Plumbing Industry Statistics for 2026

US plumbing industry statistics for 2026 come down to a few load-bearing numbers: an industry generating between $121.5 billion and $191.4 billion a year (IBISWorld, depending on report vintage), roughly 129,000 to 132,000 plumbing businesses (IBISWorld, 2024), and about 504,500 people working the trade (BLS, 2024). The median plumber earned $62,970 in May 2024. Where sources disagree, we show the range.

The headline numbers at a glance

Six figures carry most of the story: market size, business count, workforce, pay, projected growth, and the shortage. The table below is the short version, with the fuller sourcing and the caveats in the sections that follow. Read the market-size row as a range, not a point estimate, because the widely quoted figures all trace to IBISWorld but to different report editions.

Market size: why the number you see keeps changing

US plumbing industry revenue for 2026 is best stated as a range of roughly $121.5 billion to $191.4 billion, all attributed to IBISWorld. There is no government line item for plumbing-only revenue, so vendor blogs quote IBISWorld, but they quote different editions and scopes, which is why the “official” number seems to jump.

The spread is not a rounding error. It reflects different report vintages and different definitions of what counts as the plumbing market. Here is what the commonly cited sources actually say.

Our read: treat any single “US plumbing market is worth $X” headline with caution and check the report year and whether it counts contractor revenue only or bundles in manufacturing and distribution. A separate 2026 study set backed by LIXIL put the combined plumbing manufacturing and plumbing services economic impact at about $442 billion, which is a much broader measure than contractor revenue and should not be compared directly to the IBISWorld figures above.

Number of plumbing businesses

There are roughly 129,000 to 132,000 plumbing businesses operating in the United States, per IBISWorld (2024). The count skews heavily toward small, owner-operated shops rather than large regional firms, which is consistent with how fragmented the trade is.

One sourcing note worth flagging: the US Census Bureau tracks establishments under NAICS 238220, but that code is “Plumbing, Heating, and Air-Conditioning Contractors,” so it bundles HVAC in and runs higher than a plumbing-only count. When you see a business count in the 120,000s attributed to plumbing specifically, it is almost always IBISWorld, not Census.

Employment and the workforce

About 504,500 people worked as plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters in 2024, according to the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook. Industry sources cite a higher number, near 736,000 to 742,000 (IBISWorld), and both can be right because they measure different things.

The gap is definitional. BLS counts people employed in the occupation. IBISWorld counts total headcount at plumbing establishments, which includes helpers, dispatchers, office staff, and owners who no longer turn a wrench. If you want the number of working tradespeople, use the BLS figure. If you want total industry payroll headcount, use the IBISWorld figure.

The demographic figures in the last two rows come from private data aggregators rather than a government census, so we mark them as reported estimates, not hard counts. The direction is not in dispute: the trade is overwhelmingly male and aging, which feeds directly into the shortage numbers further down.

Plumber pay and wages

The median annual wage for plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters was $62,970 in May 2024, or about $30.27 per hour, per the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. That is the middle of the range: the bottom 10 percent earned under $40,670 and the top 10 percent earned more than $105,150. Pay varies sharply by state, license level, and union status.

You will still see $61,550 and $29.59 an hour quoted around the web. Those are the prior BLS release; the May 2024 update moved the median up to $62,970. We use the current figure. For what customers actually pay on the other side of the invoice, see what plumbers charge per hour, which is a different number than what plumbers earn.

Job growth and demand outlook

The BLS projects 4 percent employment growth for plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters from 2024 to 2034, about as fast as the average for all occupations. That translates to roughly 44,000 openings per year over the decade, most of them replacing workers who retire or leave the trade rather than brand-new positions.

This is another spot where older numbers linger. Many roundups still cite “6 percent growth through 2033” and “26,300 new jobs,” which was the previous BLS projection cycle. The current 2024 to 2034 projection is 4 percent with about 44,000 annual openings. When two BLS numbers conflict, the newer projection edition wins.

