How To Become A Production Planner
Keeps production on schedule: plans work orders, lines up materials and chases the parts that would otherwise stop the line.
Production Planner Salary Data
Production Planner Salary: What BLS Data Shows
Production, planning, and expediting clerks, the BLS occupation that counts production planners, earn a median of $59,650 a year across 390,160 jobs (May 2025).
By the Supply Chain Degree Programs editorial team Updated
The Pay Figures At A Glance
- The median is $59,650. That is for production, planning, and expediting clerks; the average is $62,150.
- The 10th to 90th percentiles run $40,080 to $86,000. Hourly, the median works out to $28.68.
- Washington pays the highest state median, $77,190. New Mexico pays the lowest, $49,640.
- The best-paying industry has a median of $84,640. The best-paying metro is Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA, at $81,850.
- Projected change through 2035: -1.3%. Annual openings: about 32,600.
How Much Does A Production Planner Make?
Half of all production, planning, and expediting clerks earn more than $59,650 a year and half earn less. The average, $62,150, sits above the median, and the full range runs from $40,080 at the 10th percentile to $86,000 at the 90th. On an hourly basis the median works out to $28.68.
The middle half of the occupation earns between $47,820 and $75,000, a gap of $27,180. The sections below show how far location, industry and employer type each move the number.
| Percentile | Annual Pay |
|---|---|
| 10th | $40,080 |
| 25th | $47,820 |
| Median | $59,650 |
| 75th | $75,000 |
| 90th | $86,000 |
Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025, production, planning, and expediting clerks, national. Production, planning, and expediting clerks include production planners, materials planners, schedulers and inventory control specialists. BLS publishes one wage for the whole occupation. Read 2026-09-23.
Production Planners, Schedulers And Inventory Planners Are One BLS Figure
Production, planning, and expediting clerks covers the people who schedule production and keep materials flowing to it. O*NET’s sample titles include expeditor, inventory control specialist, material requirements planner, materials coordinator, materials planner, production assistant and production clerk, so a production planner salary, a materials planner salary and an inventory control specialist salary are all this occupation’s figure.
The range inside it is wide because the titles are. An expediter chasing parts and a planner writing a plant’s master schedule are counted together, which is why the percentiles above spread as far as they do.
Production Planner Salary By State
24 of the 51 states in the table pay a median above the national $59,650. Washington has the highest median, $77,190. Among states with at least 5,000 jobs in the occupation, Colorado leads at $63,980. The lowest state median is $49,640, in New Mexico, so the top and bottom states sit $27,550 apart.
The biggest markets are California, with 56,080 jobs and a median of $63,000, and New York, with 35,160 jobs at $60,920.
| State | Median | 10th Percentile | 90th Percentile | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Washington | $77,190 | $50,610 | $81,850 | |
| District of Columbia | $72,660 | $47,980 | $96,730 | 430 |
| Wyoming | $69,710 | $43,800 | $104,720 | 110 |
| Rhode Island | $65,310 | $41,890 | $97,680 | 960 |
| Colorado | $63,980 | $46,720 | $91,530 | 7,800 |
| Hawaii | $63,780 | $43,100 | $112,610 | 1,040 |
| Connecticut | $63,240 | $46,630 | $100,840 | 4,090 |
| California | $63,000 | $44,070 | $95,400 | 56,080 |
| New Jersey | $62,710 | $42,440 | $87,660 | 9,410 |
| Delaware | $62,700 | $44,230 | $92,440 | 450 |
| Alaska | $62,590 | $38,580 | $81,290 | 380 |
| Virginia | $61,780 | $40,630 | $90,890 | 8,490 |
| Michigan | $61,670 | $43,770 | $89,730 | 7,560 |
| Utah | $61,650 | $41,770 | $89,770 | 4,550 |
| New Hampshire | $61,590 | $36,400 | $99,880 | 1,600 |
| Minnesota | $61,490 | $46,630 | $85,050 | 7,330 |
| New York | $60,920 | $42,580 | $89,990 | 35,160 |
| Oregon | $60,790 | $46,020 | $80,700 | 2,790 |
| Vermont | $60,560 | $44,710 | $82,510 | 430 |
| Iowa | $60,320 | $45,370 | $80,550 | 3,540 |
| Massachusetts | $60,280 | $41,320 | $81,380 | 5,650 |
| Maine | $60,200 | $35,200 | $92,100 | 1,240 |
| Louisiana | $60,120 | $38,680 | $98,180 | 1,970 |
| Idaho | $59,950 | $40,760 | $105,070 | 1,070 |
| Pennsylvania | $59,240 | $38,920 | $84,180 | 8,790 |
| Indiana | $58,980 | $40,700 | $80,740 | 9,100 |
