Missouri techs earn roughly $18.52 to $30.41 per hour (Indeed, 2026), and St. Louis sits at the upper end of that range because BJC HealthCare and the Washington University academic pipeline concentrate the state's highest surgical volume here. Missouri has no certification law, so CRCST is an employer preference, not a legal gate, and the large systems are the ones most likely to train you in without experience.
High academic case volume means Barnes-Jewish and the BJC hospitals run around the clock. Nights and weekends are where the openings and the differentials are, and they're the easiest doors to walk through with no experience.
Missouri runs about $18.52 to $30.41 per hour (Indeed, 2026), and St. Louis lands toward the top because BJC's academic centers pay above the state's rural and small-town hospitals. Check the 2026 national pay breakdown to see where that sits.
Not legally. Missouri is not one of the five states with a certification statute, so it comes down to the posting. BJC-scale employers commonly want CRCST or a commitment to earn it after hire.
The large systems are your realistic entry point in this metro. Barnes-Jewish and the other BJC hospitals run enough volume to onboard untrained techs on nights; standalone surgery centers almost never do.