Updated May 2026 · BLS OEWS 2024
Welder vs Sheet Metal Worker
Welders earn a national median of $54,982 versus $67,236 for Sheet Metal Workers, a gap of $12,254 per 2024 BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. Welders have posted +4% 5-year wage growth versus +4% for Sheet Metal Workers.
How These Trades Stack Up
Sheet Metal Workers out-earn Welders on national median by $12,254 — $67,236 versus $54,982, or about 22% 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 — Welders at +4% versus Sheet Metal Workers at +4%. That suggests both occupations sit in similar parts of the demand cycle, with neither pulling ahead structurally.
Welders typically complete a 3-year apprenticeship while Sheet Metal Workers 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.
Welder
Welding · 3yr apprenticeship
Sheet Metal Worker
Metalwork · 4yr apprenticeship
City-by-City Comparison
| City | Welder | Sheet Metal Worker | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seattle, WA | $64,510 | $102,680 | -$38,170 |
| San Francisco, CA | $63,890 | $98,140 | -$34,250 |
| Boston, MA | $62,240 | $69,040 | -$6,800 |
| Portland, OR | $60,940 | $77,950 | -$17,010 |
| New York, NY | $60,840 | $77,350 | -$16,510 |
| New Orleans, LA | $60,590 | $61,090 | -$500 |
| Minneapolis, MN | $60,340 | $62,550 | -$2,210 |
| Salt Lake City, UT | $58,930 | $63,390 | -$4,460 |
| Denver, CO | $58,700 | $60,730 | -$2,030 |
| Los Angeles, CA | $58,200 | $78,560 | -$20,360 |
| Las Vegas, NV | $57,520 | $46,800 | +$10,720 |
| Milwaukee, WI | $57,370 | $79,490 | -$22,120 |
| Philadelphia, PA | $56,110 | $81,140 | -$25,030 |
| Phoenix, AZ | $54,650 | $53,320 | +$1,330 |
| Raleigh, NC | $54,080 | $51,610 | +$2,470 |
| Houston, TX | $53,810 | $56,020 | -$2,210 |
| Charlotte, NC | $53,760 | $52,870 | +$890 |
| Kansas City, MO | $52,920 | $81,500 | -$28,580 |
| Miami, FL | $51,390 | $56,580 | -$5,190 |
| Pittsburgh, PA | $51,080 | $63,830 | -$12,750 |
| Chicago, IL | $50,700 | $97,970 | -$47,270 |
| Nashville, TN | $50,660 | $60,510 | -$9,850 |
| Columbus, OH | $50,400 | $65,460 | -$15,060 |
| St. Louis, MO | $50,280 | $82,150 | -$31,870 |
| Detroit, MI | $50,250 | $61,750 | -$11,500 |
| Atlanta, GA | $49,590 | $49,630 | -$40 |
| Indianapolis, IN | $49,300 | $64,100 | -$14,800 |
| Dallas, TX | $49,290 | $57,270 | -$7,980 |
| Tampa, FL | $48,790 | $48,770 | +$20 |
| San Antonio, TX | $48,340 | $54,830 | -$6,490 |
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 Welders or Sheet Metal Workers make more money?
Sheet Metal Workers earn more on national median — $67,236 versus $54,982, a gap of $12,254 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?
Sheet Metal Workers have posted faster wage growth at +4% versus +4% for Welders. Sustained gaps in growth often compound meaningfully over a 20-30 year career.
How long is the apprenticeship for each trade?
Welders typically complete a 3-year registered apprenticeship. Sheet Metal Workers typically complete a 4-year registered apprenticeship. Programs are listed at https://www.apprenticeship.gov/.
Which trade has better employment depth?
Welders have 124,810 workers employed nationally; Sheet Metal Workers have 45,860. 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 Welder and Sheet Metal Worker 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/.
Welders earn a national median of $54,982 versus $67,236 for Sheet Metal Workers, a gap of $12,254 per 2024 BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. Welders have posted +4% 5-year wage growth versus +4% for Sheet Metal Workers.
The side-by-side above pulls the the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey data for both Welder and Sheet Metal Worker. What follows is the interpretation — which specific axes carry the most weight for Welder versus Sheet Metal Worker, 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 Welder and Sheet Metal Worker detail pages for the underlying breakdown. A pairwise comparison answers the relative question; the per-entity pages answer the absolute question.