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How To Become A Printer Operator: What It Is and Career Path

What is a printer operator and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

As the job title suggests, a printer operator is a skilled worker that operates printing equipment. Their job is to operate printing equipment to fulfill requests from customers and meet their specifications. Moreover, they are responsible for maintaining and troubleshooting printing equipment, which requires a good knowledge of printing machines and tools.

Printer operators may also collate and bind print materials if they are trained to use binding equipment. Furthermore, printing operators may print on all sorts of media apart from paper, such as plastic and textiles.

The job of a printer operator requires a good understanding of printing techniques and basic maintenance of printing equipment. That said, a high school diploma is enough to qualify for this role as long as an applicant has experience with operating printing equipment. Furthermore, an aspiring printer operator must be physically fit enough to stand for long periods of time, manually operate printing equipment, and carry moderately heavy objects multiple times a day. A printer operator can earn around $28,000 per year.

ScorePrinter OperatorUS Average

Salary

2.8

Avg. Salary $36,411

Avg. Salary $59,228

Diversity

4.2

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.50%

Asian 7.17%

Black or African American 10.21%

Hispanic or Latino 18.52%

Unknown 3.48%

White 60.12%

Gender

female 31.93%

male 68.07%

Age - 50

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 50

Stress Level

7.6

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity Level

8.4

Complexity Level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work Life Balance

5.3

Work Life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a printer operator

Explore printer operator education requirements

Most common printer operator degrees

High School Diploma

37.0 %

Bachelor's

24.3 %

Associate

22.5 %

Start to develop specific printer operator skills

Skills	Percentages
Troubleshoot	14.16%
Quality Checks	9.13%
Quality Standards	9.01%
Basic Math	8.05%
Windows	5.31%

Complete relevant printer operator training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New printer operators learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a printer operator based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real printer operator resumes.

Research printer operator duties and responsibilities

Manage day-to-day operations and supervise employees to ensure the studio run smoothly.
Operate UV and solvent printers.
Collate and bind print materials.
Record HD masters, clones.

Prepare your printer operator resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your printer operator resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a printer operator resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose From 10+ Customizable Printer Operator Resume templates

Build a professional Printer Operator resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your Printer Operator resume.

Apply for printer operator jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a printer operator job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

How do printer operators rate their job?

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Printer Operator reviews

A zippia user wrote a review on Oct 2019

Pros

You learn something new each day and you get good salary from it