Updated May 2026 · BLS OEWS 2024
Drywall Installer Salary in New Orleans
2024 BLS OEWS Data · Construction · COL Index: 95
Drywall Installers in New Orleans, LA earn a median annual wage of $34,890 per 2024 BLS OEWS data, with the 10th percentile at $28,150 and the 90th at $56,170. After cost of living, that translates to $36,726 in U.S.-average purchasing power. Trade Pay Score: F (32/100).
What Drywall Installers Take Home in New Orleans
The $28,020 spread between entry-level and top-decile drywall installers in New Orleans is around 80% of the median — a typical range for skilled trades. Workers can roughly double their entry pay through a combination of experience, certifications, union membership, and moving from helper to journeyman to foreman roles.
New Orleans's cost-of-living index of 95 is within a few points of the U.S. average, so the $34,890 median for drywall installers here translates almost directly into real purchasing power — roughly $36,726 in U.S.-average terms. What you see is what you take home, with no significant adjustment up or down.
With a Trade Pay Score of 32 (F), this trade-city pairing is below average. That typically reflects either weak nominal wages, sluggish 5-year wage growth, a high cost of living that hollows out real pay, or some combination. Workers should examine both the per-trade page (other cities for the same trade) and the per-city page (other trades in the same metro) to find a stronger fit.
Salary Distribution
Percentile Breakdown
| Level | Salary | COL-Adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| 10th Percentile (Apprentice / Entry) | $28,150 | $29,632 |
| 25th Percentile (Early Career) | $28,650 | $30,158 |
| 50th Percentile (Journeyman / Median) | $34,890 | $36,726 |
| 75th Percentile (Experienced) | $45,870 | $48,284 |
| 90th Percentile (Master / Foreman) | $56,170 | $59,126 |
How These Numbers Are Calculated
Every wage figure here comes from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) program at bls.gov/oes — a survey of about 1.2 million employers per release covering more than 800 occupations and every U.S. metropolitan statistical area. 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%) into a single 0-100 grade. Read the full methodology.
Career outlook detail — projected 2032 employment levels for drywall installers, typical entry-level requirements, on-the-job training expectations — comes from the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook at bls.gov/ooh. Apprenticeship programs in New Orleans are listed at apprenticeship.gov. All three are public-domain federal data sources.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does a Drywall Installer make in New Orleans?
Per 2024 BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics data, the median drywall installer salary in New Orleans, LA is $34,890. The 10th percentile is $28,150 (typical for entry-level or apprentice-tier positions); the 90th percentile reaches $56,170 (master, foreman, or specialty roles).
How does New Orleans pay compare for Drywall Installers?
With a Trade Pay Score of 32/100 and a grade of F, the New Orleans-Drywall Installer pairing is below average — workers should consider whether a different metro for the same trade might deliver a higher grade.
What is the apprenticeship path for Drywall Installers in New Orleans?
Drywall Installers typically complete a 3-year registered apprenticeship before reaching journeyman pay, starting around the 10th percentile ($28,150) and progressing toward the median. Registered apprenticeship programs in the area are listed at https://www.apprenticeship.gov/.
How does cost of living affect Drywall Installer pay in New Orleans?
New Orleans has a cost-of-living index of 95. The median drywall installer salary of $34,890 translates to $36,726 in U.S.-average purchasing power — an upward adjustment because the metro is less expensive than average.
Where does this salary data come from?
Every wage figure on this page is a real BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics median or percentile from the 2024 release at https://www.bls.gov/oes/, which surveys roughly 1.2 million U.S. employers per release. Career outlook context (projected employment growth through 2032) comes from the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook at https://www.bls.gov/ooh/. Both are public-domain U.S. government data sources.
Drywall Installers in New Orleans, LA earn a median annual wage of $34,890 per 2024 BLS OEWS data, with the 10th percentile at $28,150 and the 90th at $56,170. After cost of living, that translates to $36,726 in U.S.-average purchasing power. Trade Pay Score: F (32/100).
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.
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.