The Plumber Wage Ladder: What Federal Percentile Data Shows About Earning Over a Career

What this page is. The full published wage distribution for plumbers, pipefitters and steamfitters in the United States, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics programme, May 2025. Most coverage of plumber pay reports a single median. The median is the least informative number in this table, because the distribution is strongly asymmetric: the distance from the middle to the top is more than twice the distance from the bottom to the middle.

The short answer, expanded

• Plumber pay runs from 44,150 dollars at the 10th percentile to 108,420 dollars at the 90th, a ratio of 2.46.
• The median is 63,800 dollars and the mean is 72,170, which sits at the 61st percentile rather than the middle.
• The span from the 10th percentile to the median is 19,650 dollars. The span from the median to the 90th percentile is 44,620 dollars.
• The upper half of the range is therefore 2.27 times the lower half. Progress above the middle is worth far more than progress up to it.
• In hourly terms the range runs from 21.22 dollars to 52.13 dollars, with a median of 30.67.
• Half of all plumbers earn between 50,190 and 85,110 dollars, the 25th to 75th percentile band.
• Moving from the 25th percentile to the 75th is worth 34,920 dollars, a 70 percent increase.
• Total employment in the occupation was 465,840 in May 2025.

The published percentile points

Index shows each point relative to the median at 100.

Point in distribution	Annual wage	Hourly wage	Index (median = 100)
10th percentile	44,150	21.22	69
25th percentile	50,190	24.13	79
Median	63,800	30.67	100
75th percentile	85,110	40.92	133
90th percentile	108,420	52.13	170
Mean	72,170	34.70	113

Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, national estimates, SOC 47-2152, released 15 May 2026. Index calculated by The Plumbing Brief.

The evidence

1. 10th percentile: 44,150 dollars annual, 21.22 dollars hourly. Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025.
2. 25th percentile: 50,190 dollars annual, 24.13 dollars hourly. Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025.
3. Median: 63,800 dollars annual, 30.67 dollars hourly. Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025.
4. 75th percentile: 85,110 dollars annual, 40.92 dollars hourly. Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025.
5. 90th percentile: 108,420 dollars annual, 52.13 dollars hourly. Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025.
6. Mean: 72,170 dollars annual, 34.70 dollars hourly. Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025.
7. Employment: 465,840. Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025.
8. Ratio of 90th to 10th percentile: 2.46. Source: calculated from BLS OEWS.
9. Ratio of 75th to 25th percentile: 1.70. Source: calculated from BLS OEWS.
10. Span from 10th percentile to median: 19,650 dollars. Source: calculated from BLS OEWS.
11. Span from median to 90th percentile: 44,620 dollars. Source: calculated from BLS OEWS.
12. Upper half of the range is 2.27 times the lower half. Source: calculated from BLS OEWS.
13. The mean sits above the median by 8,370 dollars. Source: calculated from BLS OEWS.
14. Projected annual openings: about 42,000, with 7 percent growth 2025 to 2035. Source: BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook.

What the numbers imply

Derived finding 1: the upper half of the range is worth 2.27 times the lower half

Formula. Dollar span from median to 90th percentile, divided by dollar span from 10th percentile to median.

Calculation. 108,420 minus 63,800 equals 44,620. 63,800 minus 44,150 equals 19,650. 44,620 divided by 19,650 equals 2.27.

Finding. The distribution is strongly right-skewed. A plumber moving from the bottom decile to the middle gains 19,650 dollars. A plumber moving from the middle to the top decile gains 44,620. Most of the available earnings range sits above the median, not below it.

Inputs. BLS OEWS May 2025 national percentile estimates.

Limitations. Percentiles are a snapshot of the workforce at one moment, not a career path. No individual is observed moving between them, and this page does not claim that any plumber progresses from one percentile to another over time.

Derived finding 2: the mean sits at the 61st percentile

Formula. Locate the mean within the published percentile range by interpolation between the nearest percentile points.

Calculation. The mean of 72,170 dollars falls between the median at 63,800 and the 75th percentile at 85,110. Interpolating linearly places it at approximately the 61st percentile.

Finding. The commonly cited average plumber wage of 72,170 dollars describes a plumber earning more than roughly 61 percent of the occupation, not a typical one. Reporting that figure as what plumbers earn overstates the middle by about 8,370 dollars.

Inputs. BLS OEWS May 2025 national estimates.

Limitations. Linear interpolation between percentile points is approximate, because wages are not evenly distributed within a percentile band. The 61st percentile figure should be read as a close estimate, not an exact placement.

Derived finding 3: the middle half spans 34,920 dollars

Formula. 75th percentile minus 25th percentile, and the ratio between them.

Calculation. 85,110 minus 50,190 equals 34,920, a ratio of 1.70.

Finding. Half of all plumbers earn between 50,190 and 85,110 dollars. The upper edge of that middle band pays 70 percent more than the lower edge, which is a wider ordinary range than a single median figure conveys.

Inputs. BLS OEWS May 2025 national estimates.

Limitations. This band mixes residential service plumbing, commercial pipefitting and industrial steamfitting, which report under one occupation code. Part of the spread is between segments of the trade rather than within any one of them.

