Highest Water Operator Salaries in New York, 2023-25

Where do water operators earn the most in New York?

The 11 employers with the highest average total pay of full-year water and wastewater operators, overtime included.

Highest average total pay

New York CityCity government, fiscal year 2025
673 full-year operators$140,316
BuffaloCity in Erie County, fiscal year 2025
5 full-year operators$122,868
Monroe County Water AuthorityPublic authority in Monroe County, 2024
11 full-year operators$101,989
Suffolk CountyCounty government, 2024
31 full-year operators$92,182
Erie County Water AuthorityPublic authority in Erie County, 2024
25 full-year operators$82,373
Onondaga County Water AuthorityPublic authority in Onondaga County, 2024
12 full-year operators$80,235
Wayne County Water and Sewer AuthorityPublic authority in Wayne County, 2024
8 full-year operators$76,462
Buffalo Sewer AuthorityPublic authority in Erie County, fiscal year 2024
29 full-year operators$72,897
Albany Water BoardPublic authority in Albany County, 2023
13 full-year operators$72,869
Niagara Falls Water BoardPublic authority in Niagara County, 2024
21 full-year operators$69,398
Saratoga County Water AuthorityPublic authority in Saratoga County, 2024
5 full-year operators$58,280

Highest water operator base pay in New York

Average base pay of full-year operators, without overtime and other pay: closer to what the job pays for a regular schedule.

Highest average base pay

Where do New York water operators earn the most overtime?

Average overtime paid to full-year operators. A few people with a lot of overtime can pull an employer's average up.

Highest average overtime

Do water treatment or wastewater operators earn more in New York?

Across all employers, full-year operators averaged $136,140 in wastewater treatment and $89,382 in water treatment. New York City makes up 654 of the 720 full-year wastewater treatment operators, so that average mostly reflects its pay. The lists below compare employers within each kind of work.

Wastewater treatment operators: $136,140; average total pay, 720 full-year
Water treatment operators: $89,382; average total pay, 90 full-year

Highest pay for wastewater treatment operators

Highest pay for water treatment operators

Questions about the highest water operator salaries in New York

Which New York employer pays water operators the most?

New York City, where full-year operators earned an average of $140,316, overtime included. Monroe County Water Authority ($101,989) and Suffolk County ($92,182) follow.

Where do wastewater treatment operators earn the most in New York?

At New York City, where full-year wastewater treatment operators earned an average of $141,648. Suffolk County ($92,182) and Buffalo Sewer Authority ($72,897) follow.

Where do water treatment operators earn the most in New York?

At Monroe County Water Authority, where full-year water treatment operators earned an average of $101,989. New York City ($94,453) and Erie County Water Authority ($82,373) follow.

Sources for the New York water operator rankings

New York City's pay figures use only people still employed at the end of June 2025 who worked at least 90% of a full year's regular hours at their title's standard week; for school staff, whose hours aren't recorded, regular pay of at least 90% of their own annual salary. The other employers' files have no hours, so their figures use full-time staff who held the same title the year before and earned at least 90% of that year's pay (Suffolk County), who were paid their salary on at least 90% of the year's paydays (Buffalo), or who were paid at least 90% of their own annual salary (water and sewer authorities). Total pay is gross wages before tax, including overtime, lump sums and other pay. Every figure covers at least 5 people. Rankings and medians are our own arithmetic on these figures. Each employer's figures are from the newest year it has published (2023, 2024 and 2025).

City of New York, Citywide Payroll Data (Fiscal Year): titles, base salaries, regular pay, overtime and other pay of every city employee, fiscal year 2025 (July 2024 to June 2025).
City of New York, Department of Citywide Administrative Services, Civil Service Titles: official minimum and maximum pay per title, current list (2026).
City of New York, Department of Citywide Administrative Services, Notice of Examination: Sewage Treatment Worker, Exam No. 5131 (2024): requirements for the job: a commercial driver's license and fire department certificates of fitness.
Suffolk County, County Salaries by Department 2024 and 2023: each county employee's most recent title, hire and end dates, regular earnings, overtime and total pay in 2024; the 2023 file shows who held the same title a year earlier.
City of Buffalo, Open Payroll: every pay line of every city employee, with title, start date and kind of pay, fiscal year 2025 (July 2024 to June 2025), added up per person.
New York State Authorities Budget Office, Salary Information for Local Authorities (Open NY): title, annual salary, salary paid, overtime and total pay of every employee, as reported by each local authority for its fiscal year.

How we read the data

Highest water operator salaries in New York, by employer, 2023-25