How much does a automotive and watercraft service attendant make?

The median pay is $17.15 per hour — roughly $35,500 a year, with the real range running from about $13.76/hr (10th percentile) to $22.14/hr (90th percentile). Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Do you need a degree to be a automotive and watercraft service attendant?

The typical entry-level education is: Less than high school. Overall preparation level: some preparation (Job Zone 2 of 5).

What does a automotive and watercraft service attendant actually do all day?

Collect cash payments from customers, and make change or charge purchases to customers' credit cards, providing customers with receipts. Check tire pressure and levels of fuel, motor oil, transmission, radiator, battery, or other fluids, adding air or fluids as required. Perform minor repairs, such as adjusting brakes, replacing spark plugs, or changing engine oil or filters.

Transportation

Automotive and Watercraft Service Attendants

Service automobiles, buses, trucks, boats, and other automotive or marine vehicles with fuel, lubricants, and accessories. Collect payment for services and supplies. May lubricate vehicle, change motor oil, refill antifreeze, or replace lights or other accessories, such as windshield wiper blades or fan belts. May repair or replace tires.

What it pays
Automotive and Watercraft Service Attendants earn a median of $17.15/hr — about $35,500 a year. The lowest-paid 10% earn $13.76/hr; the top 10% earn $22.14/hr. (Annual figures are approximate: hourly × 2,080.)

What you'd actually do

Collect cash payments from customers, and make change or charge purchases to customers' credit cards, providing customers with receipts.
Check tire pressure and levels of fuel, motor oil, transmission, radiator, battery, or other fluids, adding air or fluids as required.
Perform minor repairs, such as adjusting brakes, replacing spark plugs, or changing engine oil or filters.
Clean parking areas, offices, restrooms, or equipment, and remove trash.
Order stock, and price and shelve incoming goods.
Sell and install accessories, such as batteries, windshield wiper blades, fan belts, bulbs, or headlamps.

How you get there

Typical entry-level education: Less than high school. Overall preparation: some preparation (Job Zone 2 of 5).

The feel of the work

Much of the work happens outdoors; time pressure is a real part of the job. (Compared against the other 818 careers in the guide.)

Working for yourself

About 0.8% of automotive and watercraft service attendants are self-employed.

Who it tends to fit

This work tends to fit people who are hands-on and organized and detail-focused.

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Quick questions

How much does a automotive and watercraft service attendant make?: The median pay is $17.15 per hour — roughly $35,500 a year, with the real range running from about $13.76/hr (10th percentile) to $22.14/hr (90th percentile). Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Do you need a degree to be a automotive and watercraft service attendant?: The typical entry-level education is: Less than high school. Overall preparation level: some preparation (Job Zone 2 of 5).
What does a automotive and watercraft service attendant actually do all day?: Collect cash payments from customers, and make change or charge purchases to customers' credit cards, providing customers with receipts. Check tire pressure and levels of fuel, motor oil, transmission, radiator, battery, or other fluids, adding air or fluids as required. Perform minor repairs, such as adjusting brakes, replacing spark plugs, or changing engine oil or filters.

Wages: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS. Tasks & interests: O*NET. Career pathways shown in the app are draft archetypes — verify before relying on them. Trailhead is a free career guide for students — honest numbers, no hype.

Trailhead is operated by FLEXVermont LLC. It is intended for high-school students age 13 and older, and the educators and families who support them, and is not directed to children under 13. Trailhead is provided for general informational and educational purposes only. It does not offer professional, financial, or career advice, and its wage figures and pathways are estimates that may not fit your situation — they should not be relied on as the sole basis for any decision.