Updated May 2026 · BLS OEWS 2024
Highest Paying Trades in Salt Lake City
Skilled-trade workers in Salt Lake City, UT earn an average median wage of $63,298 across 41 tracked trades, per 2024 BLS OEWS data. With a cost-of-living index of 104, that translates to roughly $60,863 in U.S.-average purchasing power. The top-paying trade in the metro is Elevator Mechanic at $104,150.
Cost of Living and Real Pay in Salt Lake City
Salt Lake City's cost-of-living index of 104 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 Salt Lake City a useful baseline for comparing trade pay across the country.
The single highest-paying trade in Salt Lake City is Elevator Mechanic, with a median wage of $104,150 per BLS OEWS data. Construction Manager ranks second at $102,230 — a gap of $1,920 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.
Salt Lake City's average Trade Pay Score across all tracked trades is 57, 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 Salt Lake City compares favorably and the ones where workers may earn more elsewhere.
Trade Salaries in Salt Lake City
| Trade | Category | Median | Range (10th-90th) | Grade | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elevator Mechanic | Specialty | $104,150 | $55,530 – $111,900 | B | 170 |
| Construction Manager | Management | $102,230 | $69,020 – $163,390 | B | 2,190 |
| Power Line Installer | Electrical | $96,150 | $45,910 – $115,210 | B | 330 |
| Electrical Power-Line Tech | Electrical | $96,150 | $45,910 – $115,210 | B | 330 |
| Crane Operator | Heavy Equipment | $78,360 | $63,320 – $95,420 | C | 280 |
| Aircraft Mechanic | Automotive | $73,850 | $52,150 – $136,990 | C | 920 |
| Building Inspector | Management | $73,730 | $47,050 – $100,180 | C | 550 |
| Industrial Machinery Mechanic | Industrial | $71,510 | $50,820 – $100,350 | B | 1,760 |
| Telecommunications Tech | Electrical | $69,100 | $46,060 – $90,170 | C | 1,110 |
| Plumber | Plumbing | $66,090 | $47,550 – $86,700 | C | 3,070 |
| Pipefitter | Plumbing | $66,090 | $47,550 – $86,700 | C | 3,070 |
| Fire Sprinkler Fitter | Plumbing | $66,090 | $47,550 – $86,700 | C | 3,070 |
| Steamfitter | Plumbing | $66,090 | $47,550 – $86,700 | C | 3,070 |
| Tool and Die Maker | Metalwork | $64,310 | $49,100 – $83,070 | D | 70 |
| Diesel Mechanic | Automotive | $64,170 | $47,760 – $93,410 | C | 1,550 |
| Millwright | Industrial | $63,990 | $48,260 – $78,580 | C | 150 |
| Electrician | Electrical | $63,430 | $39,130 – $82,690 | B | 5,210 |
| Sheet Metal Worker | Metalwork | $63,390 | $40,770 – $87,900 | C | 720 |
| Machinist | Metalwork | $61,040 | $41,450 – $79,640 | D | 1,250 |
| Heavy Equipment Operator | Heavy Equipment | $60,440 | $47,160 – $73,580 | C | 2,190 |
| Carpenter | Construction | $59,410 | $40,670 – $74,450 | C | 5,690 |
| Concrete Finisher | Construction | $59,280 | $45,780 – $66,620 | D | 2,100 |
| Welder | Welding | $58,930 | $42,570 – $78,460 | C | 1,370 |
| Structural Welder | Welding | $58,930 | $42,570 – $78,460 | C | 1,370 |
| Underwater Welder | Welding | $58,930 | $42,570 – $78,460 | C | 1,370 |
| HVAC Technician | HVAC | $57,110 | $35,490 – $82,830 | C | 2,620 |
| Refrigeration Mechanic | HVAC | $57,110 | $35,490 – $82,830 | C | 2,620 |
| Drywall Installer | Construction | $56,680 | $36,230 – $68,630 | D | 780 |
| Mason (Bricklayer) | Construction | $55,950 | $39,780 – $76,790 | D | 690 |
| Environmental Engineering Tech | Specialty | $55,950 | $38,370 – $87,930 | C | 40 |
| Ironworker | Structural | $53,290 | $43,900 – $66,130 | D | 150 |
| Septic Tank Servicer | Plumbing | $51,540 | $46,630 – $75,130 | D | 150 |
| Roofer | Construction | $50,980 | $34,700 – $81,600 | D | 1,450 |
| Glazier | Construction | $50,640 | $42,510 – $70,150 | D | 490 |
| Maintenance Mechanic | Industrial | $50,250 | $35,980 – $76,780 | D | 6,200 |
| Locksmith | Specialty | $49,910 | $16,500 – $72,530 | D | 70 |
| Tile Setter | Construction | $49,530 | $31,610 – $79,300 | D | 1,180 |
| Industrial Electrician | Electrical | $48,960 | $45,420 – $83,930 | C | 220 |
| Auto Mechanic | Automotive | $48,420 | $34,910 – $77,240 | D | 3,610 |
| Painter (Construction) | Construction | $47,310 | $37,830 – $58,760 | F | 1,360 |
| Floor Layer | Construction | $45,760 | $33,740 – $63,040 | F | 130 |
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 Salt Lake City area are listed on the U.S. Department of Labor's apprenticeship.gov registry.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which trade pays the most in Salt Lake City?
Elevator Mechanic is the highest-paying skilled trade in Salt Lake City, UT, with a median annual wage of $104,150. The 90th-percentile reading reaches $111,900, with apprentices and entry-level workers starting near $55,530. That spread reflects experience, certification, and union membership.
What is the average trade salary in Salt Lake City?
The average median wage across all 41 skilled trades tracked in Salt Lake City is $63,298. With a cost-of-living index of 104, that converts to $60,863 in U.S.-average purchasing power — a downward adjustment because the metro is more expensive than average.
Are skilled-trade jobs in Salt Lake City growing?
Five-year wage growth across Salt Lake City'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 Salt Lake City?
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 Salt Lake City compare to other metros?
Salt Lake City's average Trade Pay Score is 57/100, 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 Salt Lake City against other metros on the best-cities-for-trades ranking page.
Skilled-trade workers in Salt Lake City, UT earn an average median wage of $63,298 across 41 tracked trades, per 2024 BLS OEWS data. With a cost-of-living index of 104, that translates to roughly $60,863 in U.S.-average purchasing power. The top-paying trade in the metro is Elevator Mechanic at $104,150.
The this entity record above pulls directly from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey. What follows is the per-entity context — how this entity sits in the broader U.S. skilled-trade wage data distribution and which underlying factors drive the headline numbers.
The methodology behind every numeric value on this page is publicly documented on the the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey portal and described in detail on this site’s methodology page. Refresh cadence varies by underlying series; the page surfaces the as-of date for each number so readers can trace any figure back to the source release.
For readers using this page as a decision input, the related-entity pages elsewhere on the site provide the comparison set. The most useful comparison for this entity is typically a peer within U.S. trades, cities, and states with similar size, similar exposure, or similar geography — not the national-level summary alone.