Occupations · Installation, Maintenance, and Repair
Musical Instrument Repairers and Tuners
Repair percussion, stringed, reed, or wind instruments. May specialize in one area, such as piano tuning.
O*NET 30.3 Database (USDOL/ETA) · occupation code 49-9063.00
What it pays
A single “average salary” hides the spread. This is the whole distribution — the gap between the bottom and top bar is usually the number that matters.
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2024 · national, cross-industry · annual wage
Pay over time
Median up 57% between 2003 and 2024, before inflation. The band shows the 10th to 90th percentile.
BLS OEWS, one release per year. Before May 2011 only national estimates were published, so geography detail starts there.
Where the jobs are
| Metro area | Median wage | Employed |
|---|---|---|
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI | $54,390 | 320 |
| Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TN | $45,230 | 250 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA | $57,460 | 240 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA | $25,420 | 230 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | $46,790 | 220 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD | $38,080 | 170 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | $47,170 | 160 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | $50,640 | 140 |
| Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ | $38,060 | 120 |
| St. Louis, MO-IL | $46,690 | 90 |
| Kansas City, MO-KS | $38,270 | 80 |
| Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI | $62,480 | 70 |
BLS OEWS May 2024, metropolitan estimates · the 12 areas with the most people in this occupation
Typical education to enter: High school diploma or equivalent · BLS Employment Projections 2024–34
What people in this job actually do
Ordered by how important the work is rated.
- Align pads and keys on reed or wind instruments.
- Adjust string tensions to tune instruments, using hand tools and electronic tuning devices.
- Solder posts and parts to hold them in their proper places.
- Compare instrument pitches with tuning tool pitches to tune instruments.
- Play instruments to evaluate their sound quality and to locate any defects.
- Repair or replace musical instrument parts and components, such as strings, bridges, felts, and keys, using hand and power tools.
- Disassemble instruments and parts for repair and adjustment.
- Reassemble instruments following repair, using hand tools and power tools and glue, hair, yarn, resin, or clamps, and lubricate instruments as necessary.
- Remove dents and burrs from metal instruments, using mallets and burnishing tools.
- Adjust felt hammers on pianos to increase tonal mellowness or brilliance, using sanding paddles, lacquer, or needles.
- Inspect instruments to locate defects, and to determine their value or the level of restoration required.
- Remove irregularities from tuning pins, strings, and hammers of pianos, using wood blocks or filing tools.
O*NET 30.3 task ratings, importance scale
Skills that matter most
Importance, rated 1 to 5.
O*NET 30.3 skills, importance scale
Software and tools
A dot marks what O*NET flags as in demand.
O*NET 30.3 software skills · hot-technology flag
What this work is actually like
Conditions rated against the average across all occupations — only what makes this job different is listed.
O*NET 30.3 Job Zones
Working conditions that stand out
O*NET 30.3 work context, frequency scale · observed 2025-08
How people actually get in
Share of workers by the education they hold.
O*NET 30.2 education, training and experience · observed 2025-08
What kind of person the work suits
Occupational interest profile, rated 1 to 7.
O*NET 30.2 occupational interests (RIASEC)
Tasks O*NET flags as emerging
- Adjust the neck angle on fretted instruments.
O*NET 30.3 emerging tasks
What you take with you
Skills rated for how well they transfer into other occupations.
O*NET 30.3 transferable skills, importance scale
Knowledge the work draws on
Abilities it leans on
O*NET 30.3 abilities and knowledge, importance scale
How this job is advertised
The same work is posted under many titles — this is what to search for.
O*NET 30.3 job titles reported for this occupation
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What changed since 2015
Comparing O*NET release 20.1 (2015-10-01) with 30.3 (2026-05-01). Signs, not colour alone, carry the meaning. 1 entries that were only relabelled between releases are left out.
Now listed 2
Diff across the O*NET releases held here in full since October 2015, following occupations through merges and retirements. O*NET re-surveys occupations on a rolling cycle, so “no change” can also mean “not re-surveyed”.
Related jobs
O*NET 30.3 related occupations
Also called
O*NET 30.3 alternative titles
The same work in Europe
| ESCO occupation | ISCO | Match |
|---|---|---|
| musical instrument technician | 7312.5 | exact |
| electronic musical instrument maker | 8212.3.3 | close |
| wind musical instrument maker | 7312.7 | close |
| keyboard musical instrument maker | 7312.3 | close |
| idiophone musical instruments maker | 7312.1 | close |
| violin maker | 7312.6.3 | close |
| stringed musical instrument maker | 7312.6 | close |
| piano maker | 7312.3.3 | close |
| organ builder | 7312.3.2 | close |
| membranophone musical instruments maker | 7312.4 | close |
| instrument technician | 7312.2 | broader |
Official ESCO ↔ O*NET crosswalk (ESCO Secretariat with USDOL/ETA)
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