Updated May 2026 · BLS OEWS 2024
Solar PV Installer vs Machinist
Solar PV Installers earn a national median of $53,971 versus $57,590 for Machinists, a gap of $3,619 per 2024 BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. Solar PV Installers have posted +22% 5-year wage growth versus +-1% for Machinists.
How These Trades Stack Up
Machinists out-earn Solar PV Installers on national median by $3,619 — $57,590 versus $53,971, or about 7% 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 +-1% for Machinists. 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 Machinists 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.
Solar PV Installer
Electrical · 2yr apprenticeship
Machinist
Metalwork · 4yr apprenticeship
City-by-City Comparison
| City | Solar PV Installer | Machinist | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Francisco, CA | $70,390 | $66,320 | +$4,070 |
| Las Vegas, NV | $66,070 | $52,920 | +$13,150 |
| New York, NY | $61,140 | $62,320 | -$1,180 |
| Portland, OR | $59,830 | $62,350 | -$2,520 |
| Los Angeles, CA | $59,660 | $50,610 | +$9,050 |
| Kansas City, MO | $57,200 | $54,380 | +$2,820 |
| Philadelphia, PA | $54,380 | $59,500 | -$5,120 |
| Denver, CO | $51,860 | $59,640 | -$7,780 |
| Phoenix, AZ | $51,540 | $59,240 | -$7,700 |
| Miami, FL | $48,930 | $58,640 | -$9,710 |
| Tampa, FL | $48,870 | $50,830 | -$1,960 |
| Houston, TX | $46,020 | $58,630 | -$12,610 |
| Dallas, TX | $41,050 | $57,400 | -$16,350 |
| Indianapolis, IN | $38,650 | $47,640 | -$8,990 |
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 Solar PV Installers or Machinists make more money?
Machinists earn more on national median — $57,590 versus $53,971, a gap of $3,619 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 +-1% for Machinists. Sustained gaps in growth often compound meaningfully over a 20-30 year career.
How long is the apprenticeship for each trade?
Solar PV Installers typically complete a 2-year registered apprenticeship. Machinists typically complete a 4-year registered apprenticeship. Programs are listed at https://www.apprenticeship.gov/.
Which trade has better employment depth?
Solar PV Installers have 10,350 workers employed nationally; Machinists have 113,790. 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 Solar PV Installer and Machinist 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/.
Solar PV Installers earn a national median of $53,971 versus $57,590 for Machinists, a gap of $3,619 per 2024 BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. Solar PV Installers have posted +22% 5-year wage growth versus +-1% for Machinists.
The side-by-side above pulls the the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey data for both Solar PV Installer and Machinist. What follows is the interpretation — which specific axes carry the most weight for Solar PV Installer versus Machinist, 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 Solar PV Installer and Machinist detail pages for the underlying breakdown. A pairwise comparison answers the relative question; the per-entity pages answer the absolute question.