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Rail Car Repairers vs Riggers: what changes?

Consider Rail Car Repairers if you want to diagnose, adjust, repair, or overhaul railroad rolling stock, mine cars, or mass transit rail cars. Consider Riggers if you would rather set up or repair rigging for construction projects, manufacturing plants, logging yards, ships and shipyards, or for the entertainment industry. Both list high school diploma or equivalent; compare training and prior experience separately.

Try this next: Compare three local entry-level postings for Rail Car Repairers and Riggers. 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
What this means in practice

The facts most likely to affect your decision

Start with earnings, the route into the job, training, available openings, and a day-to-day reality.

Rail Car Repairers

National median pay (2025)
$67,530
Route into the job
High school diploma or equivalent; More than 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 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing.
Work to investigate
Record conditions of cars, and repair and maintenance work performed or to be performed.
Annual openings (2025–2035)
1,600
Know before you choose

This is a small national occupation (20,100 jobs in 2025), so location and employer concentration can matter more than the national median suggests.

See the full Rail Car Repairers brief

Riggers

National median pay (2025)
$62,640
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
Test rigging to ensure safety and reliability.
Annual openings (2025–2035)
1,700
Know before you choose

This is a small national occupation (22,500 jobs in 2025), so location and employer concentration can matter more than the national median suggests.

See the full Riggers brief
See scores, detailed data, and how the comparison works

How the national numbers differ

1

Riggers has the edge on projected growth

Riggers is at 3.9% projected growth, compared with 2.6% projected growth for Rail Car Repairers.

2

Rail Car Repairers has the edge on median pay

Rail Car Repairers is at $67,530, compared with $62,640 for Riggers.

3

Riggers has the edge on annual openings

Riggers is at 1,700 annual openings, compared with 1,600 annual openings for Rail Car Repairers.

50/ 100

Rail Car Repairers

vs
52.1/ 100

Riggers

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

Rail Car Repairers vs Riggers

DimensionRail Car RepairersRiggers
Median pay (2025)$67,530$62,640
Pay percentile58.9 percentile52.6 percentile
Projected growth (2025–2035)2.6%3.9%
Annual openings (2025–2035)1,6001,700
2025 employment20,10022,500
How you qualifyHigh school diploma or equivalent; More than 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensingHigh 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 groupJob Zone 2Job Zone 2
Related work experienceNo prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.
On-the-job trainingMore than 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 Rail Car Repairers briefRead Riggers brief

Try another comparison

Rail Car Repairers vs Maintenance Workers, Machinery

Compare pay, growth, education, and the tradeoffs that affect the decision.

Rail Car Repairers
$67,530 · 2.6% growth
Maintenance Workers, Machinery
$60,850 · -1.9% growth
Compare careers →

Riggers vs Maintenance Workers, Machinery

Compare pay, growth, education, and the tradeoffs that affect the decision.

Riggers
$62,640 · 3.9% growth
Maintenance Workers, Machinery
$60,850 · -1.9% growth
Compare careers →
ChooseField compares fields using public labor-market and professional sources.