What is the salary and career path for a order picker?
Order pickers are counted in Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand, SOC 53-7062, whose OEWS May 2025 median is $40,240 a year ($19.35 an hour), from $31,270 at the 10th percentile to $55,140 at the 90th. It is an entry-level role reached without a degree, so pay tracks pick rate, shift, sector and equipment tickets rather than credentials. BLS projects 1.5% employment growth over 2024–2034, but the code is enormous — about 384,300 openings a year, almost all from turnover. No licence is required, though operating an order-picker forklift (a stand-up platform lift) needs employer training under OSHA 29 CFR 1910.178, and the job is measured against engineered labour standards.
- Order Pickers earn a national median $40,240/yr ($19.35/hr) (BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 53-7062); the top 10% clear $55,140.
- It is an entry-level role reached without a degree — often without a diploma — and measured against engineered pick-rate standards, with an OSHA 1910.178 order-picker forklift ticket the key pay-raising skill.
- BLS projects just 1.5% growth 2024–34, but the code is huge: about 384,300 openings a year, one of the highest of any occupation, almost all from turnover.
- The ladder runs new picker ($31,270) to rate-hitting selector ($40,240 median) to senior picker or lead ($46,920) to first-line supervisor, which crosses into SOC 53-1047.
Career Path
How do you become a order picker?
New order picker
Learning the pick paths, RF or voice system and rate expectations under supervision; entry sits near the 10th percentile of $31,270.
Order picker / selector
Hitting the engineered rate consistently, often on an order-picker forklift, around the $40,240 median for SOC 53-7062.
Senior picker or lead
Training pickers, running replenishment and the harder zones or equipment pays toward the 75th percentile of $46,920.
Warehouse lead or supervisor
Moving into a lead or first-line supervisor role reaches the 90th percentile of $55,140 and crosses into the supervisor code SOC 53-1047.
BLS Salary Data
Which state pays order pickers the most in 2026?
Source: BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 53-7062. National median: $40,240. Full salary guide →
Pay Comparison
How does order picker pay compare to related roles?
Head-to-head against the roles order pickers most often weigh against. BLS OEWS May 2025 medians.
Takeaway: order pickers rank 4 of 4 on median pay among the comparable roles above, with a projected +1.5% employment change 2024–34 (BLS Employment Projections). Pay position and projected demand together are what determine how quickly order pickers clear offers across the GlobalCybers placement network.
Methodology & Sources
How this guide is sourced and reviewed
Wages (BLS): All median and percentile figures are BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 53-7062 (order pickers) and the matching SOC codes for each comparison role. OEWS is sampled on a rolling 3-year basis and published ~10 months after collection, so treat it as a firm anchor rather than a spot rate.
Job growth: Projected 2024–34 employment change, and the average annual openings figure, are from the BLS Employment Projections program, by occupation. Openings are a per-year average over the projection decade, not a decade total.
Licensing & credentials:Requirements are drawn from the issuing state licensing boards and the certifying body behind each credential — not from third-party aggregators.
Demand signal:Any statement about how quickly this role clears offers reflects GlobalCybers placement request volume across the trailing 12 months — our own network data, offered as a directional real-world indicator alongside BLS, not a market-wide survey.
Credentials
What licences and certifications do order pickers need?
The typical ceiling on entry requirements; many order-picker roles ask for no formal credential, only the ability to do rate-measured physical work. See all state licences →
Employer-conducted training and evaluation for the stand-up order-picker lift, including fall protection, the most valuable ticket for raising a picker's pay.
Voluntary safety training that signals readiness for a lead role.
Function-specific training for pickers who select or handle hazardous-materials items under DOT rules.
Tools & Software
What tools and software do order pickers use on the job?
⚙️ Core Tools & Equipment
📊 BLS Employment Data, SOC 53-7062
Salary Levers
How do order pickers earn above the $40,240 BLS median?
Pick rate and accuracy
Consistently beating the engineered standard with low errors is what moves a picker from the $31,270 entry band toward the $40,240 median
Equipment tickets
An order-picker forklift ticket opens higher zones and pay and makes a picker harder to replace
Shift and sector
Night shift, cold storage and high-throughput e-commerce or grocery operations pay premiums above general warehousing
Promotion to lead or supervisor
Moving into a lead or first-line supervisor role (SOC 53-1047) is what clears the $55,140 top decile of this labourer code
This Route vs. College
Is becoming an order picker worth it vs. a 4-year degree?
The entry route into this role, set against a four-year degree. Same starting line, side by side.
Entry-level (10th percentile) and all-level median wages: BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 53-7062. Student-debt figure: median federal borrower balance for bachelor's-degree completers. Starting-salary comparison is illustrative and varies by field and region.
FAQ
Order Picker Career, Frequently Asked Questions
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