Construction trade wages by state in 2026
Labor is roughly half of most home-project bills, and what the trades earn varies enormously by state. Plumbers top the trades nationally at $72,170 a year — but an electrician earns anywhere from $53,470 in Arkansas to $99,750 in Oregon. Here's the full picture, straight from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
National averages by trade
| Trade | Annual mean | Hourly | Highest state | Lowest state |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plumbers | $72,170 | $34.70 | OR ($98,450) | AR ($50,640) |
| Electricians | $71,490 | $34.37 | OR ($99,750) | AR ($53,470) |
| Carpenters | $65,630 | $31.55 | HI ($87,480) | MS ($49,280) |
| HVAC technicians | $64,780 | $31.14 | DC ($84,920) | AR ($51,150) |
| Roofers | $58,140 | $27.95 | IL ($77,650) | MS ($45,280) |
| Painters | $55,420 | $26.64 | HI ($71,310) | SC ($42,050) |
| Construction laborers | $52,030 | $25.01 | HI ($71,520) | AL ($37,910) |
Every trade, every state
Annual mean wage. Click a column to sort.
| Alabama | $57,510 | $57,750 | $51,320 | $49,490 | $47,860 | $44,720 | $37,910 |
| Alaska | $90,040 | $90,460 | $80,150 | $80,460 | $68,450 | $64,220 | $59,270 |
| Arizona | $64,220 | $67,940 | $60,900 | $58,980 | $50,600 | $52,480 | $47,910 |
| Arkansas | $53,470 | $50,640 | $51,150 | $51,350 | $45,780 | $42,180 | $39,250 |
| California | $85,860 | $82,320 | $75,370 | $78,810 | $67,420 | $62,460 | $64,870 |
| Colorado | $66,310 | $69,090 | $71,330 | $66,190 | $56,170 | $56,370 | $49,830 |
| Connecticut | $77,390 | $75,400 | $73,590 | $68,680 | $68,490 | $63,500 | $59,250 |
| Delaware | $70,750 | $68,110 | $66,140 | $62,690 | $55,280 | $56,890 | $48,020 |
| District of Columbia | $88,860 | $91,200 | $84,920 | $65,990 | $68,740 | $62,240 | $52,220 |
| Florida | $57,660 | $56,030 | $57,310 | $52,560 | $48,870 | $48,440 | $44,550 |
| Georgia | $61,090 | $58,220 | $57,080 | $50,290 | $48,440 | $50,550 | $41,530 |
| Hawaii | $92,870 | $82,810 | $67,070 | $87,480 | $61,430 | $71,310 | $71,520 |
| Idaho | $66,600 | $58,450 | $60,010 | $56,080 | $54,300 | $45,490 | $48,630 |
| Illinois | $92,230 | $93,400 | $77,570 | $80,320 | $77,650 | $69,630 | $67,620 |
| Indiana | $70,820 | $75,660 | $65,110 | $64,950 | $59,810 | $53,000 | $54,060 |
| Iowa | $63,190 | $70,030 | $63,120 | $57,640 | $52,070 | $52,070 | $51,580 |
| Kansas | $69,200 | $71,410 | $61,470 | $59,460 | $53,370 | $45,450 | $45,580 |
| Kentucky | $61,410 | $68,870 | $58,870 | $54,820 | $50,680 | $51,420 | $45,840 |
| Louisiana | $62,350 | $62,620 | $56,880 | $51,600 | $52,790 | $46,030 | $42,250 |
| Maine | $77,250 | $66,570 | $65,300 | $63,300 | $53,700 | $60,230 | $47,800 |
| Maryland | $75,450 | $73,510 | $73,820 | $69,040 | $61,640 | $55,650 | $48,330 |
| Massachusetts | $81,560 | $90,410 | $77,760 | $79,680 | $72,990 | $64,080 | $70,830 |
| Michigan | $73,840 | $77,250 | $64,490 | $62,140 | $61,450 | $55,920 | $53,130 |
| Minnesota | $80,830 | $86,700 | $73,990 | $70,320 | $72,920 | $58,170 | $64,740 |
| Mississippi | $58,000 | $56,690 | $53,020 | $49,280 | $45,280 | $46,450 | $40,310 |
| Missouri | $72,310 | $75,010 | $62,410 | $65,000 | $56,320 | $59,450 | $60,850 |
| Montana | $71,930 | $78,190 | $62,260 | $59,640 | $57,010 | $54,700 | $51,580 |
| Nebraska | $63,960 | $65,710 | $61,050 | $54,960 | $47,930 | $46,590 | $48,350 |
