Skilled trades in New York, ranked by pay
Of the 15 trades tracked here, the best paid in New York is elevator installers at a median $135,720 a year. Across all 15, 291,920 people are employed in New York. Each row links to the full wage spread for that trade in the state.
| # | Trade | Median annual | Median hourly | 10th–90th | Employed | vs US | State rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Elevator installers | $135,720 | $65.25 | $78,180 – $168,370 | 3,470 | 23% above | #8 of 37 |
| 2 | Lineworkers (power-line installers) | $121,280 | $58.31 | $58,740 – $141,160 | 5,840 | 27% above | #8 of 51 |
| 3 | Ironworkers | $92,610 | $44.52 | $59,140 – $129,180 | 2,700 | 48% above | #10 of 50 |
| 4 | Brickmasons and blockmasons | $84,410 | $40.58 | $60,470 – $127,980 | 3,790 | 36% above | #4 of 50 |
| 5 | Heavy equipment operators | $80,980 | $38.94 | $50,190 – $144,920 | 14,490 | 35% above | #6 of 51 |
| 6 | Electricians | $78,750 | $37.86 | $45,740 – $131,640 | 40,130 | 25% above | #8 of 51 |
| 7 | Plumbers and pipefitters | $77,490 | $37.26 | $46,130 – $130,420 | 23,210 | 21% above | #13 of 51 |
| 8 | HVAC technicians | $74,430 | $35.78 | $48,560 – $100,680 | 24,430 | 22% above | #10 of 51 |
| 9 | Sheet metal workers | $73,760 | $35.46 | $40,330 – $126,090 | 6,570 | 19% above | #11 of 50 |
| 10 | Carpenters | $72,330 | $34.77 | $46,860 – $122,400 | 40,630 | 19% above | #7 of 51 |
| 11 | Diesel mechanics | $70,100 | $33.70 | $48,360 – $90,090 | 13,230 | 13% above | #10 of 51 |
| 12 | Truck drivers (CDL) | $62,050 | $29.83 | $47,880 – $88,100 | 63,700 | 6% above | #7 of 51 |
| 13 | Machinists | $60,920 | $29.29 | $40,560 – $84,440 | 9,400 | 4% above | #19 of 51 |
| 14 | Welders | $59,140 | $28.43 | $43,840 – $87,110 | 8,310 | 10% above | #20 of 51 |
| 15 | Auto service technicians | $54,120 | $26.02 | $35,470 – $91,490 | 32,020 | 7% above | #18 of 51 |
"State rank" is where New York places on median pay for that trade among the states and DC with a published median; a low number means the state pays well for it. "vs US" compares the New York median with the national median for the same trade.
How to get licensed in New York: How to become an electrician in New York · How to become a plumber in New York · How to become an HVAC technician in New York · How to become a truck driver in New York. Each page says who licenses the work and what each license takes, with its exam and its fee where published.
Apprenticeships in New York
Registered apprentices in New York in fiscal year 2024 (October 2023 to September 2024), under the occupation titles the U.S. Department of Labor maps to each trade, with the median wage apprentices started at and the median at completion in fiscal 2023. A median is shown only where 50 or more apprentices carry the wage. The file's fiscal 2024 records largely stop after February 2024.
| Trade | Active, fiscal 2024 | Started, fiscal 2023 | Median starting wage | Median completing wage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lineworkers (power-line installers) | 390 | 85 | $20.00 | $40.23 |
| Plumbers and pipefitters | 159 | 51 | $21.28 | fewer than 50 wages |
| Truck drivers (CDL) | 73 | 188 | $15.00 | fewer than 50 wages |
| Electricians | 61 | 35 | fewer than 50 wages | fewer than 50 wages |
| Auto service technicians | 26 | 24 | fewer than 50 wages | fewer than 50 wages |
| Carpenters | 24 | 6 | fewer than 50 wages | fewer than 50 wages |
| HVAC technicians | 16 | 5 | fewer than 50 wages | fewer than 50 wages |
| Machinists | 15 | 6 | fewer than 50 wages | fewer than 50 wages |
| Diesel mechanics | 4 | 2 | fewer than 50 wages | fewer than 50 wages |
| Sheet metal workers | 3 | 1 | fewer than 50 wages | fewer than 50 wages |
| Heavy equipment operators | 2 | 1 | fewer than 50 wages | fewer than 50 wages |
| Ironworkers | 2 | 1 | fewer than 50 wages | fewer than 50 wages |
| Brickmasons and blockmasons | 1 | 1 | fewer than 50 wages | fewer than 50 wages |
| Welders | 1 | 0 | fewer than 50 wages | fewer than 50 wages |
Hourly wages, in the dollars of fiscal 2023; the starters and the completers are different people. Each trade links to its count and wages in every state. What a wage comes to a week and a year, at your hours →
Which of these to consider in New York
Pay is one input, not the answer. A trade that pays a little less but employs far more people in New York can be the easier one to get hired and stay hired in. Weigh the median against the employment column, and against the training time and licensing each trade demands. Open a trade to see its full percentile spread and how New York ranks against every other state.
Full detail by trade
Elevator installers in New York · Lineworkers (power-line installers) in New York · Ironworkers in New York · Brickmasons and blockmasons in New York · Heavy equipment operators in New York · Electricians in New York · Plumbers and pipefitters in New York · HVAC technicians in New York · Sheet metal workers in New York · Carpenters in New York · Diesel mechanics in New York · Truck drivers (CDL) in New York · Machinists in New York · Welders in New York · Auto service technicians in New York
Or compare these trades nationally on the trade ranking, or pick another state from the state list.
Licensing is sourced in New York for electricians, plumbers, HVAC technicians, and truck drivers; each of those pages carries the licensing rules, with the pages they were read from and the date each was read. Every trade page also gives pay by metro area where BLS publishes it and the registered-apprentice count where the U.S. Department of Labor lists an active apprentice. The pay and employment figures here are the May 2025 BLS estimates; see how the numbers are built.