New York water operator salaries by employer, 2023-25
1,015 people worked as water operators for 18 cities, counties and water and sewer authorities in New York in the newest year each employer has published (2023, 2024 and 2025). Those who worked the full year earned an average of $128,464, overtime included.
What is the average water operator salary in New York?
Highest- and lowest-paying among the 8 employers with at least 10 full-year operators. The lists below include every employer with at least 5.
- Water operators
- 1,015
- 845 of them worked the full year
- Employers
- 18
- 12 with 5 or more operators, in 10 counties
- Median total pay
- $134,085
- the middle water operator: half earned more, half less
- Overtime
- $18,998
- average per full-year water operator
What stands out in New York water operator pay
New York City pays the most.
Full-year operators averaged $140,316 at New York City (fiscal year 2025)1, $101,989 at Monroe County Water Authority (2024)6 and $92,182 at Suffolk County (2024)4, overtime included.
Outside New York City, Monroe County Water Authority pays the most.
Full-year operators at Monroe County Water Authority averaged $101,989, including $14,170 in overtime.6 Next come $92,182 at Suffolk County4 and $82,373 at Erie County Water Authority6.
Wastewater treatment operators earn the most.
By kind of work, full-year operators averaged $136,140 in wastewater treatment and $89,382 in water treatment.1,4,5,6 New York City makes up 654 of the 720 full-year wastewater treatment operators, so that average mostly reflects its pay.
Overtime adds $18,998 a year on average.
The middle full-year operator was paid $15,538 in overtime; a few with a lot more pull the average up.1,4,5,6
Which New York employers pay water operators the most?
By average total pay of full-year operators, among employers with at least 5 of them.
Highest average total pay
- New York CityCity government, fiscal year 2025
673 full-year operators$140,316 - BuffaloCity in Erie County, fiscal year 2025
5 full-year operators$122,868 - Monroe County Water AuthorityPublic authority in Monroe County, 2024
11 full-year operators$101,989 - Suffolk CountyCounty government, 2024
31 full-year operators$92,182 - Erie County Water AuthorityPublic authority in Erie County, 2024
25 full-year operators$82,373 - Onondaga County Water AuthorityPublic authority in Onondaga County, 2024
12 full-year operators$80,235 - Wayne County Water and Sewer AuthorityPublic authority in Wayne County, 2024
8 full-year operators$76,462 - Buffalo Sewer AuthorityPublic authority in Erie County, fiscal year 2024
29 full-year operators$72,897 - Albany Water BoardPublic authority in Albany County, 2023
13 full-year operators$72,869 - Niagara Falls Water BoardPublic authority in Niagara County, 2024
21 full-year operators$69,398
New York average, $128,464
Highest water operator salaries in New York: the top employers by total pay, base pay and overtime
Compare water operator pay at every New York employer
What full-year water and wastewater operators earned at each employer, overtime included. Click a column to sort it.
Showing all 12 employers, highest average total pay first.
| New York CityNew York City | New York City | $140,316 | fiscal year 2025 | $20,518 | 787 | Wastewater treatment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BuffaloErie County | Erie | $122,868 | fiscal year 2025 | $68,056 | 10 | Water treatment |
| Monroe County Water AuthorityMonroe County | Monroe | $101,989 | 2024 | $14,170 | 12 | Water treatment |
| Suffolk CountySuffolk County | Suffolk | $92,182 | 2024 | $21,690 | 41 | Wastewater treatment |
| Erie County Water AuthorityErie County | Erie | $82,373 | 2024 | $9,344 | 30 | Water treatment |
| Onondaga County Water AuthorityOnondaga County | Onondaga | $80,235 | 2024 | $7,547 | 16 | Water treatment |
| Wayne County Water and Sewer AuthorityWayne County | Wayne | $76,462 | 2024 | $9,471 | 10 | Wastewater treatment |
| Buffalo Sewer AuthorityErie County | Erie | $72,897 | fiscal year 2024 | $12,130 | 34 | Wastewater treatment |
| Albany Water BoardAlbany County | Albany | $72,869 | 2023 | $5,590 | 18 | Water treatment |
| Niagara Falls Water BoardNiagara County | Niagara | $69,398 | 2024 | $8,967 | 29 | Not specified |
| Saratoga County Water AuthoritySaratoga County | Saratoga | $58,280 | 2024 | $0 | 6 | Water system |
| Water Authority of Western Nassau CountyNassau County | Nassau | Left out | fiscal year 2024 | Left out | 8 | Water treatment |
No employer matches. Clear the search or pick another county or size.
"Left out": the employer's records don't show who worked the full year (each person's own pay reported as their range, or total pay reported as salary), so we set its pay figures aside. Employers with fewer than 5 operators aren't listed.
Which New York water jobs count as operators here, and which don't?
These figures count the people who run water and wastewater plants and systems: jobs that need a state operator certificate or train toward one, plus sewer crews. The pay files outside New York City list only titles, so where a title didn't make the job clear, we read the employer's job description.
