Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic vs Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, and Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic: Similar Pay, 0.7% vs -10.8% Growth

Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic vs Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, and Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic: what changes?

Consider Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic if you want to set up, operate, or tend machines to extrude or draw thermoplastic or metal materials into tubes, rods, hoses, wire, bars, or structural shapes. Consider Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, and Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic if you would rather set up, operate, or tend grinding and related tools that remove excess material or burrs from surfaces, sharpen edges or corners, or buff, hone, or polish metal or plastic work pieces. Both list high school diploma or equivalent; compare training and prior experience separately.

Try this next: Compare three local entry-level postings for Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic and Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, and Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic. 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

Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic

National median pay (2025): $47,720
Route into the job: High school diploma or equivalent; More than one month and up to 12 months 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: More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing.
Work to investigate: Measure and examine extruded products to locate defects and to check for conformance to specifications, adjusting controls as necessary to alter products.
Annual openings (2025–2035): 5,400

Know before you choose

BLS projects essentially flat employment (0.7%) through 2035. Annual openings mostly reflect replacement, not a rapidly expanding field.

See the full Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic brief

Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, and Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic

National median pay (2025): $46,550
Route into the job: High school diploma or equivalent; More than one month and up to 12 months 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: More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing.
Work to investigate: Inspect or measure finished workpieces to determine conformance to specifications, using measuring instruments, such as gauges or micrometers.
Annual openings (2025–2035): 4,500

Know before you choose

BLS projects employment to shrink 10.8% from 2025 to 2035. Openings can still occur when existing workers leave.

See the full Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, and Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic brief

How the national numbers differ

Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic has the edge on projected growth

Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic is at 0.7% projected growth, compared with -10.8% projected growth for Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, and Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic.

Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic has the edge on annual openings

Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic is at 5,400 annual openings, compared with 4,500 annual openings for Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, and Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic.

Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic has the edge on median pay

Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic is at $47,720, compared with $46,550 for Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, and Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic.

43.8/ 100

Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic

35/ 100

Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, and Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic

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

Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic vs Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, and Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic

Dimension	Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic	Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, and Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic
Median pay (2025)	$47,720	$46,550
Pay percentile	25.6 percentile	22 percentile
Projected growth (2025–2035)	0.7%	-10.8%
Annual openings (2025–2035)	5,400	4,500
2025 employment	60,900	68,500
How you qualify	High school diploma or equivalent; More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing	High school diploma or equivalent; More than one month and up to 12 months 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	More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing.	More than one month and up to 12 months 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 Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic brief Read Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, and Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic brief

Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic vs Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, and Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic: what changes?

The facts most likely to affect your decision

Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic

Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, and Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic

How the national numbers differ

Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic has the edge on projected growth

Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic has the edge on annual openings

Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic has the edge on median pay

Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic vs Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, and Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic

Try another comparison

Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic vs Cutting and Slicing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders

Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, and Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic vs Milling and Planing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic