Prepress Technicians and Workers Salary in Kentucky
SOC 51-5111 · Kentucky · BLS OEWS May 2025
Median Annual Salary
$45,822
$22.03/hr
5.9% lower than the US national median ($48,693)
Verified BLS OEWS data · Updated May 18, 2026
Is this a competitive Prepress Technicians and Workers salary in Kentucky in 2026?
Based on BLS OEWS wage percentiles, JOLTS August 2026 demand signals, and ECI Q2 2026 wage growth.
$Competitive · ~P50
P10$37K
P25$41K
P50$46K
P75$53K
P90$58K
Drag the dot or type an amount above.
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Demand: ACTIVE. Demand is active -- manufacturing openings are at 4.0% (JOLTS, August 2026). A balanced market where the median is a solid, competitive anchor.
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Merit budget: Wages in manufacturing are rising about 3.3% a year (BLS ECI, Q2 2026). Budget a 2.9-3.4% merit increase to hold this role at market.
Our read
For a competitive 2026 offer, target $45,822 to $53,144 (market median to the 75th percentile). The median-to-P75 range keeps offers competitive.
Figures are market benchmarks from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics; apply professional judgment before making pay decisions.
How Prepress Technicians and Workers pay is moving in 2026
Trend, demand, and spread context from BLS OEWS, JOLTS, and ECI
Pay trend
Median pay for this role rose 2.9% between the May 2024 and May 2025 BLS surveys, roughly in line with the 3.3% wage growth of Manufacturing (BLS ECI).
Hiring demand · MODERATE
Manufacturing is running a 4.0% job-openings rate with quits at 1.6% (BLS JOLTS). The openings rate has held near 4.0% over the past quarter.
Pay spread
Top earners (P90) make about 1.8 times what entry-level (P10) workers make in this role. That spread is narrower than typical, so pay is fairly standardized; small differences move a candidate across the market.
What changed recently
Sep 29, 2026JOLTS August 2026: sector openings eased to 4.0% (down 54K) after July's durable-goods jump, which held at 4.4% on revision. Quits rose to 1.6%, led by nondurable goods.
Sep 1, 2026JOLTS July 2026: sector openings jumped to 4.4% (up 79K), all of it in durable goods, the biggest sector move this release. Quits eased to 1.4%.
Aug 4, 2026JOLTS June 2026: sector openings eased to 3.7%, with nondurable goods driving the pullback. Quits steady at 1.5%.
Commentary is generated from published BLS figures (OEWS May 2025 vs May 2024, JOLTS August 2026, ECI Q2 2026) and refreshed each release. It is interpretation, not a BLS product.
Source: BLS OEWS · Published May 15, 2026
Next refresh: May 2027
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The median salary for Prepress Technicians and Workers in Kentucky is $45,822 per year ($22.03/hr). This is 5.9% lower than the national median of $48,693.
About This Role
BLS Standard Occupational Classification 2018
Format and proof text and images submitted by designers and clients into finished pages that can be printed. Includes digital and photo typesetting. May produce printing plates.
Wage Percentiles: Kentucky
Hourly & annualized (2,080 hours) · National adjusted
Percentile
Hourly Rate
Annual Salary
vs National
P10Entry level
$17.91
$37,253
+4.0%
P25
$19.69
$40,955
+0.1%
P50MEDIAN
$22.03
$45,822
-5.9%
P75
$25.55
$53,144
-9.3%
P90Top earners
$28.00
$58,240
-11.9%
How Kentucky compares for Prepress Technicians and Workers
Computed from this state's own BLS distribution against national
Pay for Prepress Technicians and Workers in Kentucky is above national (+4.0%) at entry but below national (-11.9%) at the top, so local pay sits relatively lower toward the senior end of the range.
An offer at the national median of $48,693 would sit at about the 61st percentile in Kentucky.
The top of the range earns 1.56 times the bottom here against 1.84 times nationally, so pay for this role is more compressed between entry and senior levels in Kentucky.
Kentucky employs 1,130 people in this role, 4.7% of the national total.
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P10–P90 breakdown, career outlook, industry wages, and JOLTS market signal for Prepress Technicians and Workers
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Career Outlook
BLS Employment Projections · 2024-2034
10-year growth
-14.6%
Much slower than average
Annual openings
3K
per year, on avg
Workforce today
26K
as of 2024
Why those openings exist
0% from new growth100% from people leaving the role
Most openings come from replacement, not growth. Retention matters more than recruiting here.
Typical entry requirements
Education
Postsecondary nondegree award
Experience
None
On-the-job training
None
Industry Wage Breakdown
Top 2 industries by employment · median annual wage, sector-specific
Industry
Workforce
Median Pay
Printing and Related Support Activities
NAICS 323100
14K
$47,740
Newspaper, Periodical, Book, and Directory Publishers
NAICS 513100
2K
$49,130
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is the median prepress technicians and workers salary in Kentucky?
The median (P50) annual salary for Prepress Technicians and Workers in Kentucky is approximately $45,822, based on BLS OEWS May 2025 data. This is 5.9% lower than the national median of $48,693. For the full P10–P90 breakdown and market context, open CompSignal.
Wage figures on this page come from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2025 release. OEWS surveys roughly 1.1 million establishments annually. It is the most comprehensive employer-reported wage dataset in the United States.
P10 through P90 percentiles represent the wage distribution across all surveyed employers (not self-reported by workers). Geographic adjustments use BLS-derived cost multipliers calibrated from regional wage variation.
Wages are estimates. Individual compensation depends on experience, education, employer size, industry, and negotiation. Use this as benchmark context, not absolute ground truth.
CompSignal is a free labor market intelligence tool built for HR, compensation, and talent acquisition teams. We make BLS data, the same primary source Mercer and Radford cross-reference in their paid surveys, searchable and actionable without an enterprise subscription.
Built and maintained by Falcon Incentives, a compensation strategy and incentive design consultancy.