| Maryland | $58,590 | $41,600 | $88,480 | 4,670 |
| Arizona | $58,580 | $41,330 | $83,440 | 9,780 |
| Wisconsin | $58,540 | $42,180 | $79,450 | 9,140 |
| North Dakota | $58,330 | $48,030 | $101,070 | 450 |
| Illinois | $57,880 | $39,880 | $87,960 | 11,900 |
| Ohio | $57,830 | $40,300 | $81,670 | 17,700 |
| South Carolina | $57,640 | $39,810 | $87,850 | 7,020 |
| Alabama | $57,240 | $39,640 | $82,920 | 2,680 |
| Kansas | $57,080 | $38,110 | $89,440 | 4,320 |
| Georgia | $56,850 | $40,830 | $81,410 | 16,370 |
| Oklahoma | $56,300 | $36,540 | $85,590 | 5,820 |
| West Virginia | $56,290 | $39,790 | $87,500 | 750 |
| Texas | $55,850 | $35,470 | $86,200 | 33,080 |
| Nevada | $55,790 | $39,720 | $91,020 | 2,190 |
| Nebraska | $55,710 | $39,630 | $78,220 | 1,690 |
| Kentucky | $55,690 | $38,620 | $78,880 | 6,480 |
| Missouri | $54,170 | $38,040 | $83,730 | 6,310 |
| Tennessee | $53,020 | $38,300 | $80,320 | 12,740 |
| North Carolina | $52,640 | $37,860 | $77,410 | 13,000 |
| Florida | $51,940 | $36,810 | $79,020 | 20,850 |
| Mississippi | $51,080 | $37,330 | $82,260 | 2,030 |
| Montana | $50,800 | $35,870 | $72,480 | 830 |
| South Dakota | $50,530 | $40,700 | $66,450 | 690 |
| Arkansas | $50,350 | $38,130 | $85,600 | 2,390 |
| New Mexico | $49,640 | $36,850 | $97,350 | 1,040 |
Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025, by state, sorted by median. A blank jobs cell means BLS withheld the employment estimate for that state (Washington). Read 2026-09-23.
Production Planner Salary By Metro Area
BLS publishes a median for production, planning, and expediting clerks in 378 metropolitan areas, and 119 of them have at least 500 jobs in the occupation, enough for the median to describe a real local market. Among those, Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA pays the most, at $81,850, followed by San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA at $76,900.
| Metro Area | Median | Jobs |
|---|---|---|
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | $81,850 | 13,160 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | $76,900 | 7,220 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | $76,500 | 3,360 |
| Ogden, UT | $68,500 | 1,030 |
| Trenton-Princeton, NJ | $68,470 | 780 |
| Provo-Orem-Lehi, UT | $67,800 | 670 |
| Warner Robins, GA | $67,290 | 590 |
| Corpus Christi, TX | $66,540 | 540 |
| Manchester-Nashua, NH | $66,540 | 510 |
| Wichita, KS | $66,300 | 1,390 |
The largest markets are a different list. New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ has the most jobs, 28,600, at a median of $63,130, and the five biggest metros together hold 84,580 jobs, 22% of the occupation. The metros where the occupation is most concentrated relative to the local workforce are Warner Robins, GA (location quotient 3.07), Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA (location quotient 2.51) and Oshkosh-Neenah, WI (location quotient 2.19).
Treat the metro figures as nominal pay. OEWS wages are not adjusted for local living costs, so a high median in an expensive metro and a lower one in a cheaper metro can leave a worker with similar purchasing power. Housing and other costs vary enough between metros that the ranking above is a ranking of paychecks, not of standards of living.
Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025, metropolitan area estimates. Ranked only among metros with at least 500 jobs in the occupation. A location quotient compares the occupation's share of local jobs with its share of jobs nationally. Read 2026-09-24.
Top-Paying Industries For Production Planners
BLS publishes the occupation's pay in 229 industries. Among those employing at least 1,000 production, planning, and expediting clerks, the highest median is in electric power generation, transmission and distribution, at $84,640, which is $24,990 above the national figure.
| Industry | Median | Jobs |
|---|---|---|
| Electric Power Generation, Transmission and Distribution | $84,640 | 4,010 |
| Legal Services | $78,040 | 1,380 |
| Management of Companies and Enterprises | $76,450 | 22,730 |
| Federal Executive Branch | $76,400 | 5,960 |
| Motor Vehicle Manufacturing | $74,200 | 2,920 |
| Chemical Manufacturing | $72,080 | 3,900 |
Where The Jobs Are, And Where The Pay Is
The industries that pay the most are mostly not the ones that hire the most. The six top-paying industries above employ 40,900 production, planning, and expediting clerks between them, 10% of the occupation. The five largest employers hold 66,660, or 17%. One industry is on both lists: management of companies and enterprises.
