Ophthalmic Medical Technicians

Ophthalmic Medical Technicians professionals earn a national median of $45,570 per year according to BLS OEWS May 2025 data, positioned in the Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations occupational family under SOC code 29-2057. OEWS estimates approximately 71,010 jobs in covered establishments nationwide. The full percentile range stretches from $35,700 at the 10th percentile to $61,940 at the 90th. The distribution combines differences in experience, specialization, employer type, industry, schedule, and geography; OEWS does not isolate any one factor's effect.

BLS Employment Projections expect the occupation to change by +20% between 2024 and 2034 - much faster than average relative to the all-occupations baseline of 3.1%. BLS projects roughly 12,500 annual openings from growth, occupational transfers, and labor-force exits. BLS assigns Postsecondary nondegree award as typical education needed for entry. These are occupation-level assignments, not universal requirements. BLS does not publish a separate occupation-specific safety rate for this role; its broad SOC-group rate is excluded from this career card's grade.

The highest published state median in this ranking is Minnesota at $63,080 for this occupation. The table records the differences but does not establish their causes. Before treating this median as a personal benchmark, compare the same statistic in the relevant local wage area and keep employer-provided benefits, which OEWS excludes, separate.