Updated May 2026 · BLS OEWS 2024
Plumber vs Ironworker
Plumbers earn a national median of $69,782 versus $70,146 for Ironworkers, a gap of $364 per 2024 BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. Plumbers have posted +6% 5-year wage growth versus +4% for Ironworkers.
How These Trades Stack Up
Plumber and Ironworker pay roughly the same on national median — $69,782 versus $70,146, a gap of less than $364. For most workers, the choice between the two trades will hinge on apprenticeship length, work environment, and personal interest rather than pay.
Plumbers have grown faster — +6% over five years versus +4% for Ironworkers. 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.
Both trades follow a 4-year apprenticeship pathway — paid on-the-job training combined with classroom instruction, registered through the U.S. Department of Labor at https://www.apprenticeship.gov/. Apprentice pay typically scales from roughly 40% of journeyman wage in year one to 95% by the final year.
Plumber
Plumbing · 4yr apprenticeship
Ironworker
Structural · 4yr apprenticeship
City-by-City Comparison
| City | Plumber | Ironworker | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Portland, OR | $100,110 | $93,280 | +$6,830 |
| Chicago, IL | $98,890 | $93,190 | +$5,700 |
| Seattle, WA | $87,160 | $117,110 | -$29,950 |
| Milwaukee, WI | $82,080 | $95,160 | -$13,080 |
| New York, NY | $79,420 | $92,980 | -$13,560 |
| Philadelphia, PA | $72,580 | $63,630 | +$8,950 |
| San Francisco, CA | $71,700 | $58,700 | +$13,000 |
| Salt Lake City, UT | $66,090 | $53,290 | +$12,800 |
| Los Angeles, CA | $65,110 | $64,480 | +$630 |
| Denver, CO | $64,300 | $58,710 | +$5,590 |
| Indianapolis, IN | $63,780 | $62,980 | +$800 |
| Phoenix, AZ | $62,680 | $67,010 | -$4,330 |
| Dallas, TX | $60,370 | $49,300 | +$11,070 |
| Houston, TX | $60,230 | $50,610 | +$9,620 |
| Nashville, TN | $59,870 | $85,340 | -$25,470 |
| Las Vegas, NV | $59,640 | $99,570 | -$39,930 |
| Atlanta, GA | $58,690 | $48,340 | +$10,350 |
| San Antonio, TX | $58,530 | $48,410 | +$10,120 |
| Miami, FL | $56,170 | $45,610 | +$10,560 |
| Charlotte, NC | $55,550 | $55,220 | +$330 |
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 Ironworkers make more money?
Ironworkers earn more on national median — $70,146 versus $69,782, a gap of $364 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 +4% for Ironworkers. 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. Ironworkers typically complete a 4-year registered apprenticeship. Programs are listed at https://www.apprenticeship.gov/.
Which trade has better employment depth?
Plumbers have 189,520 workers employed nationally; Ironworkers have 5,830. 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 Ironworker 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 $70,146 for Ironworkers, a gap of $364 per 2024 BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. Plumbers have posted +6% 5-year wage growth versus +4% for Ironworkers.
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.