SalaryExplorer

SOC 53-7061 · May 2025 · BLS OEWS

Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment — Milwaukee

Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI · 10 metro areas compared

$35,080 /year
$16.87per hour
1,960jobs in area
−2.1%vs US median

The median wage for Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment in Milwaukee, WI is $35,080 per year, close to the national median of $35,830 for the same occupation.

Wage distribution · annual

Shaded band holds the middle 50% of earners

US MEDIAN $35,83010TH$26,75025TH$30,090MEDIAN$35,08075TH$37,43090TH$46,000

How pay has moved

$37,950$23,430201920212022202320242025$35,080
$25,850 in 2019 to $35,080 in 2025, +35.7% before inflation. BLS states that OEWS estimates are not designed for comparison across years: the occupational classification, the sampling frame and the survey method have all changed inside this window. Read the direction, not the exact difference.

The next ten years

Projected to grow about as fast as average

Change in jobs, 2024 to 2034
+3.9%
Openings per year
56,200
Typical entry-level education
No formal educational credential
On-the-job training
Short-term on-the-job training

Includes jobs opened by workers leaving the occupation, not only new positions.

7.4% of people in this occupation work for themselves.

Projections are published nationally only. This is the outlook for the occupation across the United States, not a measurement for Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI.

Projections are based on 2024 employment and run to 2034. The wages above are from the May 2025 survey, a separate BLS programme on a different release cycle, so the two are not two views of one dataset.

Salary overview

The median wage for Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment in Milwaukee, WI is $35,080 per year, close to the national median of $35,830 for the same occupation. Pay ranges from under $26,750 at the tenth percentile to more than $46,000 at the ninetieth, with the interquartile range running from $30,090 to $37,430.

Employment stands at 1,960, or 2.4 jobs per thousand held locally. Sheboygan leads the state's metro areas for this occupation, at $37,140. Set against every other occupation measured in the same area, it ranks 562nd of 593 by median pay.

Percentile breakdown

Annual wages by percentile · Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI · May 2025
PercentileAnnualvs US median
10th$26,750−25.3%
25th$30,090−16.0%
Median (50th)$35,080−2.1%
75th$37,430+4.5%
90th$46,000+28.4%
Mean$35,570−0.7%

Why the average earner is usually not a typical earner

Other metro areas in Wisconsin

Median annual wage for Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment, by metro area
#Metro areaMedianJobsRelative
1Sheboygan$37,140120
2Kenosha$36,150160
3Madison$35,950780
4Green Bay$35,750470
5Janesville$35,690250
6Wausau$35,660160
7Appleton$35,460490
8Oshkosh$35,320190
9La Crosse$35,200260
10Eau Claire$35,000180

What the pay is worth locally

Prices in Milwaukee run 3.1% below the national average, so the median of $35,080 goes as far as $36,202 would elsewhere in the country. Measured that way it compares to the national median at 1.0% above the national median in real terms.

Published median

$35,080as reported by BLS

Local price level

96.9US average = 100 · BEA 2024

Adjusted for local prices

$36,202US average = 100 · BEA 2024

Why the state that pays most is usually not where pay goes furthest

Key takeaways

  • Median pay is $35,080 a year, 2.1% below the national median.
  • Published pay spans $26,750 to $46,000 between the tenth and ninetieth percentiles.
  • The area has 1,960 jobs in this occupation.
  • The highest-paying metro area covered is Sheboygan, at $37,140.

Frequently asked questions

What is the median wage for Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment in Milwaukee, WI?

The median annual wage is $35,080, or $16.87 per hour, as of May 2025. Half of the workers in this occupation earn more than that and half earn less.

Is that higher than the national average?

The national median for this occupation is $35,830, so pay in Milwaukee, WI is 2.1% lower. These figures are medians, not averages: half of workers fall on each side.

What do the top earners make?

The top tenth of this occupation in Milwaukee, WI earns more than $46,000 per year. The ninetieth percentile is the highest figure the survey publishes.

What is the starting range?

The tenth percentile wage is $26,750 per year. The survey measures wages actually paid rather than experience level, so this reflects the lowest-paid tenth rather than entry-level pay specifically.

Which area nearby pays the most?

The highest median for this occupation among the metro areas covered is in Sheboygan, at $37,140 per year.

How many jobs are there in this occupation here?

The survey estimates 1,960 jobs in this occupation in Milwaukee, WI. Self-employed workers are not included.

Source and methodology

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 Wages are for wage-and-salary workers; self-employed workers are not included. Salary Explorer is an independent project. It is not affiliated with, or endorsed by, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics or any government agency. Full methodology.