Updated May 2026 · BLS OEWS 2024
Painter (Construction) Salary in Kansas City
2024 BLS OEWS Data · Construction · COL Index: 94
Painter (Construction)s in Kansas City, MO earn a median annual wage of $48,730 per 2024 BLS OEWS data, with the 10th percentile at $37,390 and the 90th at $79,470. After cost of living, that translates to $51,840 in U.S.-average purchasing power. Trade Pay Score: D (43/100).
What Painter (Construction)s Take Home in Kansas City
The $42,080 spread between entry-level and top-decile painter (construction)s in Kansas City is around 86% 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.
Kansas City's cost-of-living index of 94 sits below the U.S. average, so the $48,730 median wage for painter (construction)s here actually translates upward — to roughly $51,840 in U.S.-average purchasing power. Below-average rent, groceries, and services mean wages tend to go further here than nominal numbers suggest.
With a Trade Pay Score of 43 (D), 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) | $37,390 | $39,777 |
| 25th Percentile (Early Career) | $44,870 | $47,734 |
| 50th Percentile (Journeyman / Median) | $48,730 | $51,840 |
| 75th Percentile (Experienced) | $66,250 | $70,479 |
| 90th Percentile (Master / Foreman) | $79,470 | $84,543 |
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 painter (construction)s, typical entry-level requirements, on-the-job training expectations — comes from the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook at bls.gov/ooh. Apprenticeship programs in Kansas City are listed at apprenticeship.gov. All three are public-domain federal data sources.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does a Painter (Construction) make in Kansas City?
Per 2024 BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics data, the median painter (construction) salary in Kansas City, MO is $48,730. The 10th percentile is $37,390 (typical for entry-level or apprentice-tier positions); the 90th percentile reaches $79,470 (master, foreman, or specialty roles).
How does Kansas City pay compare for Painter (Construction)s?
With a Trade Pay Score of 43/100 and a grade of D, the Kansas City-Painter (Construction) 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 Painter (Construction)s in Kansas City?
Painter (Construction)s typically complete a 3-year registered apprenticeship before reaching journeyman pay, starting around the 10th percentile ($37,390) and progressing toward the median. Registered apprenticeship programs in the area are listed at https://www.apprenticeship.gov/.
How does cost of living affect Painter (Construction) pay in Kansas City?
Kansas City has a cost-of-living index of 94. The median painter (construction) salary of $48,730 translates to $51,840 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 Kansas City
$121,960 median · Grade B
$106,490 median · Grade B
$100,130 median · Grade B
$100,130 median · Grade B
$82,950 median · Grade D
$81,500 median · Grade C
Painter (Construction)s in Kansas City, MO earn a median annual wage of $48,730 per 2024 BLS OEWS data, with the 10th percentile at $37,390 and the 90th at $79,470. After cost of living, that translates to $51,840 in U.S.-average purchasing power. Trade Pay Score: D (43/100).
The Painter (Construction)s in Kansas City, MO record above pulls directly from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey. What follows is the per-entity context — how Painter (Construction)s in Kansas City, MO sits in the broader U.S. skilled-trade wage data distribution and which underlying factors drive the headline numbers.
Every number on this page links back to the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey; the methodology page describes the inputs, refresh cadence, and known limitations of the underlying data product.
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 Painter (Construction)s in Kansas City, MO 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.