Trades

Auto Mechanic Salary in North Dakota (2026)

The average Auto Mechanic in North Dakota earns around $55,000/year. After taxes, your estimated take-home is $45,595/year ($3,800/month).

Take-Home Pay Breakdown

CategoryAmount
Annual Take-Home Pay
$45,595
Monthly Take-Home Pay
$3,800
Biweekly Take-Home Pay
$1,754
Hourly Take-Home Pay

based on 2,080 hrs/year

$22/hr
Federal Tax
$4,420
State Tax
$778
FICA Taxes
$4,208
Effective Tax Rate

total taxes ÷ gross salary

17.1%
Estimates only — not tax advice. · Full disclaimer →

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Auto Mechanic Salary Ranges in North Dakota

Entry Level (0–3 yrs)

$40,000

/year

See tax breakdown →

Mid Level (3–7 yrs)

$56,000

/year

See tax breakdown →

Senior Level (7+ yrs)

$95,000

/year

See tax breakdown →

Not all Auto Mechanics earn the same — not even close

North Dakota's auto mechanic market is anchored by the Fargo metro dealership cluster (Fargo + West Fargo + Moorhead MN cross-border + the substantial Fargo Microsoft post-2008 Great Plains acquisition + Doosan Bobcat Bismarck + Gwinner + the substantial John Deere Fargo + Sanford Health Fargo + Essentia Health + the substantial Fargo as the largest ND city + the substantial NDSU North Dakota State University), Bismarck + Mandan dealerships (Bismarck state capital + the substantial Marathon Petroleum Mandan refinery + the substantial CHS Mandan refinery + the substantial Bismarck-Mandan industrial + the substantial Doosan Bobcat Bismarck), Grand Forks dealerships (the substantial UND University of North Dakota + Grand Forks AFB + the substantial Grand Forks AFB B-52 Stratofortress + RQ-4 Global Hawk + Cirrus Aircraft Grand Forks + Altru Health), Minot dealerships (the substantial Minot AFB B-52 + 91st Missile Wing Minuteman III + post-2027 Sentinel ICBM + the substantial Minot Bakken oil northern fringe), Williston + Dickinson Bakken oil dealerships (the substantial Williston Bakken Williston Basin oil epicenter + the substantial Dickinson Bakken + the substantial Bakken heavy fleet + the substantial post-2020 Bakken oil + gas recovery), plus substantial ND agricultural + grain truck + combine + heavy equipment service at Bakken oil field service (the substantial Williams + McKenzie + Mountrail + Stark County oil + gas + the substantial Bakken pipeline + frac + drilling fleet) + the substantial Doosan Bobcat Bismarck + Gwinner skid-steer + the substantial John Deere Fargo + the substantial ND federal civilian + military fleet at Grand Forks AFB + Minot AFB.

Bakken Oil / Heavy Equipment Specialist

$68,000–$118,000+ OT

Caterpillar + Cummins + Peterbilt · Bakken Williston Basin heavy fleet + Williston + Dickinson + Watford City premium

ASE Master Tech (Dealer Service)

$55,000–$88,000+

Dealer master tech at Fargo + Bismarck + Grand Forks + Minot · ASE Master + dealer-brand cert · top flat-rate

Diesel / Heavy Equipment Mechanic

$58,000–$95,000+ OT

Caterpillar + Cummins · ND ag + grain transport + commercial fleet + Grand Forks + Minot AFB GSE + Bakken

Ag Equipment Mechanic (Bobcat / Deere)

$58,000–$92,000+ OT

Doosan Bobcat Bismarck + Gwinner + John Deere Fargo · skid-steer + ag equipment heavy mechanic

EV / Hybrid Specialist

$58,000–$92,000+

Tesla Fargo + Ford F-150 Lightning + GM EV + Toyota hybrid · ND EV growth + Microsoft executive fleet

European Import / Luxury Specialist

$55,000–$88,000+

Fargo + Bismarck European + luxury · Microsoft + Sanford + Doosan executive market

Senior Service Manager

$62,000–$108,000+

Dealership service manager · Fargo + Bismarck + Grand Forks · administrative + flag-hour

Collision Repair Technician (I-CAR Platinum)

$45,000–$72,000+

I-CAR Platinum collision technician · ND extreme cold + winter salt + deer-strike + hail + DRP shop

