous improvement process (abbreviated as CIP or CI), is an ongoing effort to improve products, services, or processes. These efforts can seek "incremental" improvement over time or "breakthrough" improvement all at once. Delivery (customer valued) processes are constantly evaluated and improved in the light of their efficiency, effectiveness and flexibility. Some see CIPs as a meta-process for most management systems (such as business process management, quality management, project management, and program management). W. Edwards Deming, a pioneer of the field, saw it as part of the 'system' whereby feedback from the process and customer were evaluated against organisational goals. The fact that it can be called a management process does not mean that it needs to be executed by 'management'; but rather merely that it makes decisions about the implementation of the delivery process and the design of the delivery process itself.
  • Purchasing (Mentioned in 1.64% Job Postings): Purchasing refers to a business or organization attempting to acquire goods or services to accomplish its goals. Although there are several organizations that attempt to set standards in the purchasing process, processes can vary greatly between organizations. Typically the word “purchasing” is not used interchangeably with the word “procurement”, since procurement typically includes expediting, supplier quality, and transportation and logistics (T&L) in addition to purchasing.
Skills Demand Percentage
Communication Skills 4.8%
Continuous Improvement 2.48%
Purchasing 1.64%
See More Skills

What skills can make your compensation higher?

Mastering certain specialized skills can lead to a significant increase in pay. Here are examples of skills and the potential impact they can have on an Underwater Diver's salary.

  • Project Management: Can increase your salary by up to 36%.
  • Process Improvement: Can increase your salary by up to 22%.
  • Production Planning: Can increase your salary by up to 21%.
Skill Salary Salary % Increase
Project Management $57,754
36%
Process Improvement $51,808
22%
Production Planning $51,384
21%
Get Latest Data

Underwater Diver Salary by Industry: Top Paying Sectors

For Underwater Diver roles, the industry you choose can affect earning potential by as much as 70% (the gap between the highest and lowest paying industries). Data shows that the Financial Services and Internet sectors offer the strongest compensation, at 20% above the average. In contrast, Underwater Diver positions in Transportation or Edu., Gov't. & Nonprofit typically offer lower base pay, as these industries often view Underwater Diver as a support function rather than a direct revenue driver.

The top paying industries for an Underwater Diver

Industry Sector Average Annual Salary Average Hourly Rate Pay vs.Avg
Financial Services$50,959$24.020%
Internet$50,959$24.020%
Software & Networking$50,959$24.020%
Biotechnology$48,836$23.015%
Healthcare$48,836$23.015%

How Education impacts an Underwater Diver's Salary?

Your level of education can impact your salary potential. While many Underwater Divers enter the field with a High School Diploma or Technical Certificate degree, higher education can lead to more specialized and higher-paying roles.

According to our 100% employer-reported salary data, the median salary for an Underwater Diver with a High School Diploma or Technical Certificate is between $45,578 and $48,929).

Underwater Diver Salaries by Degree Level

Typical Education for Underwater Diver
Degree Level % of user with this level of education
No Diploma 3.3%
High School 38.2%
Associates 22.8%
Bachelors 30.9%
Masters 4.9%
Doctorate 0.0%
View as Graph

Underwater Diver Salary: Hourly Rate, Weekly Pay, and Monthly Pay

Understanding how an Underwater Diver'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.

Last Updated on September 01, 2026
$38,772
Average $42,466/year
$46,481
$3,231
Average $3,539/month
$3,873
$746
Average $817/week
$894
$19
Average $20/hour
$22
Annual Salary Monthly Pay Weekly Pay Hourly Wage
75th Percentile $46,481 $3,873 $894 $22
Average $42,466 $3,539 $817 $20
25th Percentile $38,772 $3,231 $746 $19

Most common benefits for Underwater Diver

  • Social Security
  • 401 (k)
  • Disability
  • Healthcare
  • Pension
  • Time Off (days)

Common company salaries for Underwater Diver

Here are companies hiring for Underwater Diver and their salaries, click below for more details.

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FAQ about Underwater Diver

1. What industry pays the highest salary for Underwater Diver?

The Financial Services industry offers the highest average compensation for Underwater Diver roles, with salaries approximately 20% above the market median.

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.

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.

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