Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2020

47-2152 Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters

Assemble, install, alter, and repair pipelines or pipe systems that carry water, steam, air, or other liquids or gases. May install heating and cooling equipment and mechanical control systems. Includes sprinkler fitters.

National estimates for Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters
Industry profile for Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters
Geographic profile for Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters

National estimates for Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters:

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters:

Employment (1)	Employment RSE (3)	Mean hourly wage	Mean annual wage (2)	Wage RSE (3)
417,440	1.2 %	$ 29.37	$ 61,100	0.6 %

Percentile wage estimates for Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters:

Percentile	10%	25%	50% (Median)	75%	90%
Hourly Wage	$ 16.09	$ 20.35	$ 27.08	$ 36.24	$ 47.59
Annual Wage (2)	$ 33,460	$ 42,330	$ 56,330	$ 75,370	$ 98,990

Industry profile for Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters:

Industries with the highest published employment and wages for Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters are provided. For a list of all industries with employment in Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters, see the Create Customized Tables function.

Industries with the highest levels of employment in Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Building Equipment Contractors	302,880	13.85	$ 29.43	$ 61,210
Utility System Construction	16,720	3.00	$ 28.71	$ 59,720
Nonresidential Building Construction	13,600	1.68	$ 31.56	$ 65,640
Local Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OEWS Designation)	9,900	0.18	$ 29.48	$ 61,320
Employment Services	7,090	0.22	$ 25.78	$ 53,630

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Building Equipment Contractors	302,880	13.85	$ 29.43	$ 61,210
Natural Gas Distribution	4,530	4.20	$ 34.16	$ 71,050
Ship and Boat Building	5,670	4.13	$ 26.11	$ 54,310
Pipeline Transportation of Natural Gas	1,050	3.40	$ 31.90	$ 66,350
Utility System Construction	16,720	3.00	$ 28.71	$ 59,720

Top paying industries for Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Rail Transportation	290	0.13	$ 40.14	$ 83,480
Electric Power Generation, Transmission and Distribution	1,250	0.33	$ 39.08	$ 81,290
Aerospace Product and Parts Manufacturing	430	0.08	$ 37.00	$ 76,970
Petroleum and Coal Products Manufacturing	560	0.51	$ 36.28	$ 75,470
Educational Support Services	60	0.03	$ 35.48	$ 73,800

Geographic profile for Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters:

States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters are provided. For a list of all areas with employment in Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters, see the Create Customized Tables function.

States with the highest employment level in Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
California	43,540	2.65	0.88	$ 33.21	$ 69,070
Texas	39,810	3.29	1.10	$ 24.44	$ 50,840
New York	26,310	3.03	1.01	$ 34.50	$ 71,770
Florida	25,610	3.03	1.01	$ 21.92	$ 45,590
Illinois	16,520	2.93	0.98	$ 42.25	$ 87,880

States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Louisiana	8,710	4.84	1.61	$ 27.95	$ 58,140
Montana	2,090	4.59	1.53	$ 27.26	$ 56,690
Colorado	10,460	4.06	1.35	$ 27.14	$ 56,460
Hawaii	2,270	3.95	1.32	$ 32.52	$ 67,640
Utah	5,840	3.92	1.31	$ 26.00	$ 54,070

Top paying states for Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Alaska	1,130	3.82	1.27	$ 42.38	$ 88,150
Illinois	16,520	2.93	0.98	$ 42.25	$ 87,880
Massachusetts	11,750	3.51	1.17	$ 38.88	$ 80,860
Minnesota	10,480	3.87	1.29	$ 36.58	$ 76,080
New Jersey	8,290	2.19	0.73	$ 36.46	$ 75,840

Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters:

Metropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA	25,650	2.90	0.97	$ 35.78	$ 74,420
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA	14,320	2.46	0.82	$ 29.04	$ 60,410
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI	12,560	2.88	0.96	$ 44.20	$ 91,940
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX	11,400	3.18	1.06	$ 24.37	$ 50,690
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX	9,540	3.21	1.07	$ 26.71	$ 55,560
Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH	8,490	3.26	1.09	$ 40.46	$ 84,160
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV	7,850	2.60	0.87	$ 27.93	$ 58,100
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ	7,360	3.49	1.16	$ 25.87	$ 53,810
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI	6,880	3.72	1.24	$ 39.45	$ 82,060
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD	6,710	2.49	0.83	$ 33.19	$ 69,030

Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters:

Metropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Bremerton-Silverdale, WA	1,070	12.32	4.11	$ 32.02	$ 66,600
Kokomo, IN	370	10.23	3.41	$ 35.26	$ 73,340
Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX	1,430	9.38	3.13	$ 29.70	$ 61,780
Baton Rouge, LA	3,230	8.68	2.89	$ 29.38	$ 61,100
Grand Junction, CO	490	8.36	2.78	$ 22.00	$ 45,750
Barnstable Town, MA	760	8.16	2.72	$ 31.45	$ 65,410
St. George, UT	550	8.04	2.68	$ 24.02	$ 49,960
Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC	1,700	7.62	2.54	$ 33.18	$ 69,020
Kennewick-Richland, WA	870	7.61	2.54	$ 37.28	$ 77,540
Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, VA-NC	5,380	7.48	2.49	$ 23.91	$ 49,730