Demand drivers behind the openings are steady rather than dramatic: aging housing stock and pipe systems, new residential and nonresidential construction, water-efficiency retrofits, and the ordinary churn of a workforce where a large share is near retirement age.

The labor shortage

The most-cited shortage figure is a projected shortfall of about 550,000 plumbers by 2027, from research by John Dunham and Associates, carried in LIXIL-backed studies released in 2026. The same body of work estimated the 2022 shortage cost the US economy roughly $33 billion. These are industry-commissioned projections, so we label them as such rather than as government counts.

Note the tension between this and the BLS outlook above: BLS projects only modest employment growth, while industry studies project a large unmet-demand gap. Both can hold at once. BLS measures jobs that exist and are expected to be filled; the shortage studies measure the gap between demand for plumbing work and the supply of workers available to do it. We keep the running numbers, retirements, and pipeline data in our plumber shortage tracker.

Margins, costs, and what we could not fully verify

Profit and cost figures for plumbing are the softest part of any statistics roundup, because there is no government dataset for shop-level margins. Commonly cited figures put typical net margins around 2 to 8 percent, with well-run shops reaching 20 to 35 percent, but these come from software-vendor benchmarks and industry surveys rather than an audited public source. Treat them as directional.

On the cost side, material and fixture prices have climbed since 2020, a trend visible in the BLS Producer Price Index series for plumbing fixture and fitting manufacturing. Several vendor roundups put the increase at “more than 30 percent since 2020,” but we could not pin that exact figure to a single primary PPI table, so we report the direction (rising) and the source (BLS PPI) without asserting the precise percentage. For what those input costs mean for a homeowner’s bill, see our reference on common plumbing repair costs.

Methodology and sourcing note

The Plumbing Brief takes no vendor money and cites every figure to a named source with a year. Where a statistic has an official government source, we use it: wages, occupational employment, and job projections come straight from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. Where only private estimates exist, such as market size (IBISWorld), the shortage (John Dunham and Associates), or margins (software-vendor benchmarks), we name the source and flag that it is an estimate.

Three rules keep this page honest. First, when sources disagree, we publish the range rather than the friendliest number. Second, when two editions of the same source conflict, the newer one wins, which is why our BLS wage and projection figures differ from older roundups. Third, if we cannot trace a figure to a primary source, we say so instead of repeating it. This page is a living reference and is updated as new BLS releases and industry studies land. Last reviewed: August 2026.

Frequently asked questions

How big is the US plumbing industry?

Estimates for US plumbing industry revenue in 2026 range from about $121.5 billion to $191.4 billion, all attributed to IBISWorld but drawn from different report vintages and scope definitions. There is no single official government figure for plumbing-only revenue, so the honest answer is a range in the $120 billion to $190 billion band.

How many plumbers are there in the United States?

The US Bureau of Labor Statistics counts about 504,500 plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters working in the occupation as of 2024. IBISWorld reports a larger figure near 736,000 to 742,000, because it counts total headcount at plumbing establishments, including office and helper roles, not just the licensed trade.

How much do plumbers make?

The median annual wage for plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters was $62,970 in May 2024, or about $30.27 per hour, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. The lowest 10 percent earned under $40,670 and the highest 10 percent earned more than $105,150. Pay varies widely by state, license level, and union status.

Is there really a plumber shortage?

Yes, by the leading industry estimate. Research from John Dunham and Associates, cited in LIXIL-backed studies released in 2026, projects a shortfall of about 550,000 plumbers by 2027. The 2022 shortage was estimated to cost the US economy roughly $33 billion. These are industry-commissioned projections, not government counts.

Is the plumbing industry growing?

Employment is growing slowly. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics projects 4 percent growth for plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters from 2024 to 2034, about as fast as the average job. That works out to roughly 44,000 openings per year over the decade, most of them from workers retiring or leaving the trade rather than new positions.

Last reviewed: August 2026.