Mid-Career Mechanic (4-8 yrs)

$38,000–$55,000+

Mid-career tech transitioning to ASE Master · flat-rate at ND dealerships

Entry Mechanic / Tech Apprentice

$28,000–$42,000+

Entry technician · NDSCS North Dakota State College of Science Wahpeton + Bismarck State + Lake Region pipeline

Worth knowing: North Dakota's substantial Bakken Williston Basin oil heavy fleet + Microsoft Fargo + Doosan Bobcat + John Deere Fargo + Marathon Mandan refinery + Grand Forks + Minot AFB concentration is a distinctive ND auto mechanic feature most national surveys understate. The substantial Bakken Williston Basin oil heavy fleet (the substantial Bakken Williston Basin as the country's substantial second-largest US oil-producing region after Permian Basin + the substantial Bakken ~1.2M+ barrels/day post-2020 recovery + the substantial Williston + Dickinson + Watford City + Tioga + Stanley oil field service + the substantial Whiting + Continental + Hess + ConocoPhillips Bakken operators + the substantial Bakken heavy fleet diesel + frac + drilling + pipeline + the substantial Bakken pipeline + the substantial Dakota Access Pipeline DAPL controversy 2016-2017 + the substantial post-2020 Bakken Williston Basin oil + gas recovery to ~1.2M bpd) drives substantial ND heavy diesel mechanic demand — Bakken heavy diesel mechanics clear $68-118K + overtime at the substantial Williston-Watford City premium rates, comparable to Permian premium. Microsoft Fargo (post-2008 Microsoft acquisition of Great Plains Software + ~1,800 Microsoft Fargo employees + the substantial Microsoft Dynamics 365 ERP + the substantial Microsoft Fargo campus + the substantial Microsoft post-2020 Fargo expansion) supports substantial Fargo executive luxury fleet demand. Doosan Bobcat Bismarck + Gwinner (the substantial Doosan Bobcat skid-steer + compact track loader + telehandler + the substantial Bobcat post-2007 Doosan acquisition + the substantial Bobcat Gwinner + Bismarck + Wahpeton + the substantial Bobcat ~3,500 ND employees) + John Deere Fargo (post-2019 Deere expansion + the substantial Deere Fargo precision ag + the substantial Deere AWS D1.1 + AWS D14 ag equipment) support specialized ag + industrial equipment mechanic work. Marathon Petroleum Mandan refinery + the substantial CHS Mandan refinery (the substantial Mandan refining cluster + the substantial Marathon Mandan ~70K barrel/day + the substantial Mandan refining process diesel + the substantial Mandan refining executive fleet) supports substantial Bismarck-Mandan industrial fleet demand. Grand Forks AFB Grand Forks (the substantial 319th Reconnaissance Wing RQ-4 Global Hawk + post-2014 B-52 Stratofortress retirement at GFAFB + the substantial Grand Forks AFB ~3.5K personnel + the substantial Grand Forks AFB cleared facility) + Minot AFB Minot (the substantial 5th Bomb Wing B-52H Stratofortress + the substantial 91st Missile Wing Minuteman III ICBM + the substantial post-2027 Sentinel ICBM beddown + the substantial Minot 150 Minuteman III silos + the substantial Minot AFB ~5K personnel + the substantial Minot AFB cleared facility) support substantial ND federal civilian + base fleet diesel + GSE mechanic work. ND extreme cold (Fargo winter low ~-15°F + Bismarck winter low ~-10°F + the substantial ND polar vortex -40°F+ extreme + the substantial ND Bakken winter -50°F+ + the substantial ND tornado season + the substantial ND winter salt corrosion) drives sustained collision repair + DRP shop work. NDSCS North Dakota State College of Science Wahpeton + Bismarck State College + Lake Region State College Devils Lake + Williston State College + Dakota College Bottineau feed the ND auto-mechanic pipeline. ND progressive 0%/1.95%/2.5% (post-2023 HB 1158 reform from prior 1.1-2.9% 5-bracket + the substantial 2026 ND 3-bracket flatter structure) + ND 5% state sales tax + ND NO estate tax + ND IS a Right-to-Work state (signed 1947 + one of original 19 US RTW states) + ND PERS Public Employees Retirement System + NDHP Highway Patrol Retirement System anchor the ND auto-mechanic proposition.

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