Updated May 2026 · BLS OEWS 2024
Power Line Installer vs Solar PV Installer
Power Line Installers earn a national median of $101,512 versus $53,971 for Solar PV Installers, a gap of $47,541 per 2024 BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. Power Line Installers have posted +7% 5-year wage growth versus +22% for Solar PV Installers.
How These Trades Stack Up
Power Line Installers out-earn Solar PV Installers on national median by $47,541 — $101,512 versus $53,971, or about 88% more. That gap reflects differences in apprenticeship length, certification requirements, industry concentration, and union footprint between the two trades.
Solar PV Installers have grown faster — +22% over five years versus +7% for Power Line Installers. Sustained growth gaps of this size can compound meaningfully over a 20-30 year career, so workers comparing the two trades should weigh growth alongside the headline median.
Solar PV Installers typically complete a 2-year apprenticeship while Power Line Installers require 4 years. The longer pathway usually translates into higher journeyman pay and stronger licensure protection, but it also delays full earnings; the shorter pathway delivers faster income at typically lower medians.
Power Line Installer
Electrical · 4yr apprenticeship
Solar PV Installer
Electrical · 2yr apprenticeship
City-by-City Comparison
| City | Power Line Installer | Solar PV Installer | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Francisco, CA | $128,470 | $70,390 | +$58,080 |
| Los Angeles, CA | $127,810 | $59,660 | +$68,150 |
| Portland, OR | $125,160 | $59,830 | +$65,330 |
| Las Vegas, NV | $120,260 | $66,070 | +$54,190 |
| New York, NY | $119,760 | $61,140 | +$58,620 |
| Phoenix, AZ | $117,990 | $51,540 | +$66,450 |
| Philadelphia, PA | $115,770 | $54,380 | +$61,390 |
| Indianapolis, IN | $105,660 | $38,650 | +$67,010 |
| Tampa, FL | $101,150 | $48,870 | +$52,280 |
| Kansas City, MO | $100,130 | $57,200 | +$42,930 |
| Denver, CO | $99,550 | $51,860 | +$47,690 |
| Miami, FL | $93,910 | $48,930 | +$44,980 |
| Houston, TX | $80,480 | $46,020 | +$34,460 |
| Dallas, TX | $77,860 | $41,050 | +$36,810 |
How These Numbers Are Calculated
All wage figures come from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (2024) release at bls.gov/oes. National medians are the BLS-published median wages for the trade's Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) code; metropolitan medians come from the same OEWS release at the metropolitan statistical area level. Five-year wage growth compares the current OEWS median to the same series five releases prior, expressed as a percent change. The Trade Pay Score weights raw pay (30%), wage growth (25%), employment depth (25%), and cost-of-living-adjusted purchasing power (20%) into a single 0-100 grade — read the full methodology.
Forward-looking employment projections through 2032 for both trades are published in the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook at bls.gov/ooh. Apprenticeship pathway detail comes from the U.S. Department of Labor's apprenticeship.gov registry. All three are public-domain federal data sources.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do Power Line Installers or Solar PV Installers make more money?
Power Line Installers earn more on national median — $101,512 versus $53,971, a gap of $47,541 per 2024 BLS OEWS data. The full BLS dataset is published at https://www.bls.gov/oes/.
Which trade has stronger 5-year wage growth?
Solar PV Installers have posted faster wage growth at +22% versus +7% for Power Line Installers. Sustained gaps in growth often compound meaningfully over a 20-30 year career.
How long is the apprenticeship for each trade?
Power Line Installers typically complete a 4-year registered apprenticeship. Solar PV Installers typically complete a 2-year registered apprenticeship. Programs are listed at https://www.apprenticeship.gov/.
Which trade has better employment depth?
Power Line Installers have 39,600 workers employed nationally; Solar PV Installers have 10,350. Larger employment bases generally translate into more job openings, easier mobility between employers, and lower volatility — useful when comparing the long-term resilience of two trade pathways.
Where can I find apprenticeships for either trade?
Registered apprenticeship programs for both Power Line Installer and Solar PV Installer are listed on the U.S. Department of Labor's apprenticeship.gov site at https://www.apprenticeship.gov/, which lets you filter by trade, state, and city. Projected employment growth through 2032 for each occupation is published in the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook at https://www.bls.gov/ooh/.
Power Line Installers earn a national median of $101,512 versus $53,971 for Solar PV Installers, a gap of $47,541 per 2024 BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. Power Line Installers have posted +7% 5-year wage growth versus +22% for Solar PV Installers.
The side-by-side above pulls the the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey data for both Power Line Installer and Solar PV Installer. What follows is the interpretation — which specific axes carry the most weight for Power Line Installer versus Solar PV Installer, and which differences are large enough to influence a real decision.
Practical use of the comparison: read the data above, then drill into the individual Power Line Installer and Solar PV Installer detail pages for the underlying breakdown. A pairwise comparison answers the relative question; the per-entity pages answer the absolute question.