Print Binding and Finishing Workers
Bind books and other publications or finish printed products by hand or machine. May set up binding and finishing machines.
What it pays
Print Binding and Finishing Workers earn a median of $20.33/hr — about $42,500 a year. The lowest-paid 10% earn $15.49/hr; the top 10% earn $28.44/hr. (Annual figures are approximate: hourly × 2,080.)
Print Binding and Finishing Workers earn a median of $20.33/hr — about $42,500 a year. The lowest-paid 10% earn $15.49/hr; the top 10% earn $28.44/hr. (Annual figures are approximate: hourly × 2,080.)
What you'd actually do
- Examine stitched, collated, bound, or unbound product samples for defects, such as imperfect bindings, ink spots, torn pages, loose pages, or loose or uncut threads.
- Read work orders to determine instructions and specifications for machine set-up.
- Install or adjust bindery machine devices, such as knives, guides, rollers, rounding forms, creasing rams, or clamps, to accommodate sheets, signatures, or books of specified sizes.
- Trim edges of books to size, using cutting machines, book trimming machines, or hand cutters.
- Stitch or glue endpapers, bindings, backings, or signatures, using sewing machines, glue machines, or glue and brushes.
- Monitor machine operations to detect malfunctions or to determine whether adjustments are needed.
How you get there
Typical entry-level education: High school diploma. Overall preparation: some preparation (Job Zone 2 of 5).
The feel of the work
The work is mostly indoors; much of the day is spent working solo. (Compared against the other 818 careers in the guide.)
Working for yourself
About 0% of print binding and finishing workers 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 print binding and finishing worker make?
- The median pay is $20.33 per hour — roughly $42,500 a year, with the real range running from about $15.49/hr (10th percentile) to $28.44/hr (90th percentile). Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
- Do you need a degree to be a print binding and finishing worker?
- The typical entry-level education is: High school diploma. Overall preparation level: some preparation (Job Zone 2 of 5).
- What does a print binding and finishing worker actually do all day?
- Examine stitched, collated, bound, or unbound product samples for defects, such as imperfect bindings, ink spots, torn pages, loose pages, or loose or uncut threads. Read work orders to determine instructions and specifications for machine set-up. Install or adjust bindery machine devices, such as knives, guides, rollers, rounding forms, creasing rams, or clamps, to accommodate sheets, signatures, or books of specified sizes.
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.
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.