| Nevada | $75,710 | $71,510 | $63,350 | $69,250 | $57,460 | $59,610 | $54,030 |
| New Hampshire | $65,780 | $66,230 | $71,490 | $64,100 | $63,820 | $52,730 | $51,730 |
| New Jersey | $86,700 | $92,590 | $77,580 | $71,990 | $74,380 | $61,000 | $70,400 |
| New Mexico | $59,620 | $61,790 | $55,330 | $57,430 | $47,980 | $49,380 | $41,450 |
| New York | $84,860 | $83,790 | $74,760 | $75,970 | $69,350 | $68,070 | $62,180 |
| North Carolina | $56,850 | $56,720 | $57,400 | $50,510 | $50,030 | $44,900 | $45,250 |
| North Dakota | $70,460 | $66,160 | $70,010 | $57,980 | $60,540 | $55,960 | $53,150 |
| Ohio | $68,840 | $69,700 | $66,000 | $62,590 | $55,670 | $54,510 | $58,300 |
| Oklahoma | $63,410 | $58,970 | $57,640 | $49,610 | $49,120 | $45,450 | $43,310 |
| Oregon | $99,750 | $98,450 | $68,430 | $70,880 | $61,510 | $53,570 | $55,710 |
| Pennsylvania | $75,770 | $77,050 | $64,880 | $63,220 | $56,470 | $54,230 | $54,330 |
| Rhode Island | $74,150 | $81,610 | $69,780 | $64,320 | $63,580 | $48,150 | $61,780 |
| South Carolina | $59,030 | $55,890 | $56,460 | $55,350 | $50,180 | $42,050 | $45,470 |
| South Dakota | $61,980 | $55,530 | $61,100 | $51,330 | $46,980 | $47,710 | $44,310 |
| Tennessee | $63,540 | $60,500 | $57,810 | $53,990 | $46,740 | $44,590 | $45,970 |
| Texas | $59,280 | $60,780 | $59,130 | $50,990 | $47,200 | $46,020 | $42,910 |
| Utah | $65,290 | $64,210 | $60,000 | $55,360 | $51,580 | $47,690 | $48,410 |
| Vermont | $73,360 | $68,980 | $67,070 | $62,000 | $56,330 | $54,890 | $51,000 |
| Virginia | $67,850 | $60,650 | $61,190 | $55,390 | $51,520 | $49,110 | $43,670 |
| Washington | $94,470 | $88,800 | $78,860 | $79,170 | $68,870 | $60,910 | $61,320 |
| West Virginia | $67,840 | $58,780 | $51,700 | $50,540 | $51,080 | $44,770 | $45,550 |
| Wisconsin | $73,810 | $84,720 | $67,410 | $65,300 | $58,060 | $54,170 | $57,960 |
| Wyoming | $74,860 | $61,890 | $55,760 | $59,350 | $49,680 | $47,620 | $45,420 |
Why the trades pay differently
The spread tracks licensing and skill. Plumbers and electricians sit at the top — both are licensed trades with long apprenticeships and code responsibility. Carpenters and HVAC technicians land in the middle, skilled but with more varied entry paths. Roofers, painters, and laborers earn less on average, with shorter training ramps. When a quote leans on a high-wage trade — rewiring a house, repiping — that's reflected in the price.
Geography is the bigger lever
Where you live moves trade pay more than the trade itself. Across all construction trades, the mean wage runs from $48,650 in the cheapest state to $84,200 in the priciest, versus a $65,360 national average — which is exactly why the same project costs more in some states. See labor cost by state and your local ranges on the cost-by-state guides.
Use this data
All 50 states, free to republish or chart with a link back. Cite it as:
Project Cost Range, "Construction Trade Wages by State (2026)," projectcostrange.com (2026-06-26), from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS data.
Download: trade wages by state (CSV). Pairs with the 2026 Construction Cost Report.
Source
Wages are the annual mean for each trade (SOC 47-2152, 47-2111, 47-2031, 49-9021, 47-2181, 47-2141, 47-2061) by state from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS, 2025 release. Hourly figures are the annual mean ÷ 2,080 hours. See our methodology. Data pulled 2026-06-26.