Updated May 2026 · BLS OEWS 2024
Power Line Installer Salary in Boston
2024 BLS OEWS Data · Electrical · COL Index: 152
Power Line Installers in Boston, MA earn a median annual wage of $115,430 per 2024 BLS OEWS data, with the 10th percentile at $80,580 and the 90th at $124,760. After cost of living, that translates to $75,941 in U.S.-average purchasing power. Trade Pay Score: B (75/100).
What Power Line Installers Take Home in Boston
The $44,180 spread between entry-level and top-decile power line installers in Boston is relatively narrow — about 38% of the median. That tight band usually signals a trade where pay scales primarily with experience rather than employer or specialization. New entrants can expect to climb steadily toward median pay over their first 5-10 years.
Boston's cost-of-living index of 152 is well above the U.S. average — meaning a power line installer earning $115,430 here brings home roughly $75,941 in U.S.-average purchasing power. That gap between nominal and real pay is one of the largest in the country and reflects expensive housing, transportation, and services. Workers should weigh whether the headline pay actually clears the cost-of-living premium.
With a Trade Pay Score of 75 (B), power line installers in Boston 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) | $80,580 | $53,013 |
| 25th Percentile (Early Career) | $99,840 | $65,684 |
| 50th Percentile (Journeyman / Median) | $115,430 | $75,941 |
| 75th Percentile (Experienced) | $123,560 | $81,289 |
| 90th Percentile (Master / Foreman) | $124,760 | $82,079 |
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 power line installers, typical entry-level requirements, on-the-job training expectations — comes from the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook at bls.gov/ooh. Apprenticeship programs in Boston are listed at apprenticeship.gov. All three are public-domain federal data sources.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does a Power Line Installer make in Boston?
Per 2024 BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics data, the median power line installer salary in Boston, MA is $115,430. The 10th percentile is $80,580 (typical for entry-level or apprentice-tier positions); the 90th percentile reaches $124,760 (master, foreman, or specialty roles).
How does Boston pay compare for Power Line Installers?
With a Trade Pay Score of 75/100 and a grade of B, the Boston-Power Line Installer 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 Power Line Installers in Boston?
Power Line Installers typically complete a 4-year registered apprenticeship before reaching journeyman pay, starting around the 10th percentile ($80,580) and progressing toward the median. Registered apprenticeship programs in the area are listed at https://www.apprenticeship.gov/.
How does cost of living affect Power Line Installer pay in Boston?
Boston has a cost-of-living index of 152. The median power line installer salary of $115,430 translates to $75,941 in U.S.-average purchasing power — a downward adjustment because the metro is more 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.
Power Line Installers in Boston, MA earn a median annual wage of $115,430 per 2024 BLS OEWS data, with the 10th percentile at $80,580 and the 90th at $124,760. After cost of living, that translates to $75,941 in U.S.-average purchasing power. Trade Pay Score: B (75/100).
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.