Production · Holland code RAC
Etchers and Engravers
Engrave or etch metal, wood, rubber, or other materials. Includes such workers as etcher-circuit processors, pantograph engravers, and silk screen etchers.
Also called: Chemical Engraver, Engraver, Etcher, Photo Engraver, Acid Etch Operator, Award Machine Operator, Electronic Engraver, Laser Engraver.
O*NET 51-9194.00
At a glance
- US median annual pay
- $43,310
- Middle half earn $37,400 to $53,050. BLS OEWS, May 2025.
- Most common education
- High School Diploma or the equivalent (such as a GED)
- 54% of workers surveyed by O*NET report this level.
- Preparation needed
- Job Zone 2 of 5
- Some preparation. Zone 1 is little or none; zone 5 is graduate-level.
What the work involves
The tasks workers in this occupation rate as most important, from the O*NET survey.
- Inspect etched work for depth of etching, uniformity, and defects, using calibrated microscopes, gauges, fingers, or magnifying lenses.
- Prepare workpieces for etching or engraving by cutting, sanding, cleaning, polishing, or treating them with wax, acid resist, lime, etching powder, or light-sensitive enamel.
- Engrave and print patterns, designs, etchings, trademarks, or lettering onto flat or curved surfaces of a wide variety of metal, glass, plastic, or paper items, using hand tools or hand-held power tools.
- Prepare etching chemicals according to formulas, diluting acid with water to obtain solutions of specified concentration.
- Use computer software to design patterns for engraving.
- Examine sketches, diagrams, samples, blueprints, or photographs to decide how designs are to be etched, cut, or engraved onto workpieces.
- Expose workpieces to acid to develop etch patterns such as designs, lettering, or figures.
- Adjust depths and sizes of cuts by adjusting heights of worktables, or by adjusting machine-arm gauges.
Skills and knowledge it leans on
Skills
- Reading Comprehension3.1 / 5
- Monitoring3.1 / 5
- Active Listening3.0 / 5
- Speaking3.0 / 5
- Critical Thinking3.0 / 5
- Active Learning2.4 / 5
Knowledge areas
- Production and Processing4.2 / 5
- Customer and Personal Service3.4 / 5
- Mechanical3.0 / 5
- Design3.0 / 5
- Administration and Management3.0 / 5
- Mathematics2.8 / 5
Importance ratings on O*NET’s 1 to 5 scale. Higher means the occupation depends on it more.
Who tends to enjoy it
How strongly this occupation draws on each of the six Holland interest types, which is the same profile the career interests test compares you against.
- Realistic92
- Investigative24
- Artistic46
- Social6
- Enterprising0
- Conventional41
The same work abroad
Other countries classify jobs differently, so these are the closest matches through the international ISCO-08 standard, not exact equivalents.
European occupation titles (ESCO)
- printmaker · DE Grafiker/Grafikerin · FR graveur/graveuse
- stone engraver · DE Steingraveur/Steingraveurin · FR graveur sur pierre/graveuse sur pierre
- engraving machine operator · DE CNC-Graveur/CNC-Graveurin · FR opérateur sur machine à graver/opératrice sur machine à graver
- jewellery engraver · DE Edelsteingraveur/Edelsteingraveurin · FR graveur sur bijou/graveuse sur bijou
- glass engraver · DE Glasveredler – Schliff und Gravur/Glasveredlerin – Schliff und Gravur · FR graveur sur verre/graveuse sur verre
- metal engraver · DE Graveur/Graveurin · FR graveur sur métal/graveuse sur métal
Closest UK occupation groups (SOC 2020)
- Pre-press technicians (5421)3,700 employed
- Metal machining setters and setter-operators (5221)40,400 employed
- Printers (5422)18,000 employed
Employment is the UK Annual Population Survey for April 2025 to March 2026, all workers in the group, which can be broader than this one occupation.
Pay across Europe, for the whole group
Median annual earnings of all employees in “Craft and related trades workers”. This is the broad ISCO group this occupation falls in, not the occupation itself, so treat it as context for the wage level, not as a salary for this job.
| Country | Median pay |
|---|---|
| Belgium | €40,086 |
| Germany | €38,638 |
| Austria | €38,194 |
| Sweden | €37,856 |
| Netherlands | €37,077 |
| Ireland | €36,098 |
| France | €27,145 |
| Italy | €26,488 |
| Spain | €22,817 |
| Portugal | €11,142 |
| Poland | €10,099 |
Eurostat Structure of Earnings Survey, businesses with ten or more employees outside public administration, in euro and not adjusted for the cost of living. Reference years differ between sources: the US, Japan and Europe figures on this page come from different survey years, so compare them as rough levels, not to the euro or yen.
Exposure to AI
This occupation sits in the lower third of the 774 occupations scored, with an exposure score of -0.64. The scores are standardized across those occupations, so 0 is the average and a score of 1 is about one standard deviation above it.
Our note on reading it: the dataset links AI applications to the abilities that occupations require, so the score reflects overlap between the two. It is a comparison between occupations, not a forecast about jobs. It does not say whether exposure means tasks are replaced or workers get more done with the tools, and it says little about one employer or one role.
Source: Felten, E., Raj, M., & Seamans, R. (2021). Occupational, industry, and geographic exposure to artificial intelligence: A novel dataset and its potential uses. Strategic Management Journal, 42(12), 2195-2217. Matched to this page by 6-digit SOC code (51-9194).
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