Updated May 2026 · BLS OEWS 2024
Plumber vs Construction Manager
Plumbers earn a national median of $69,782 versus $114,957 for Construction Managers, a gap of $45,175 per 2024 BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. Plumbers have posted +6% 5-year wage growth versus +5% for Construction Managers.
How These Trades Stack Up
Construction Managers out-earn Plumbers on national median by $45,175 — $114,957 versus $69,782, or about 65% more. That gap reflects differences in apprenticeship length, certification requirements, industry concentration, and union footprint between the two trades.
Both trades have posted comparable 5-year wage growth — Plumbers at +6% versus Construction Managers at +5%. That suggests both occupations sit in similar parts of the demand cycle, with neither pulling ahead structurally.
Construction Managers typically complete a 0-year apprenticeship while Plumbers 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.
Plumber
Plumbing · 4yr apprenticeship
Construction Manager
Management · 0yr apprenticeship
City-by-City Comparison
| City | Plumber | Construction Manager | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Portland, OR | $100,110 | $136,970 | -$36,860 |
| Chicago, IL | $98,890 | $118,830 | -$19,940 |
| Minneapolis, MN | $97,020 | $120,250 | -$23,230 |
| Seattle, WA | $87,160 | $138,970 | -$51,810 |
| Boston, MA | $83,640 | $156,590 | -$72,950 |
| Milwaukee, WI | $82,080 | $111,300 | -$29,220 |
| Detroit, MI | $81,480 | $108,560 | -$27,080 |
| New York, NY | $79,420 | $138,000 | -$58,580 |
| St. Louis, MO | $73,060 | $104,310 | -$31,250 |
| Kansas City, MO | $72,600 | $106,490 | -$33,890 |
| Philadelphia, PA | $72,580 | $123,460 | -$50,880 |
| San Francisco, CA | $71,700 | $160,870 | -$89,170 |
| Pittsburgh, PA | $66,930 | $102,330 | -$35,400 |
| Salt Lake City, UT | $66,090 | $102,230 | -$36,140 |
| Los Angeles, CA | $65,110 | $128,730 | -$63,620 |
| New Orleans, LA | $64,340 | $108,100 | -$43,760 |
| Denver, CO | $64,300 | $124,850 | -$60,550 |
| Indianapolis, IN | $63,780 | $102,720 | -$38,940 |
| Columbus, OH | $63,600 | $101,380 | -$37,780 |
| Phoenix, AZ | $62,680 | $111,550 | -$48,870 |
| Dallas, TX | $60,370 | $100,760 | -$40,390 |
| Houston, TX | $60,230 | $101,850 | -$41,620 |
| Nashville, TN | $59,870 | $106,050 | -$46,180 |
| Las Vegas, NV | $59,640 | $103,420 | -$43,780 |
| Atlanta, GA | $58,690 | $104,280 | -$45,590 |
| San Antonio, TX | $58,530 | $97,010 | -$38,480 |
| Miami, FL | $56,170 | $110,810 | -$54,640 |
| Raleigh, NC | $55,560 | $111,660 | -$56,100 |
| Charlotte, NC | $55,550 | $105,580 | -$50,030 |
| Tampa, FL | $52,280 | $100,810 | -$48,530 |
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 Plumbers or Construction Managers make more money?
Construction Managers earn more on national median — $114,957 versus $69,782, a gap of $45,175 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?
Plumbers have posted faster wage growth at +6% versus +5% for Construction Managers. Sustained gaps in growth often compound meaningfully over a 20-30 year career.
How long is the apprenticeship for each trade?
Plumbers typically complete a 4-year registered apprenticeship. Construction Managers typically do not require a formal apprenticeship — workers learn on the job over several years. Programs are listed at https://www.apprenticeship.gov/.
Which trade has better employment depth?
Plumbers have 189,520 workers employed nationally; Construction Managers have 160,280. 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 Plumber and Construction Manager 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/.
Plumbers earn a national median of $69,782 versus $114,957 for Construction Managers, a gap of $45,175 per 2024 BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. Plumbers have posted +6% 5-year wage growth versus +5% for Construction Managers.
The side-by-side above pulls the the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey data for both entity A and entity B. What follows is the interpretation — which specific axes carry the most weight for entity A versus entity B, 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 entity A and entity B detail pages for the underlying breakdown. A pairwise comparison answers the relative question; the per-entity pages answer the absolute question.