Updated May 2026 · BLS OEWS 2024
Highest Paying Trades in Houston
Skilled-trade workers in Houston, TX earn an average median wage of $58,026 across 45 tracked trades, per 2024 BLS OEWS data. With a cost-of-living index of 96, that translates to roughly $60,444 in U.S.-average purchasing power. The top-paying trade in the metro is Construction Manager at $101,850.
Cost of Living and Real Pay in Houston
Houston's cost-of-living index of 96 is essentially at the U.S. average. Nominal trade wages here are a reasonable proxy for real purchasing power — what you see is what you take home, with no significant adjustment needed up or down for COL. That makes Houston a useful baseline for comparing trade pay across the country.
The single highest-paying trade in Houston is Construction Manager, with a median wage of $101,850 per BLS OEWS data. Industrial Electrician ranks second at $83,360 — a gap of $18,490 between #1 and #2. Wider gaps usually signal a specialty trade with steep certification or experience requirements; narrower gaps indicate broad-based wage strength across multiple skilled occupations in the metro.
Houston's average Trade Pay Score across all tracked trades is 58, a middle-of-the-pack C grade. Some trades in the metro deliver strong real pay; others are dragged down by either weak nominal wages or cost-of-living offsets. Use the table below to identify the trades where Houston compares favorably and the ones where workers may earn more elsewhere.
Trade Salaries in Houston
| Trade | Category | Median | Range (10th-90th) | Grade | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Construction Manager | Management | $101,850 | $66,130 – $170,400 | B | 15,240 |
| Industrial Electrician | Electrical | $83,360 | $50,600 – $116,270 | B | 3,530 |
| Aircraft Mechanic | Automotive | $80,850 | $45,930 – $127,920 | C | 3,060 |
| Power Line Installer | Electrical | $80,480 | $50,530 – $108,470 | B | 3,240 |
| Electrical Power-Line Tech | Electrical | $80,480 | $50,530 – $108,470 | B | 3,240 |
| Crane Operator | Heavy Equipment | $75,450 | $38,890 – $97,150 | C | 2,390 |
| Pile Driver Operator | Heavy Equipment | $67,980 | $57,600 – $72,790 | C | 150 |
| Millwright | Industrial | $67,760 | $44,140 – $120,190 | C | 800 |
| Boilermaker | Industrial | $64,310 | $56,400 – $85,470 | D | 1,120 |
| Industrial Machinery Mechanic | Industrial | $63,180 | $44,440 – $102,720 | B | 18,470 |
| Building Inspector | Management | $62,990 | $42,480 – $102,820 | C | 4,490 |
| Wind Turbine Technician | Energy | $61,800 | $49,760 – $74,930 | A | 1,600 |
| Plumber | Plumbing | $60,230 | $38,080 – $81,980 | C | 11,150 |
| Pipefitter | Plumbing | $60,230 | $38,080 – $81,980 | C | 11,150 |
| Fire Sprinkler Fitter | Plumbing | $60,230 | $38,080 – $81,980 | C | 11,150 |
| Steamfitter | Plumbing | $60,230 | $38,080 – $81,980 | C | 11,150 |
| Diesel Mechanic | Automotive | $60,180 | $40,700 – $89,730 | C | 6,400 |
| Electrician | Electrical | $59,180 | $37,710 – $79,430 | B | 17,860 |
| Machinist | Metalwork | $58,630 | $37,790 – $80,510 | D | 7,550 |
| HVAC Technician | HVAC | $57,910 | $38,010 – $84,390 | C | 7,000 |
| Refrigeration Mechanic | HVAC | $57,910 | $38,010 – $84,390 | C | 7,000 |
| Telecommunications Tech | Electrical | $57,740 | $36,070 – $81,010 | C | 3,710 |
| Environmental Engineering Tech | Specialty | $56,930 | $49,630 – $73,800 | C | 0 |
| Sheet Metal Worker | Metalwork | $56,020 | $37,350 – $80,680 | C | 2,810 |
| Welder | Welding | $53,810 | $36,700 – $79,410 | C | 17,750 |
| Structural Welder | Welding | $53,810 | $36,700 – $79,410 | C | 17,750 |
| Underwater Welder | Welding | $53,810 | $36,700 – $79,410 | C | 17,750 |
| Drywall Installer | Construction | $51,090 | $37,370 – $61,070 | D | 1,580 |
| Auto Mechanic | Automotive | $50,740 | $33,700 – $92,610 | D | 14,520 |
| Ironworker | Structural | $50,610 | $36,460 – $64,960 | D | 1,330 |
| Heavy Equipment Operator | Heavy Equipment | $50,510 | $39,500 – $70,400 | C | 13,150 |
| Tool and Die Maker | Metalwork | $50,460 | $35,400 – $79,210 | D | 300 |
| Mason (Bricklayer) | Construction | $50,060 | $37,120 – $60,810 | D | 990 |
| Carpenter | Construction | $48,910 | $38,950 – $62,800 | D | 9,520 |
| Insulation Worker | Construction | $47,860 | $31,040 – $60,850 | D | 2,130 |
| Concrete Finisher | Construction | $47,150 | $36,300 – $60,120 | D | 6,180 |
| Glazier | Construction | $46,740 | $37,030 – $58,400 | D | 1,560 |
| Maintenance Mechanic | Industrial | $46,080 | $30,510 – $72,520 | D | 30,550 |
