The median annual wage for Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, and Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH is $49,120 (May 2024 BLS OES). The mean (average) is $52,950.
Pay spans roughly $40,500 at the 10th percentile to $75,730 at the 90th, so experience and specialisation move this figure a lot. At the median that is about $23.61 per hour. An estimated 1,590 people work as grinding, lapping, polishing, and buffing machine tool setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH.
| Median (annual) | $49,120 |
| Mean (annual) | $52,950 |
| Median (hourly) | $23.61 |
| 10th percentile | $40,500 |
| 90th percentile | $75,730 |
| Employment | 1,590 |
Updated 2026-07-23.
Source: BLS OES May 2024 — bls.gov/oes. Checked 2026-07-23.