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Cutting, Punching, and Press Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic vs Tool and Die Makers

Side-by-side · O*NET · BLS · AI-exposure research · Anthropic Economic Index

A factual, source-backed comparison of Cutting, Punching, and Press Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic and Tool and Die Makers on the dimensions both occupations carry. Every figure is a position within an independent published dataset — not a verdict on which job is better, safer, or more “future-proof.”

Cutting, Punching, and Press Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic Tool and Die Makers
Median pay · BLS OEWS
$45,590
$63,180
Employment · BLS OEWS
174,430
55,130
AI exposure (percentile) · task overlap, not automation
23rd pct
25th pct

At a glance

Dimension Cutting, Punching, and Press Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic Tool and Die Makers
Median pay $45,590 $63,180
Employment 174,430 55,130
Employment outlook (2024–34) · BLS projection Declining (-12.1%) Declining (-10.8%)
Annual openings · BLS projection 14,400 4,700
Typical education · O*NET Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not. Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.
AI exposure · published exposure studies Low · 23rd pct Low · 25th pct
Global GenAI gradient · ILO ISCO-08 · via crosswalk 26th pct · 18% of tasks 34th pct · 20% of tasks
Observed AI use · Anthropic Economic Index Automation-leaning (48.4%) —
Mostly remote-capable · Dingel–Neiman No No

Pay and employment are BLS OEWS estimates; outlook and openings are BLS 2024–2034 projections; AI exposure and observed-use figures come from separate research and reflect exposure and usage, not predictions that either job will disappear. Compare like with like.

Skills

Shared: Arm-Hand Steadiness, Control Precision, Near Vision, Operations Monitoring, Operation and Control, Production and Processing, Information Ordering, Manual Dexterity, Selective Attention, Active Listening, Speaking, Critical Thinking, Monitoring, Troubleshooting, Quality Control Analysis, Oral Comprehension, Written Comprehension, Oral Expression, Problem Sensitivity, Deductive Reasoning, Inductive Reasoning, Visualization, Finger Dexterity, Multilimb Coordination, Speech Recognition, Speech Clarity, Mechanical, English Language, Judgment and Decision Making, Reading Comprehension, Active Learning.

Specific to Cutting, Punching, and Press Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic

  • Reaction Time
  • Flexibility of Closure
  • Perceptual Speed
  • Rate Control
  • Static Strength
  • Trunk Strength
  • Far Vision
  • Depth Perception

Specific to Tool and Die Makers

  • Mathematics
  • Design
  • Category Flexibility
  • Equipment Selection
  • Time Management
  • Complex Problem Solving
  • Equipment Maintenance
  • Mathematical Reasoning

Knowledge, skills & abilities O*NET rates as important for each occupation. “Shared” are common to both; the columns list what is distinctive to each (top by the order O*NET surfaces).

Tools & technology

Shared: Computer aided design CAD software , Spreadsheet software , Office suite software , Electronic mail software , Word processing software , Enterprise resource planning ERP software , Inventory management software , Computer aided manufacturing CAM software .

Specific to Cutting, Punching, and Press Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic

Specific to Tool and Die Makers

Full profiles

This page is a summary. See the complete source-backed profile for Cutting, Punching, and Press Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic or Tool and Die Makers — tasks, the full skill graph, tools, work context, preparation, wages by percentile, industries, AI exposure and the AI work map.

More comparisons

Related occupations you can place side by side on the same sourced scale.

Sources for this page

Every figure above traces to a named public dataset and the exact release below — not hand-written opinion. See the full methodology for what each measure does and does not mean.

Data compiled June 2, 2026. Figures are estimates, not advice.

Cite this page
Plain

Singulariki. "Cutting, Punching, and Press Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic vs Tool and Die Makers." Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Built from O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034; Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27); Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130; AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans; ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025; IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022; Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation; Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome. Accessed June 7, 2026. https://singulariki.com/compare/cutting-punching-and-press-machine-setters-operators-and-tenders-metal-and-plastic-vs-tool-and-die-makers

APA

Singulariki. (2026). Cutting, Punching, and Press Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic vs Tool and Die Makers. Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Retrieved June 7, 2026, from https://singulariki.com/compare/cutting-punching-and-press-machine-setters-operators-and-tenders-metal-and-plastic-vs-tool-and-die-makers

BibTeX 
@misc{singulariki-cutting-punching-and-press-machine-setters-operators-and-tenders-metal-and-plastic-vs-tool-and-die-makers,
  title  = {Cutting, Punching, and Press Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic vs Tool and Die Makers},
  author = {{Singulariki}},
  year   = {2026},
  note   = {O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034; Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27); Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130; AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans; ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025; IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022; Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation; Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome. Accessed June 7, 2026},
  url    = {https://singulariki.com/compare/cutting-punching-and-press-machine-setters-operators-and-tenders-metal-and-plastic-vs-tool-and-die-makers}
}

Citations name the underlying public dataset releases — they reflect what this page is built from, not just the URL.