What the work involves, what it pays, and real lines you can start from. Answer a few small questions and leave with a resume.
Also called painting coating and decorating workers, painting technician, painting worker and air brush decorator.
$41,600
Median pay a year
7,940
People do this work
6
Resume lines ready for you
Pay and headcount are from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The lines are written from what the US Department of Labor records about this work.
An example
A Painting, Coating, and Decorating Worker resume, filled in
Every line below comes from the same public record as the rest of this page. The greyed parts are the ones only you can answer.
Painting, Coating, and Decorating Worker
Summary
Painting, coating, and decorating worker applying coatings to various items like furniture and pottery, checking for defects, and preparing surfaces for finishing
Experience
Painting, Coating, and Decorating Worker
Where you worked
Month Year to Month Year
Applied coatings like paint and ink to protect or decorate surfaces using spray guns, pens, or brushes
Examined finished surfaces to check for defects and retouched any areas that did not meet specifications
Cleaned and maintained tools and equipment using solvents, brushes, and rags
Read job orders and inspected workpieces to decide on work procedures and materials needed
Selected and mixed ingredients to prepare coating substances using paddles or mechanical mixers
Placed coated workpieces in ovens or dryers to dry or harden finishes for specified times
Cleaned surfaces of workpieces with cleaning fluids, solvents, brushes, and cloth before coating
Skills
Core Skills
Cleaning workpieces or products, Reviewing blueprints and instructions, Inspecting finishes of workpieces, Selecting production materials, Loading items into ovens, Applying decorative finishes, Filling holes in products, Operating painting or coating equipment
Hands-On Work
Mixing ingredients, Cleaning production equipment
Open to
On site, Remote
Education
High School Diploma Your school, Year
Yours will not say this. It will say what you did, in your own words, and Rung writes it with you one question at a time.
Nothing to write from scratch
What to put on a Painting, Coating, and Decorating Worker resume
Real duties for this job, already written the way a resume reads. Inside Rung you choose the ones that were yours.
What did you do each day?
Choose what fits, or say your own.
Applied coatings to surfacesChecked finished surfaces for qualityCleaned tools and equipmentRead job orders and inspected workMixed ingredients for coatingsPlaced workpieces in dryers
becomes
On your resume
Applied coatings to various surfaces, ensuring a smooth and even finish
Cleaned and maintained tools and equipment to uphold safety and efficiency standards
These are written the way a resume line reads. Rung asks which ones are actually yours, keeps your own words, and never claims work you did not do.
Then it asks for one more thing
The line that could show more, and the fact that lands it.
Make it stronger
A few lines could show more. Each one is asked, and answered by choosing.
Show what improved in the finish quality after your work
The line
Applied coatings to various surfaces, making them look more professional and appealing
Show what improved in the finish quality after your work
Pick one that fits
Surfaces looked more professional and appealingFinished products met customer satisfactionQuality of workpieces improved significantly
Or add your own.
In your wordsAdd it
Adding it to the line…
Added to your resume
Mention how often you cleaned tools and equipment
The line
Cleaned and maintained tools and equipment to uphold safety and efficiency standards
Mention how often you cleaned tools and equipment
Pick one that fits
Daily after each shiftRegularly throughout the dayAt the end of every project
Or add your own.
In your wordsAdd it
Adding it to the line…
Added to your resume
Every ready answer is in plain words, never a figure. Nothing is invented to fill a gap.
What it is made of
Skills for a Painting, Coating, and Decorating Worker resume
What this work is made of. Rung offers these and keeps the ones you claim.
What are you good at?
Cleaning workpieces or products
Reviewing blueprints and instructions
Inspecting finishes of workpieces
Selecting production materials
Mixing ingredients
Cleaning production equipment
Loading items into ovens
Applying decorative finishes
Filling holes in products
Operating painting or coating equipment
Maintaining production equipment
The work itself
What a Painting, Coating, and Decorating Worker does
The public record of what this job is, in one paragraph.
Paint, coat, or decorate articles, such as furniture, glass, plateware, pottery, jewelry, toys, books, or leather.
What it pays
How much does a Painting, Coating, and Decorating Worker make?
Annual pay across the United States. The middle figure is the median: half earn less than that, and half earn more.
25th percentile
$37,030
Median
$41,600
75th percentile
$50,360
About 7,940 people do this work in the United States.
What it pays in each state
State
25th percentile
Median
75th percentile
AR
$36,400
$40,310
$49,280
AZ
$34,410
$37,030
$44,510
CA
$41,600
$41,600
$43,580
CO
$46,330
$54,070
$61,250
CT
$45,090
$50,720
$56,690
FL
$35,850
$37,440
$46,140
GA
$37,580
$46,310
$56,070
IA
$40,340
$46,670
$59,540
ID
$38,120
$45,050
$46,480
IL
$32,240
$41,960
$48,400
IN
$30,830
$41,350
$47,150
KS
$33,220
$39,470
$48,380
KY
$36,650
$42,220
$57,780
LA
$33,800
$38,320
$48,550
MA
$50,670
$54,070
$55,510
MD
$38,340
$47,320
$58,180
MI
$36,370
$38,500
$45,560
MN
$37,050
$43,630
$48,560
MO
$44,440
$48,560
$50,520
MS
$30,940
$33,330
$42,950
MT
$33,080
$34,790
$52,000
NC
$37,580
$42,960
$55,290
NJ
$48,390
$52,160
$63,050
NV
$52,800
$60,190
$64,940
NY
$40,200
$48,510
$70,050
OH
$40,470
$49,080
$51,490
OK
$34,320
$36,780
$44,130
PA
$36,610
$41,660
$46,630
SC
$31,110
$43,820
$48,070
SD
$30,770
$31,550
$37,040
TN
$31,470
$35,540
$41,740
TX
$27,500
$32,430
$40,850
UT
$30,470
$38,430
$51,620
VA
$37,960
$47,090
$56,840
WA
$48,890
$61,210
$77,780
WI
$48,320
$48,330
$50,750
WY
$36,100
$37,090
$37,970
Other names
Other names for this job
painting coating and decorating workers, painting technician, painting worker, air brush decorator, air brush operator, airbrush painter, art gilder, auto body painter, automotive body painter, babbitter, bake off decorator, bakery decorator.
This page is about the occupation Painting, Coating, and Decorating Workers. What this job involves and what it is made of come from O*NET 30.3, the US Department of Labor's occupation database, refreshed July 2026; Rung writes those records into the plain sentences you see. Pay comes from the Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS release for 2025. Rung is an independent service and is not affiliated with or endorsed by either agency. How Rung handles accuracy is on the accuracy page, and the full data credits are on the credits page.