| Solar PV Installer | Electrical | $46,020 | $37,540 – $63,040 | B | 1,190 |
| Septic Tank Servicer | Plumbing | $45,480 | $36,950 – $62,510 | D | 460 |
| Painter (Construction) | Construction | $44,980 | $37,210 – $55,580 | D | 5,550 |
| Locksmith | Specialty | $44,970 | $30,420 – $59,700 | D | 230 |
| Roofer | Construction | $44,530 | $36,700 – $62,680 | D | 1,440 |
| Floor Layer | Construction | $44,010 | $35,360 – $56,000 | F | 410 |
| Tile Setter | Construction | $43,640 | $31,480 – $49,930 | F | 580 |
How These Numbers Are Calculated
Every wage figure on this page comes from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) program, published annually at bls.gov/oes. BLS surveys hundreds of thousands of employers per release; the resulting percentile wages (10th, 25th, 50th, 75th, 90th) are the gold standard for U.S. wage benchmarking. The Trade Pay Score combines raw median pay (30%), 5-year wage growth (25%), employment depth (25%), and cost-of-living-adjusted purchasing power (20%); read the full methodology.
Career outlook data — projected employment growth through 2032, typical entry-level requirements, on-the-job training expectations — comes from the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook at bls.gov/ooh. Apprenticeship programs in the Houston area are listed on the U.S. Department of Labor's apprenticeship.gov registry.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which trade pays the most in Houston?
Construction Manager is the highest-paying skilled trade in Houston, TX, with a median annual wage of $101,850. The 90th-percentile reading reaches $170,400, with apprentices and entry-level workers starting near $66,130. That spread reflects experience, certification, and union membership.
What is the average trade salary in Houston?
The average median wage across all 45 skilled trades tracked in Houston is $58,026. With a cost-of-living index of 96, that converts to $60,444 in U.S.-average purchasing power — an upward adjustment because the metro is less expensive than average.
Are skilled-trade jobs in Houston growing?
Five-year wage growth across Houston's tracked trades varies by occupation — energy and electrification trades have generally posted the strongest gains, while general construction labor has tracked closer to inflation. Detailed projected employment growth through 2032 for each trade is published in the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook at https://www.bls.gov/ooh/.
Where can I find apprenticeships in Houston?
Registered apprenticeship programs are listed on the U.S. Department of Labor's apprenticeship.gov site at https://www.apprenticeship.gov/. You can filter by city, state, and occupation. Most skilled trades require 3-5 years of registered apprenticeship before reaching journeyman pay; the per-trade pages on TradeWages list typical year-by-year apprentice pay as a percentage of journeyman scale.
How does pay in Houston compare to other metros?
Houston's average Trade Pay Score is 58/100, a mid-tier grade. The score combines nominal pay, 5-year wage growth, employment depth, and cost-of-living-adjusted purchasing power, so it captures both how much you earn and how far that income goes locally. Compare Houston against other metros on the best-cities-for-trades ranking page.
Skilled-trade workers in Houston, TX earn an average median wage of $58,026 across 45 tracked trades, per 2024 BLS OEWS data. With a cost-of-living index of 96, that translates to roughly $60,444 in U.S.-average purchasing power. The top-paying trade in the metro is Construction Manager at $101,850.
this entity is one of the data points covered by this site’s U.S. skilled-trade wage data dataset. The detail above comes directly from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey; the context that follows situates the headline numbers against the broader distribution across U.S. trades, cities, and states.
Every number on this page links back to the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey; the methodology page describes the inputs, refresh cadence, and known limitations of the underlying data product.
Practical use of this page is in combination with the comparison and ranking pages elsewhere on the site, which surface the same data for this entity’s peers within U.S. trades, cities, and states. A single-entity reading without peer context can be misleading when an entity is an outlier on one axis but typical on another.