| Largest Employers | Jobs | Median |
|---|---|---|
| Management of Companies and Enterprises | 22,730 | $76,450 |
| Warehousing and Storage | 15,820 | $50,490 |
| Machinery Manufacturing | 9,800 | $60,740 |
| Employment Services | 9,430 | $49,830 |
| Local Government, excluding Schools and Hospitals | 8,880 | $63,120 |
The single largest employer, management of companies and enterprises, pays a median of $76,450. It is also one of the top-paying industries, $8,190 below the highest, so for this occupation the biggest employer and good pay coincide.
Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025, national industry-specific estimates, by industry. Each figure is the median for production, planning, and expediting clerks working in that industry. Top-paying industries are ranked only among those with at least 1,000 jobs in the occupation. Read 2026-09-23.
What Moves Production Planner Pay
The occupation runs from production clerks and expediters to planners and schedulers who write a plant’s whole production plan, and the Handbook notes that some employers prefer planners with a college degree. Manufacturing, warehousing and corporate management offices all employ them.
Employer Type
Production, planning, and expediting clerks at private employers earn a median of $59,020, and private employers hold 93% of the occupation's jobs. Among government employers, the federal government pays the highest median, $73,420, which is $14,400 above private pay.
| Employer | Median | Jobs |
|---|---|---|
| Private employers | $59,020 | 361,910 |
| Federal government | $73,420 | 11,670 |
| State government | $68,120 | |
| Local government | $62,900 | 11,520 |
Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025, national ownership estimates. State and local government include their schools and hospitals, and the federal row includes the Postal Service, as BLS defines them.
Location
The top and bottom states sit $27,550 apart at the median. Among metros with at least 500 jobs, the gap between the highest and lowest median is $45,350, wider than the state gap. Neither figure is adjusted for living costs.
Degree Level
BLS lists a high school diploma or equivalent as the typical entry education for production, planning, and expediting clerks. That is an entry requirement, not a pay effect: the wage survey measures occupations, not degrees. For what a degree costs, see the rankings of bachelor’s in supply chain management and online supply chain management degrees.
Certification
The certifications that fit this work, and what each one requires, are covered in the production planner career guide.
How Production Planner Pay Compares With Other Supply Chain Jobs
A supply chain degree leads to more than one occupation, and they don't pay the same. Of the 9 BLS occupations below, production, planning, and expediting clerks have the number 8 median. The highest is purchasing managers, at $148,080.
| Occupation | Median | 10th To 90th | Typical Entry | Growth 2025-35 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Purchasing Managers | $148,080 | $92,490 to $223,280 | Bachelor's degreeplus 5 years or more experience | 4% |
| Industrial Production Managers | $126,060 | $78,000 to $205,520 | Bachelor's degreeplus 5 years or more experience | 2.6% |
| Transportation, Storage, and Distribution Managers | $107,230 | $65,120 to $194,900 | High school diploma or equivalentplus 5 years or more experience | 6.1% |
| Operations Research Analysts | $88,940 | $57,060 to $159,910 | Bachelor's degree | 11.9% |
| Logisticians | $82,320 | $50,890 to $133,160 | Bachelor's degree | 17.6% |
| Compliance Officers | $80,730 | $48,220 to $133,720 | Bachelor's degree | 3.8% |
| Buyers and Purchasing Agents | $77,710 | $48,380 to $128,870 | Bachelor's degree | 6% |
| Production, Planning, and Expediting Clerks | $59,650 | $40,080 to $86,000 | High school diploma or equivalent | -1.3% |
| Cargo and Freight Agents | $52,260 | $38,340 to $79,810 | High school diploma or equivalent | 6.2% |
The spread follows seniority more than subject. The 3 highest medians belong to the 3 management occupations, and BLS says each of them typically needs 5 years or more of related work experience to enter. The other 6 are specialist occupations that BLS lists with no experience requirement at entry. The management jobs are also the ones the specialists move into: buyers become purchasing managers, and logisticians become supply chain managers, according to the Occupational Outlook Handbook.
Sources: BLS OEWS, May 2025 (pay); BLS Employment Projections, 2025-35 (growth); EP Table 1.2 (typical entry education and experience).
Job Outlook For Production Planners
BLS projects employment of production, planning, and expediting clerks to shrink from 392,100 to 387,100 over 2025 to 2035, a change of -1.3%. That's slower than the 3.5% projected for all occupations.
