Factory automation salary in Canada is best understood by role scope, not by title alone. PLC programmers, controls engineers, automation technicians, robotics specialists, and industrial electricians all overlap on the plant floor, but the pay changes when a role owns design, troubleshooting, commissioning, shift coverage, or production recovery.
Current Job Bank wage anchors show a clear ladder: automation specialist and controls technician roles cluster around the mid-$30s per hour nationally, industrial electrician and robotics engineer anchors move into the low-to-mid $40s, and automation engineering roles sit around $50.67 per hour at the national median. The strongest factory automation roles can move above the simple title average when they combine controls depth with real equipment ownership.
| Job Bank wage anchor | Low hourly | Median hourly | High hourly | Approx. annual median | Updated |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Controls technician – electrical and electronics NOC 22310 |
$24.04 | $35.58 | $55.34 | $74,006 | Nov. 19, 2025 |
| Automation specialist NOC 22301 |
$23.08 | $35.00 | $51.28 | $72,800 | Nov. 19, 2025 |
| Industrial electrician NOC 72201 |
$28.00 | $42.00 | $54.00 | $87,360 | Nov. 19, 2025 |
| Robotics engineer NOC 21321 |
$30.00 | $45.67 | $72.49 | $94,994 | Nov. 19, 2025 |
| Automation engineer – electrical and electronic systems NOC 21310 |
$33.65 | $50.67 | $79.23 | $105,394 | Nov. 19, 2025 |
Data note: Job Bank wage pages report hourly low, median, and high wages by occupation. Annual equivalents here are rough full-time estimates using 2,080 hours and should be treated as comparison anchors, not guaranteed offers.
How To Use This Salary Guide
Use the table as a Canadian reference point, not as a hard quote for every job. Job Bank reports wages by occupation, while factory automation employers use overlapping titles. A PLC-heavy maintenance role, a controls engineering role, and a robotics commissioning role may all touch similar equipment but carry different expectations.
The cleanest way to compare compensation is to ask what the person owns. Do they troubleshoot existing machines? Write new PLC logic? Build HMI screens? Support robot cells? Commission customer equipment? Cover nights and weekends? Lead safety or SCADA decisions? Each answer changes the pay conversation.
What Candidates Should Watch
Look beyond the base number. Hourly roles can earn more through overtime, shift premiums, shutdown work, and call-ins. Salaried roles may offer cleaner schedules but expect launch support, travel, or after-hours calls. Compare the total work pattern, not just the posted rate.
Strong candidates should make their automation proof visible: PLC platforms, HMI/SCADA tools, robot brands, drives, networks, machine types, electrical troubleshooting, commissioning examples, and measurable production impact. That evidence helps employers justify a better offer.
Province And Industry Notes
Ontario usually deserves extra attention because it combines automotive, packaging, machine building, food, distribution automation, and integrator work. Alberta can reward instrumentation, process controls, commissioning, energy, and field-service experience. British Columbia and Quebec both have meaningful demand, but candidates should read postings closely because the roles may lean toward equipment builders, plant maintenance, robotics, aerospace, or controls modernization.
The salary guide should therefore support internal linking to role and location pages, but it should not turn every city into a thin salary page. A strong regional page needs local employer context, actual role mix, wage anchors, and links to current jobs. Otherwise it risks being duplicative of the search pages that already do the location work better.
What Employers Should Watch
If you are hiring specialized automation talent, vague postings will hold you back. Candidates want to know the equipment, the controls stack, the shift, the travel, the downtime expectations, and whether they will own design or support existing systems.
Pay should match risk. A posting that expects PLC troubleshooting, production recovery, robot support, commissioning, and safety ownership needs to compete with other high-scope automation roles, not with generic maintenance technician listings.
Role Guides To Read Next
For deeper detail, read the role-specific guides: PLC Programmer Salary Canada, Controls Engineer Salary Canada, Automation Technician Salary Canada, and Robotics Engineer Salary Canada.
Those pages break down title mapping, skills that move compensation, and how job seekers and employers should read the market for each role.
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