How To Become A Tool Setter: What It Is and Career Path

What is a tool setter and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

2 min read

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a tool setter. For example, did you know that they make an average of $20.1 an hour? That's $41,816 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow -5% and produce -45,900 job opportunities across the U.S.

ScoreTool SetterUS Average

Salary

3.3

Avg. Salary $41,816

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability Level

6.0

Growth Rate -5%

Growth Rate 0.3%

Diversity

7.3

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 1.03%

Asian 2.68%

Black or African American 7.22%

Hispanic or Latino 14.85%

Unknown 4.74%

White 69.48%

Gender

female 11.36%

male 88.64%

Age - 46

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 - 46

Stress Level

6.0

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity Level

7.5

Complexity Level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work Life Balance

5.3

Work Life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a tool setter

Explore tool setter education requirements

Most common tool setter degrees

High School Diploma

47.1 %

Associate

19.8 %

Bachelor's

14.0 %

Start to develop specific tool setter skills

Skills	Percentages
CNC Machines	16.70%
Hand Tools	15.30%
Calipers	10.54%
Machine Operation	9.40%
Inventory Control	5.68%

Complete relevant tool setter training and internships

Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New tool setters 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 tool setter based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real tool setter resumes.

Research tool setter duties and responsibilities

Used hoists, power tools, hand tools.
Edit of programs after being load on CNC.
Set up and operate Walter grinding systems in the manufacture of special carbide tooling.
Analyze data using SPC; identifying and adjusting set-up to reduce variation and negative trends.

Prepare your tool setter resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your tool setter 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 tool setter resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose From 10+ Customizable Tool Setter Resume templates

Build a professional Tool Setter 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 Tool Setter resume.

Apply for tool setter jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a tool setter 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 tool setters rate their job?

-/5

5 Stars

4 Stars

3 Stars

2 Stars

1 Star

Tool Setter reviews

A zippia user wrote a review on Aug 2019

Pros

I like it because that’s what I learnt in school and can also do it better

Cons

Oh I do like anything about it because because that’s my career