How much do welders make?
The median welder in the United States earns $25.84 an hour, or $53,750 a year. The bottom 10% earn under $18.87 an hour; the top 10% clear $37.28. There are about 416,210 people doing this work nationally.
Those are US Bureau of Labor Statistics figures for employed workers, which is the honest baseline — and also the number most people are actually looking for. What you can bill as a self-employed contractor is a different question, and we cover it below.
One caveat on the occupation. BLS reports this as Welders, Cutters, Solderers & Brazers (SOC 51-4121), which is broader than welding alone — it folds in cutting and brazing work. The figures are for employed workers, so a certified rig welder or a shop owner billing by the hour is not what this number describes.
The full range
| Percentile | Hourly | Annual equivalent |
|---|---|---|
| Bottom 10% | $18.87 | $39,250 |
| Median | $25.84 | $53,750 |
| Average (mean) | $27.29 | $56,763 |
| Top 10% | $37.28 | $77,542 |
The top decile earns 2.0× what the bottom decile earns, and 44% above the median. That gap is the useful part of this data: it is not really one job with one wage, it is a wide range where skill, licence and market decide where you land.
Where it pays most
Alaska pays the highest median at $38.87 an hour; Arkansas the lowest at $23.06. That is a 1.7× difference for the same job.
Highest paying states
| State | Median hourly | Annual | vs national |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska | $38.87 | $80,840 | +50% |
| Hawaii | $37.98 | $79,000 | +47% |
| Connecticut | $31.19 | $64,880 | +21% |
| Wyoming | $30.69 | $63,820 | +19% |
| Washington | $30.30 | $63,020 | +17% |
Lowest paying states
| State | Median hourly | Annual | vs national |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arkansas | $23.06 | $47,970 | -11% |
| Tennessee | $23.10 | $48,040 | -11% |
| Georgia | $23.28 | $48,430 | -10% |
| Alabama | $23.31 | $48,490 | -10% |
| West Virginia | $23.46 | $48,810 | -9% |
Cost of living explains a lot of that spread but not all of it — licensing regimes and the local mix of commercial versus residential work matter too.
What actually moves the number
Certification is the lever: a structural or pipe ticket (6G, AWS D1.1, ASME IX) is what separates the top of the range from the bottom. Pipeline, refinery and shutdown work pays far above shop fabrication, and rig welders who own their truck bill differently again. Underwater and aerospace work sits outside this range entirely.
Employed pay vs what you can bill
Everything above measures employed welders — W-2 wages. If you work for yourself, your billed rate has to cover a great deal that a wage does not: self-employment tax, insurance, vehicle and tools, unbillable hours spent quoting and chasing payment, and time lost between jobs.
A useful rule is that a self-employed rate needs to be roughly two to three times the equivalent employed wage before you are genuinely ahead. Our profit margin calculator works that out properly from your own overhead rather than a rule of thumb.
FAQ
How much do welders make an hour?
The national median is $25.84 an hour. The range runs from about $18.87 at the bottom tenth to $37.28 at the top tenth, so where you sit depends heavily on licence level, specialisation and state.
What is a good salary for a welder?
Above the $53,750 median puts you in the upper half nationally. Clearing $77,542 puts you in the top 10% of the occupation. Adjust for your state — the gap between Alaska and Arkansas is roughly 1.7×.
Which state pays welders the most?
Alaska, at a median of $38.87 an hour — 50% above the national median. Cost of living offsets some of that, so compare take-home rather than headline rate.
Can welders make six figures?
As an employee it is uncommon: the top 10% reach about $77,542. It is far more achievable running your own business, where you keep the margin on other people's labour as well as your own — but that is a different job, with the overhead and risk to match.
Where does this data come from?
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics programme, 2025 release, for Welders, Cutters, Solderers & Brazers (SOC 514121). It is the same source used across our state-by-state rate pages, so the figures are directly comparable.