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Career

Furniture Finishers

Typical education: High school diplomaLower pressure

What they do

Shape, finish, and refinish damaged, worn, or used furniture or new high-grade furniture to specified color or finish.

Kinds of work

  • Realistic: Hands-on work with tools, machines, plants or animals, often outdoors.

Lower pressure: How much pressure workers in this job report: deadlines, conflict, dealing with upset people, the cost of mistakes, responsibility for others' safety, competition and long hours. It varies a lot from one employer to the next. Source: U.S. Department of Labor worker surveys.

Pay, tasks and more

Salary

United States $44,540 Median per year · $21.41/hr Most earn $32,160–$61,020

BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, 2025.

What you might do

  • Spread graining ink over metal portions of furniture to simulate wood-grain finish.
  • Smooth, shape, and touch up surfaces to prepare them for finishing, using sandpaper, pumice stones, steel wool, chisels, sanders, or grinders.
  • Mix finish ingredients to obtain desired colors or shades.
  • Stencil, gild, emboss, mark, or paint designs or borders to reproduce the original appearance of restored pieces, or to decorate new pieces.
  • Confer with customers to determine furniture colors or finishes.
  • Follow blueprints to produce specific designs.

Job outlook

United States
4% fewer jobs by 2035, declining · about 1,500 openings a year

Openings include new jobs and jobs left by workers who retire or change careers. Projections: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. "Bright Outlook": U.S. Department of Labor.

Where they work

  • Furniture and related product manufacturing63.2%
  • Personal and household goods repair and maintenance9.8%
  • Self-employed (their own business)9.7%
  • Warehousing and storage5.9%
  • Furniture and home furnishings retailers4.5%

Share of all workers in this career. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, National Employment Matrix.

Experience before this job: 1 to 2 years

Some people start through an apprenticeship: paid training on the job, often with classes. Search apprenticeships on Apprenticeship.gov (opens in a new tab) ↗

Career path

How people usually get into this career, from school to their first job and beyond.

Typical education: High school diplomaExperience before this job: 1 to 2 years

Furniture Finishing is an entry-level job. You can often start with a high school diploma, though most people spend about 1 to 2 years learning on the job before they work on their own.

  1. High school diploma

    4 years

    Finish high school, ideally with shop, woodworking, or art classes that teach you to handle tools and notice color and surface details.

  2. Hand Grinding and Polishing Worker

    6-12 months

    Start in a shop doing hand sanding, smoothing, and polishing under an experienced finisher, learning how different woods and old finishes respond.

  3. Painting or Coating Worker

    6-12 months

    Practice applying stains, sealers, and topcoats evenly, and learn to match colors and spray safely, which builds the core finishing skills.

  4. Furniture Finisher

    1-2 years of prior experience

    Take on the full job: repairing, stripping, staining, and finishing furniture to a customer's or manufacturer's specified color and look.

Where it can lead

  1. Upholsterer

    1-2 years of experience first

    Learn to repair and cover furniture fabric and cushions, which pairs well with finishing and can make you more useful on restoration jobs.

  2. Lead Furniture Finisher

    3-5 years of experience first

    Take charge of a finishing area, check quality, train new workers, and handle harder restoration or custom work. Specific requirements vary by shop.

What you can do now

Ideas for high school and college students.

In high school

  • Take woodworking or shop classesThese teach you to use sanders, hand tools, and measuring tools, which are the basics of finishing work.
  • Take an art or color theory classLearning how colors mix and how stains look on wood helps you match finishes to a specified color.
  • Volunteer or help at a community workshop or thrift-store repair projectRefinishing donated furniture gives you real practice with stripping, sanding, and staining.
  • Get a summer or part-time job at a furniture store or cabinet shopEven sweeping, sanding, or moving pieces exposes you to how a finishing shop runs.
  • Learn basic shop safetyKnowing how to use ventilation, gloves, and masks shows employers you are ready for chemical work.

In college

  • Take courses in woodworking, materials, or finishing techniquesClasses in wood science or finishing techniques build the knowledge you need on the job, and some community colleges offer them.
  • Work a campus or part-time job in a workshop or maintenance shopHands-on work with tools and surfaces builds experience employers look for.
  • Intern or shadow at a refinishing shop, furniture manufacturer, or restoration businessA short internship shows you the daily routine of finishing work and can lead to a real job offer.
  • Earn safety or hazardous materials trainingCertifications in chemical safety or respirator use show you can handle the solvents and sprays involved.
  • Join a woodworking or craft clubWorking on projects with others helps you learn techniques and build a portfolio of finished pieces.

Tips for getting started

  • Look for part-time or summer jobs at furniture stores, cabinet shops, or refinishing businesses, even as a helper. Hands-on time matters more here than a degree.
  • Build a small portfolio of before-and-after photos from sanding or refinishing projects at home, such as an old chair or table, to show employers.
  • Learn basic shop safety early, including ventilation and handling of stains and solvents, because finishers work with chemicals every day.

Related jobs that often lead here

Education, experience and related careers: U.S. Department of Labor. The step-by-step path, where it can lead and what you can do now were written by AI as typical examples; many people take other ways.

College majors that lead here

  • Woodworking Certificate: typical pay 1 year after finishing $24,988 a year

Majors: U.S. Department of Education and BLS (CIP–SOC crosswalk). Earnings and debt: College Scorecard, typical across U.S. colleges.

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