Counted
- Treatment plant operators and trainees. Water and wastewater treatment plant operators at the counties, Buffalo and the authorities, and trainees working toward a certificate. Suffolk County's trainees, for example, train for a state wastewater operator certificate and then become operators.7
- New York City's Sewage Treatment Workers and the Buffalo Sewer Authority's Wastewater Operators. Both run sewage treatment plants and are hired without a state operator certificate: New York City asks for a commercial driver's license and fire department certificates of fitness,3 and Buffalo for a high school diploma.9
- Buffalo's Pumping Plant Operators. They need a state water distribution license within a year of hire.10
- Operator titles that don't say which kind of plant or system (33 positions at 4 employers). Titles such as Niagara Falls Water Board's Operator Trainee, Niagara Falls Water Board's Shift Operations Supervisor and Wayne County Water and Sewer Authority's Wastewater Operator, at authorities that run both water and sewer systems. They count in every total and average here, but not in the comparisons by kind of work. Full-year operators in these titles averaged $71,514.
- Sewer maintenance crews. They clean and repair sewer lines.
Left out
- Plant helpers. Suffolk County's Wastewater Treatment Plant Helpers do manual work at the plants and need no certificate.8
- Titles we couldn't check. The Suffolk County Water Authority's field operators, the Erie County Water Authority's control and line maintenance operators, and the Water Authority of Western Nassau County's water plant attendants: we found no job description, so they aren't counted.
- Mechanics, electricians and lab staff at plants, and managers and superintendents.
Every New York employer with a water operator pay page, by county
12 employers with at least 5 operators. Open a county to see its employers. Employers without an average had fewer than 5 full-year operators, or their records don't show who worked the full year.
Albany County
1 employer, $72,869- Albany Water Board$72,869
Erie County
3 employers, $81,147- Buffalo$122,868
- Buffalo Sewer Authority$72,897
- Erie County Water Authority$82,373
Monroe County
1 employer, $101,989- Monroe County Water Authority$101,989
Nassau County
1 employerNew York City
1 employer, $140,316- New York City$140,316
Niagara County
1 employer, $69,398- Niagara Falls Water Board$69,398
Onondaga County
1 employer, $80,235Saratoga County
1 employer, $61,384Suffolk County
1 employer, $92,182- Suffolk County$92,182
Wayne County
1 employer, $76,462
Questions about water operator pay in New York
How much do water operators make in New York?
Full-year water and wastewater operators at the 12 New York employers covered so far earned an average of $128,464, overtime included, in the newest year each employer has published (2023, 2024 and 2025). The middle operator earned $134,085: half earned more, half less.
Which New York employer pays water operators the most?
Among employers with at least 10 full-year operators, the highest averages are $140,316 at New York City (fiscal year 2025), $101,989 at Monroe County Water Authority (2024) and $92,182 at Suffolk County (2024), overtime included.
What do water operators earn outside New York City?
Outside the city, the highest averages for full-year operators are $101,989 at Monroe County Water Authority, $92,182 at Suffolk County and $82,373 at Erie County Water Authority. The lowest is $69,398 at Niagara Falls Water Board.
Do water treatment or wastewater operators earn more in New York?
By average total pay of full-year staff: wastewater treatment operators $136,140 and water treatment operators $89,382.
Who employs water operators in New York?
Cities, counties and local water and sewer authorities. Of the 12 employers covered here with at least 5 operators, 9 are water or sewer authorities, 2 are cities and 1 is a county. Many other towns, villages and districts run their own plants but don't publish their pay.
Sources for the New York water operator figures
Every person who held a water operator position at any point in the newest year each employer has published (2023, 2024 and 2025) counts toward the headcount. New York City's pay figures use only people still employed at the end of June 2025 who worked at least 90% of a full year's regular hours at their title's standard week; for school staff, whose hours aren't recorded, regular pay of at least 90% of their own annual salary. The other employers' files have no hours, so their figures use full-time staff who held the same title the year before and earned at least 90% of that year's pay (Suffolk County), who were paid their salary on at least 90% of the year's paydays (Buffalo), or who were paid at least 90% of their own annual salary (water and sewer authorities). Total pay is gross wages before tax, including overtime, lump sums and other pay. Every figure covers at least 5 people.
- City of New York, Citywide Payroll Data (Fiscal Year): titles, base salaries, regular pay, overtime and other pay of every city employee, fiscal year 2025 (July 2024 to June 2025).
- City of New York, Department of Citywide Administrative Services, Civil Service Titles: official minimum and maximum pay per title, current list (2026).
- City of New York, Department of Citywide Administrative Services, Notice of Examination: Sewage Treatment Worker, Exam No. 5131 (2024): requirements for the job: a commercial driver's license and fire department certificates of fitness.
- Suffolk County, County Salaries by Department 2024 and 2023: each county employee's most recent title, hire and end dates, regular earnings, overtime and total pay in 2024; the 2023 file shows who held the same title a year earlier.
- City of Buffalo, Open Payroll: every pay line of every city employee, with title, start date and kind of pay, fiscal year 2025 (July 2024 to June 2025), added up per person.
- New York State Authorities Budget Office, Salary Information for Local Authorities (Open NY): title, annual salary, salary paid, overtime and total pay of every employee, as reported by each local authority for its fiscal year.
- Suffolk County Department of Civil Service, class specification 7460, Wastewater Treatment Plant Operator Trainee.
- Suffolk County Department of Civil Service, class specification 7670, Wastewater Treatment Plant Helper.
- Buffalo Sewer Authority, notice of vacancy, Wastewater Treatment Plant Operator I (August 2026).
- City of Buffalo, job posting, Pumping Plant Operator.