Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment vs Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators: $36K vs $46K Median Pay

Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment vs Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators: what changes?

Consider Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment if you want to wash or otherwise clean vehicles, machinery, and other equipment. Consider Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators if you would rather operate industrial trucks or tractors equipped to move materials around a warehouse, storage yard, factory, construction site, or similar location. Both list no formal educational credential; compare training and prior experience separately.

Try this next: Compare three local entry-level postings for Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment and Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators. List the duties, credentials, prior experience, and paid training each employer actually asks for. Try a supervised class or sample project from each field before choosing a program.

BLS 2025 wages and 2025–2035 projections. National medians are not starting offers. Occupation size is not a count of vacancies. View the BLS data.

Compare the practical differences

Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment

National median pay (2025): $35,830
Route into the job: No formal educational credential; One month or less of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing
Prior related experience: No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.
Training and licensing: One month or less of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing.
Work to investigate: Rinse objects and place them on drying racks or use cloth, squeegees, or air compressors to dry surfaces.
Annual openings (2025–2035): 51,500

Know before you choose

The work can involve real occupational hazards. Training, protective equipment, and routine safety discipline matter every day.

See the full Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment brief

Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators

National median pay (2025): $46,420
Route into the job: No formal educational credential; One month or less of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing
Prior related experience: No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.
Training and licensing: One month or less of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing.
Work to investigate: Move levers or controls that operate lifting devices, such as forklifts, lift beams with swivel-hooks, hoists, or elevating platforms, to load, unload, transport, or stack material.
Annual openings (2025–2035): 64,700

Know before you choose

Errors can seriously affect people, equipment, or operations. Checking and accountability are part of the job, not optional polish.

See the full Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators brief

How the national numbers differ

Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment has the edge on projected growth

Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment is at 3.9% projected growth, compared with 1.5% projected growth for Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators.

Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators has the edge on median pay

Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators is at $46,420, compared with $35,830 for Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment.

Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators has the edge on annual openings

Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators is at 64,700 annual openings, compared with 51,500 annual openings for Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment.

55.7/ 100

Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment

55.1/ 100

Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators

Each available metric is ranked from 0 to 100 against the careers on ChooseField. The weighted average uses this profile: pay 30%, growth 25%, openings 30%, preparation level 15%. Missing values are not scored as zero; their weights are redistributed across available metrics. Occupation size has zero weight: employment is not accessible vacancies. Preparation categories do not measure admission difficulty or years without earnings. The score summarizes national measures; local opportunities and personal fit still need separate consideration.

Detailed evidence

Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment vs Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators

Dimension	Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment	Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators
Median pay (2025)	$35,830	$46,420
Pay percentile	5 percentile	21.6 percentile
Projected growth (2025–2035)	3.9%	1.5%
Annual openings (2025–2035)	51,500	64,700
2025 employment	419,500	765,200
How you qualify	No formal educational credential; One month or less of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing	No formal educational credential; One month or less of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing
O*NET preparation group	Job Zone 2	Job Zone 2
Related work experience	No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.	No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.
On-the-job training	One month or less of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing.	One month or less of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing.

The table reports national benchmarks and reviewed work descriptions. It does not rate personal suitability, job security, or physical safety.

Read Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment brief Read Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators brief

Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment vs Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators: what changes?

The facts most likely to affect your decision

Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment

Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators

How the national numbers differ

Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment has the edge on projected growth

Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators has the edge on median pay

Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators has the edge on annual openings

Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment vs Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators

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