The occupation is shrinking, so all of its hiring is replacement. BLS expects about 32,600 openings a year: people leaving the labor force, mostly to retire, and people moving into a different occupation, less the jobs lost as the occupation contracts.
| Source Of Openings, Per Year | Openings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Workers leaving the labor force | 11,700 | 36% |
| Workers moving to other occupations | 21,300 | 65% |
| Jobs lost as the occupation shrinks | −500 | −2% |
| Total openings | 32,600 | 100% |
Every opening here replaces someone who left. Transfers outnumber retirements, so more of the openings come from production, planning, and expediting clerks moving on to other jobs than from people leaving work. Each year BLS expects 8.5% of the occupation to leave it, against 9.7% across all occupations. About 0.2% of workers in the occupation are self-employed, which is why EP's employment count runs higher than OEWS's.
What Drives Demand
BLS projects employment of production, planning, and expediting clerks to shrink slightly over the decade. Openings still come every year from people retiring or moving into other occupations, which is where all of this occupation’s hiring comes from.
BLS's own stated reasons behind the projection, from its industry-occupation matrix:
- Productivity change, demand change - share decreases as productivity enhancements due to technology more than offset the increased demand for logistical services. (all industries)
Sources: BLS Employment Projections, 2025-35; EP tables 1.10 (separations and openings) and 1.12 (factors affecting occupational utilization). The growth row is total openings minus separations. Read 2026-09-23.
Does A Supply Chain Degree Raise Your Salary?
BLS reports what an occupation pays, not what a degree pays, so there's no federal figure for "production planner salary with a master's." Use the numbers above as the pay for the job you're aiming at. A degree matters to the extent that it gets you hired into the occupation, or promoted within it.
Cost is the part of a degree you can pin down. These rankings list tuition read from each school’s own page, so you can set a real price against the salary range here: bachelor’s in supply chain management and online supply chain management degrees.
FAQ
How Much Does A Production Planner Make?
The median is $59,650 a year for production, planning, and expediting clerks, the BLS occupation behind this page (May 2025). The middle half of the occupation earns between $47,820 and $75,000.
What Is The Hourly Pay For Production Planners?
The median hourly wage for production, planning, and expediting clerks is $28.68 (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
How Much Do The Top-Paid Production Planners Make?
The 90th percentile for production, planning, and expediting clerks is $86,000 a year, so one in ten earns more than that. The 75th percentile is $75,000.
Which State Pays Production Planners The Most?
Washington has the highest state median, $77,190. Among states with at least 5,000 jobs in the occupation, Colorado is highest at $63,980.
Which City Pays Production Planners The Most?
Among metro areas with at least 500 jobs in the occupation, Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA has the highest median, $81,850. The figure is not adjusted for living costs.
Which Industry Pays Production Planners The Most?
Among industries employing at least 1,000 production, planning, and expediting clerks, electric power generation, transmission and distribution pays the highest median, $84,640.
Do Government Production Planners Earn More Than Private-Sector Ones?
Production, planning, and expediting clerks in the federal government earn a median of $73,420, against $59,020 at private employers (BLS OEWS, May 2025). Federal pay is higher at the median, but 93% of the occupation works for private employers.
Is The Production Planner Job Market Growing?
BLS projects employment of production, planning, and expediting clerks to shrink 1.3% from 2025 to 2035, against 3.5% for all occupations, with about 32,600 openings a year.
How Much Does An Inventory Control Specialist Make?
O*NET lists inventory control specialist among the titles of production, planning, and expediting clerks, so the BLS figure is the same: a median of $59,650 (May 2025).
Keep Reading
Bachelor’s In Supply Chain Management, Ranked
Programs read from each school’s own page, with tuition where the school states it.
Online Supply Chain Management Degrees, Ranked
Programs read from each school’s own page, with tuition where the school states it.
All Supply Chain Salaries
The 9 BLS occupations behind supply chain work, side by side.
Sources
- 1 BLS OEWS, May 2025: Production, Planning, and Expediting Clerks (SOC 43-5061), national and state profile Read .
- 2 BLS OEWS, May 2025: metropolitan area estimates Read .
- 3 BLS OEWS, May 2025: national industry-specific and ownership estimates Read .
- 4 BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics home
- 5 BLS Employment Projections, National Employment Matrix, 2025-35 Read .
- 6 BLS Employment Projections, occupation tables 1.2, 1.10 and 1.12, 2025-35 Read .
- 7 O*NET OnLine, 43-5061.00 Production, Planning, and Expediting Clerks Read .