Updated May 2026 · BLS OEWS 2024
Electrical Power-Line Tech Salary in Raleigh
2024 BLS OEWS Data · Electrical · COL Index: 100
Electrical Power-Line Techs in Raleigh, NC earn a median annual wage of $76,420 per 2024 BLS OEWS data, with the 10th percentile at $51,130 and the 90th at $106,030. After cost of living, that translates to $76,420 in U.S.-average purchasing power. Trade Pay Score: B (75/100).
What Electrical Power-Line Techs Take Home in Raleigh
The $54,900 spread between entry-level and top-decile electrical power-line techs in Raleigh is around 72% 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.
Raleigh's cost-of-living index of 100 is within a few points of the U.S. average, so the $76,420 median for electrical power-line techs here translates almost directly into real purchasing power — roughly $76,420 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 75 (B), electrical power-line techs in Raleigh land in the strong second tier. Pay, growth, and purchasing power are all solid but one factor — usually wage growth or cost-of-living-adjusted real pay — keeps the score below the A threshold. For most workers, B-graded combinations are perfectly reasonable career choices.
Salary Distribution
Percentile Breakdown
| Level | Salary | COL-Adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| 10th Percentile (Apprentice / Entry) | $51,130 | $51,130 |
| 25th Percentile (Early Career) | $61,670 | $61,670 |
| 50th Percentile (Journeyman / Median) | $76,420 | $76,420 |
| 75th Percentile (Experienced) | $101,340 | $101,340 |
| 90th Percentile (Master / Foreman) | $106,030 | $106,030 |
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 electrical power-line techs, typical entry-level requirements, on-the-job training expectations — comes from the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook at bls.gov/ooh. Apprenticeship programs in Raleigh are listed at apprenticeship.gov. All three are public-domain federal data sources.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does a Electrical Power-Line Tech make in Raleigh?
Per 2024 BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics data, the median electrical power-line tech salary in Raleigh, NC is $76,420. The 10th percentile is $51,130 (typical for entry-level or apprentice-tier positions); the 90th percentile reaches $106,030 (master, foreman, or specialty roles).
How does Raleigh pay compare for Electrical Power-Line Techs?
With a Trade Pay Score of 75/100 and a grade of B, the Raleigh-Electrical Power-Line Tech pairing is a strong combination but with one factor (usually growth or cost-of-living-adjusted real pay) holding it back from an A grade.
What is the apprenticeship path for Electrical Power-Line Techs in Raleigh?
Electrical Power-Line Techs typically complete a 4-year registered apprenticeship before reaching journeyman pay, starting around the 10th percentile ($51,130) and progressing toward the median. Registered apprenticeship programs in the area are listed at https://www.apprenticeship.gov/.
How does cost of living affect Electrical Power-Line Tech pay in Raleigh?
Raleigh has a cost-of-living index of 100. The median electrical power-line tech salary of $76,420 translates to $76,420 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.
Other High-Paying Trades in Raleigh
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$76,420 median · Grade B
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Electrical Power-Line Techs in Raleigh, NC earn a median annual wage of $76,420 per 2024 BLS OEWS data, with the 10th percentile at $51,130 and the 90th at $106,030. After cost of living, that translates to $76,420 in U.S.-average purchasing power. Trade Pay Score: B (75/100).
The Electrical Power-Line Techs in Raleigh, NC record above pulls directly from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey. What follows is the per-entity context — how Electrical Power-Line Techs in Raleigh, NC 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 Electrical Power-Line Techs in Raleigh, NC 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.