Residential and Commercial Plumbing Firms: 25 Years of Business Counts, Jobs and Pay
The short answer
Residential plumbing and HVAC contractors grew from 58,798 businesses in 2001 to 94,274 in 2025, and their employment rose 76 percent. Nonresidential contractors barely added businesses, 25,094 to 29,593, and grew employment 44 percent. Residential now employs more people than commercial, but at $69,397 average pay against $95,883, according to BLS QCEW.
What we measured and found
BLS splits plumbing, heating and air-conditioning contractors into residential (NAICS 238221) and nonresidential (238222) in the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages. It is the only federal source that separates the house-call trade from the commercial and industrial side. Six benchmark years from 2001 to 2025 cover the housing boom, the crash, the long recovery and the post-pandemic years. Census product-line data on residential and nonresidential revenue is in our building-type revenue report. Census concentration ratios for the industry are covered in our consolidation report.
| Year | Residential firms | Residential jobs | Residential pay | Commercial firms | Commercial jobs | Commercial pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 58,798 | 388,398 | $32,503 | 25,094 | 440,461 | $45,054 |
| 2007 | 74,894 | 492,171 | $38,960 | 27,935 | 506,858 | $54,295 |
| 2010 | 71,570 | 372,304 | $40,903 | 28,030 | 422,214 | $57,985 |
| 2019 | 80,495 | 567,152 | $52,519 | 28,856 | 569,005 | $72,502 |
| 2024 | 92,844 | 672,777 | $66,852 | 29,482 | 614,278 | $90,817 |
| 2025 | 94,274 | 681,952 | $69,397 | 29,593 | 633,614 | $95,883 |
Source: BLS QCEW annual averages, private ownership, United States. ‘Commercial’ here means nonresidential building work (NAICS 238222).
Measured values, sourced
- Residential establishments: 58,798 in 2001, 71,570 in 2010, 94,274 in 2025. Source: BLS QCEW.
- Nonresidential establishments: 25,094 in 2001, 29,593 in 2025. Source: BLS QCEW.
- Residential employment: 388,398 in 2001, 372,304 in 2010, 681,952 in 2025. Source: BLS QCEW.
- Nonresidential employment: 440,461 in 2001, 422,214 in 2010, 633,614 in 2025. Source: BLS QCEW.
- Average annual pay 2025: residential $69,397, nonresidential $95,883. Source: BLS QCEW.
- Employees per establishment 2025: residential 7.2, nonresidential 21.4. Source: calculated from BLS QCEW.
- Residential employment fall 2007 to 2010: -24.4 percent; nonresidential: -16.7 percent. Source: calculated from BLS QCEW.
Derived measures
Commercial pays 38 percent more, and the gap has widened
Formula. Nonresidential average annual pay divided by residential.
Calculation. 2001: $45,054 / $32,503 = 1.39. 2025: $95,883 / $69,397 = 1.38.
Finding. Commercial work pays more per employee and the premium has grown. Larger union shops, prevailing-wage public work and more specialised pipefitting on the commercial side are consistent with that, though QCEW does not record why.
Limitations. Average pay mixes trades, office staff and overtime. It is not a wage rate for a given job.
The residential trade is a small-shop industry
Formula. Employees per establishment, residential against nonresidential.
Calculation. 7.2 against 21.4 in 2025; 6.6 against 17.6 in 2001.
Finding. Residential firms average about a third the size of commercial ones. Of the industry’s 39,975 net new businesses since 2001, 89 percent were residential.
Limitations. Establishment counts exclude the self-employed and count branch sites separately.
Residential fell harder in the crash
Formula. Employment change 2007 to 2010 for each segment.
Calculation. Residential -24.4 percent; nonresidential -16.7 percent.
Finding. The residential side, tied to new-home construction, took the brunt of the housing crash, then drove the recovery. See our recessions report for the monthly series. For a look at how the sector breaks down beyond the residential-commercial split, see our overview of heavy industrial plumbing work and our state-by-state breakdown of plumbing contractor firms and pay.
Limitations. Benchmark years only; the true peak and trough months differ.
Headline measurements
- Residential plumbing/HVAC businesses: 58,798 (2001) to 94,274 (2025).
- Commercial businesses: 25,094 to 29,593.
- Average pay 2025: residential $69,397, commercial $95,883.
Download the data
Establishments, employment, pay and firm size for six benchmark years. Published under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence. Attribution: The Plumbing Brief.
Residential and nonresidential plumbing/HVAC contractors, 2001 to 2025 (CSV)
How this report was built
Methodology
Source. BLS QCEW annual averages by industry for 2001, 2007, 2010, 2019, 2024 and 2025, NAICS 23822, 238221 and 238222, private ownership, US totals, downloaded 4 October 2026.
Derived figures. Shares, ratios, firm size and changes are calculated by The Plumbing Brief.
Retrieval date. 4 October 2026.
Data limitations
- Plumbing is combined with heating and air conditioning in both segments.
- Classification is by the establishment’s primary activity; many firms do both residential and commercial work.
- The self-employed are excluded.
- Only six benchmark years are shown; the CSV has the same years.
Source quality ranking
Tier 1. US Bureau of Labor Statistics, QCEW.
Tier 2. None used. Tier 3. None used.
Briefing note
The number of residential plumbing, heating and air-conditioning contractor businesses in the US rose from 58,798 in 2001 to 94,274 in 2025, while nonresidential contractors grew only from 25,094 to 29,593, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics QCEW data analysed by The Plumbing Brief. Residential firms averaged 7.2 employees and $69,397 in average annual pay in 2025, against 21.4 employees and $95,883 for nonresidential firms.
Story angles
- The house-call plumber took over the industry
- Commercial plumbing pays more, and the gap is growing
- Residential plumbing was hit harder in the housing crash
- 25 years of plumbing businesses, residential vs commercial
Questions about the measurements
How many residential plumbing companies are there? 94,274 residential plumbing and HVAC contractor businesses with employees in 2025 (BLS QCEW).
How many commercial plumbing companies are there? 29,593 nonresidential plumbing and HVAC contractor businesses in 2025.
Does commercial plumbing pay more than residential? Yes. Average annual pay was $95,883 in nonresidential firms and $69,397 in residential firms in 2025.
Is the residential plumbing industry growing? Yes. Employment rose 20.2 percent from 2019 to 2025.
Are residential plumbing firms small? On average 7.2 employees per business, against 21.4 for nonresidential.
How to cite this report
The Plumbing Brief, “Residential and Commercial Plumbing Firms: 25 Years of Business Counts, Jobs and Pay”, https://theplumbingbrief.com/residential-and-commercial-plumbing-firms/, accessed [date].
Last reviewed: 2026-10-04.