How this report was built

Methodology

Source. All figures are published BLS OEWS national estimates for SOC 47-2152, May 2025 reference period, retrieved through the BLS public API on 27 September 2026.

Percentile points used. BLS publishes the 10th, 25th, 50th, 75th and 90th percentiles in both annual and hourly form. No intermediate points are published and none are invented here.

Estimates. The span ratios, the index column and the placement of the mean within the distribution are calculated by this publication, with formulas stated. Those same career-stage calculations look different depending on where a plumber works, a gap explored in our metro-by-metro pay comparison.

Annual and hourly consistency. Each annual figure divided by 2,080 hours reproduces the published hourly figure to within rounding, which is the internal check applied to this table.

Last updated. 27 September 2026.

Data limitations

• A percentile distribution is a snapshot of a workforce, not a career trajectory. It does not show anyone’s earnings rising over time.
• SOC 47-2152 combines plumbers, pipefitters and steamfitters. Industrial and commercial segments pay more than residential service, so part of the spread reflects which job someone does rather than how experienced they are.
• OEWS does not code licence tier, so this data cannot be read directly as apprentice, journeyman and master pay bands.
• OEWS covers wage and salary workers. Self-employed plumbers are excluded.
• These are wages, not total compensation. Benefits, pension contributions and overtime are not included.
• National figures only. State and metro variation is substantial and is published separately.
• BLS publishes five percentile points. Any figure between them, including the placement of the mean, is interpolated and approximate.

Source quality ranking

Tier 1. US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook.

Tier 2. None used.

Tier 3. None used.

Excluded. Apprentice, journeyman and master pay bands quoted without a source, which are common online and are not published by BLS.

Figures worth quoting

• Plumber pay runs from 44,150 dollars to 108,420 dollars across the federal percentile range.
• The distance from the middle to the top is 2.27 times the distance from the bottom to the middle.
• The average plumber wage of 72,170 dollars describes someone at about the 61st percentile, not a typical earner.
• Half of all plumbers earn between 50,190 and 85,110 dollars.
• In hourly terms the trade runs from 21.22 to 52.13 dollars.

Briefing note

Plumber pay in the United States runs from 44,150 dollars at the 10th percentile to 108,420 dollars at the 90th, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics for May 2025. The distribution is strongly asymmetric. The span from the 10th percentile to the median of 63,800 dollars is 19,650 dollars, while the span from the median to the 90th percentile is 44,620 dollars, meaning the upper half of the range is 2.27 times the lower half. The mean of 72,170 dollars, frequently reported as the average plumber wage, sits at approximately the 61st percentile rather than the middle. Half of all plumbers earn between 50,190 and 85,110 dollars, a band in which the upper edge pays 70 percent more than the lower. In hourly terms the trade runs from 21.22 to 52.13 dollars against a median of 30.67. Employment in the occupation was 465,840.

How reporters could frame this

1. Most of a plumber’s earning range sits above the median, not below it
2. The average plumber wage describes the 61st percentile, not the typical plumber
3. Half of American plumbers earn between 50,190 and 85,110 dollars
4. Plumber pay runs from 21 dollars an hour to 52
5. Why a single median is the least useful number about plumber pay

Download the data

Every figure in the table above is published as a CSV under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence. Attribution: The Plumbing Brief.

Every published percentile point, annual and hourly (CSV)

Related questions

What is the full range of plumber pay in the United States? From 44,150 dollars at the 10th percentile to 108,420 at the 90th, with a median of 63,800, per BLS May 2025 data.

What do plumbers earn per hour? A median of 30.67 dollars, ranging from 21.22 at the 10th percentile to 52.13 at the 90th.

What does the top 10 percent of plumbers earn? 108,420 dollars or more annually, equivalent to 52.13 dollars an hour or more.

What does a plumber starting out earn? The 10th percentile is 44,150 dollars. That is the bottom of the published distribution, not a defined starting wage, and BLS does not identify apprenticeship status.

Is the average plumber wage the same as the typical one? No. The mean of 72,170 dollars sits at roughly the 61st percentile. The median of 63,800 is the better figure for a typical earner.

What do most plumbers earn? Half earn between 50,190 and 85,110 dollars, the 25th to 75th percentile band.

Is there more room to grow above or below the median? Above. The gap from the median to the 90th percentile is 44,620 dollars against 19,650 from the 10th percentile to the median, a ratio of 2.27.

Does this show apprentice, journeyman and master pay? No. OEWS does not code licence tier. Pay bands by tier circulate widely online but are not published by BLS, and this page does not estimate them.

Why is the range so wide? Partly experience and partly segment. Plumbers, pipefitters and steamfitters share one occupation code, and industrial and commercial work pays more than residential service.

Do these figures include self-employed plumbers? No. OEWS covers wage and salary workers only.

Last reviewed: 2026-09-27.

How to cite this report

The Plumbing Brief, “The Plumber Wage Ladder: What Federal Percentile Data Shows About Earning Over a Career”, https://theplumbingbrief.com/plumber-wage-distribution/, accessed [date].