How Much Does a Carpenter Make? (2024)
Construction · SOC Code 47-2031 · 4-year apprenticeship
The average carpenter earns $61,080 per year ($29/hour) as of 2024, according to BLS data. Yearly income ranges from $47,670 to $80,950 depending on city, with entry-level workers earning about $51,310 and top earners making $133,040+.
Yes — top-decile carpenters clear $100K in 9 of 30 metros
The 90th-percentile carpenter in San Francisco, CA earns $133,040 per year ($64/hour). Reaching that tier typically takes journeyman-to-master progression plus union membership, specialization, or running a small contracting business. Median carpenter pay nationally is $61,080 — the $100K mark is the high-earner ceiling, not the middle.
National Salary Range
Carpenter salaries range from $47,670 to $80,950 median across cities, depending on location, union membership, and experience level.
Carpenter Salary by City
| City | Median | Range (10th-90th) | COL-Adjusted | Grade | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Francisco, CA | $80,950 | $51,310 – $133,040 | $42,605 | D | 14,360 |
| Seattle, WA | $76,760 | $52,870 – $116,660 | $51,517 | D | 15,210 |
| Chicago, IL | $76,510 | $41,090 – $120,970 | $71,505 | C | 19,460 |
| Minneapolis, MN | $75,710 | $48,600 – $97,100 | $71,425 | C | 10,040 |
| Los Angeles, CA | $73,840 | $45,790 – $117,940 | $44,482 | D | 31,350 |
| Boston, MA | $73,800 | $47,820 – $121,940 | $48,553 | D | 13,030 |
| New York, NY | $69,680 | $44,200 – $125,280 | $37,262 | D | 37,690 |
| Portland, OR | $65,810 | $43,400 – $104,330 | $50,623 | D | 10,290 |
| St. Louis, MO | $65,090 | $42,130 – $96,510 | $72,322 | C | 9,500 |
| Detroit, MI | $65,060 | $45,330 – $82,560 | $73,101 | C | 9,000 |
| Philadelphia, PA | $62,350 | $42,740 – $106,850 | $54,217 | D | 13,430 |
| Milwaukee, WI | $62,260 | $47,340 – $91,310 | $64,854 | C | 3,680 |
| Indianapolis, IN | $61,870 | $44,610 – $82,380 | $67,989 | C | 4,790 |
| Columbus, OH | $61,490 | $46,560 – $77,800 | $66,118 | C | 3,110 |
| Denver, CO | $61,470 | $41,750 – $75,600 | $48,023 | D | 7,560 |
| Las Vegas, NV | $61,470 | $40,330 – $103,910 | $59,106 | C | 9,750 |
| Kansas City, MO | $61,040 | $41,600 – $94,070 | $64,936 | C | 4,630 |
| Pittsburgh, PA | $59,650 | $44,080 – $91,240 | $64,837 | C | 5,730 |
| Salt Lake City, UT | $59,410 | $40,670 – $74,450 | $57,125 | C | 5,690 |
| Phoenix, AZ | $59,030 | $38,800 – $79,740 | $57,311 | C | 14,480 |
| Nashville, TN | $53,730 | $37,320 – $64,820 | $52,165 | D | 3,250 |
| Atlanta, GA | $51,390 | $34,390 – $63,330 | $48,481 | D | 6,590 |
| New Orleans, LA | $51,130 | $37,270 – $67,750 | $53,821 | D | 1,660 |
| Charlotte, NC | $50,810 | $37,220 – $71,270 | $51,847 | D | 3,310 |
| Raleigh, NC | $49,520 | $24,490 – $65,620 | $49,520 | D | 2,410 |
| Tampa, FL | $49,170 | $36,310 – $68,880 | $48,683 | D | 5,370 |
| Houston, TX | $48,910 | $38,950 – $62,800 | $50,948 | D | 9,520 |
| Dallas, TX | $48,420 | $35,940 – $62,850 | $47,471 | D | 9,840 |
| Miami, FL | $48,400 | $38,080 – $68,040 | $39,672 | D | 12,230 |
| San Antonio, TX | $47,670 | $36,240 – $59,620 | $52,967 | D | 2,270 |
About Carpenter Pay
Carpenters earn a national median salary of $61,080 based on 2024 BLS occupational wage data. The highest-paying city for this trade is San Francisco at $80,950 median, while San Antonio offers the lowest at $47,670.
Becoming a carpenter typically requires a 4-year apprenticeship program. Entry-level workers (10th percentile) can expect around $51,310, while master-level tradespeople (90th percentile) earn $133,040 or more. With 2% wage growth over the past 5 years, this trade is growing at a steady pace.
See how this compares to other trades on our highest paying trades ranking, or browse the best cities for trade workers.
Thinking about becoming a carpenter?
Step-by-step path: 4-year apprenticeship, certifications, state licensing, and apprentice-to-master pay timeline.
Related Construction Trades
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes — top-decile carpenters clear $100K in 9 of the 30 metros tracked. The 90th-percentile carpenter in San Francisco earns $133,040, well above six figures. Reaching that tier typically takes journeyman-to-master progression, plus union membership, specialization (industrial, commercial, or licensed-master tier), or running a small contracting business.
Realistically, no — even the 90th-percentile carpenter in the highest-paying metro (San Francisco) tops out at $133,040, below $200K. National median carpenter pay is $61,080. Outliers — overtime-heavy industrial work, union foremen, or contractor-owners — can reach those numbers, but they sit outside what the BLS wage survey captures for typical W-2 employment.
Carpenters earn a national median of $61,080 per 2024 BLS OEWS data, with the 90th percentile reaching $133,040 in San Francisco. Specific pay depends on city, certifications, union status, and specialization — see the per-city table above for any metro you're targeting.
Yes — top-decile carpenters clear $100K in 9 of the 30 metros tracked. The 90th-percentile carpenter in San Francisco earns $133,040, well above six figures. Reaching that tier typically takes journeyman-to-master progression, plus union membership, specialization (industrial, commercial, or licensed-master tier), or running a small contracting business.
The average carpenter salary is $61,080 per year ($29/hour) based on 2024 BLS OEWS data. Average yearly income ranges from $47,670 to $80,950 depending on city, experience, and union status.
Carpenters earn an average hourly wage of $29/hour based on a 2,080-hour work year. Entry-level (10th percentile) hourly pay is about $25/hour, while top earners (90th percentile) make $64/hour or more.
San Francisco offers the highest median pay for carpenters at $80,950. However, cost of living matters, the COL-adjusted pay may tell a different story. Check our city-by-city breakdown above.
With a Trade Pay Score of C and 2% wage growth over 5 years, carpenter offers steady career prospects. There are approximately 299,230 jobs nationwide across 30 metro areas.
Becoming a carpenter typically requires a 4-year apprenticeship program combining on-the-job training with classroom instruction. Entry-level pay starts around $51,310 (10th percentile).
Wage data from BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) 2024. Trade Pay Scores are a composite of median wage vs. metro income, wage growth, job demand, and COL-adjusted pay.
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.
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.