Skilled Wages

Trade pay in Tampa

Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL: 25 trades ranked by median wage, with the union scale and the jobs trend.

Every trade in Tampa, ranked

Ranked median wagesMedian wageCost-of-living adjusted$0$20$40$60$80/hrConstruction manager: $58.08 (cost-of-living adjusted $57.56)Construction manager$58.08Elevator mechanic: $50.96 (cost-of-living adjusted $50.51)Elevator mechanic$50.96Lineman: $45.44 (cost-of-living adjusted $45.03)Lineman$45.44Crane operator: $37.22 (cost-of-living adjusted $36.89)Crane operator$37.22Construction supervisor: $36.05 (cost-of-living adjusted $35.73)Construction supervisor$36.05Diesel mechanic: $29.36 (cost-of-living adjusted $29.10)Diesel mechanic$29.36Brickmason: $27.64 (cost-of-living adjusted $27.39)Brickmason$27.64Electrician: $27.62 (cost-of-living adjusted $27.37)Electrician$27.62Machinist: $27.48 (cost-of-living adjusted $27.23)Machinist$27.48Carpenter: $25.06 (cost-of-living adjusted $24.84)Carpenter$25.06Plumber: $25.00 (cost-of-living adjusted $24.78)Plumber$25.00Solar installer: $24.60 (cost-of-living adjusted $24.38)Solar installer$24.60HVAC technician: $24.30 (cost-of-living adjusted $24.08)HVAC technician$24.30Heavy equipment operator: $24.18 (cost-of-living adjusted $23.96)Heavy equipment operator$24.18Welder: $24.00 (cost-of-living adjusted $23.79)Welder$24.00Cement mason: $23.84 (cost-of-living adjusted $23.63)Cement mason$23.84Drywall installer: $23.83 (cost-of-living adjusted $23.62)Drywall installer$23.83Sheet metal worker: $23.80 (cost-of-living adjusted $23.59)Sheet metal worker$23.80Ironworker: $23.42 (cost-of-living adjusted $23.21)Ironworker$23.42Plasterer: $23.20 (cost-of-living adjusted $22.99)Plasterer$23.20Painter: $22.87 (cost-of-living adjusted $22.67)Painter$22.87Glazier: $22.84 (cost-of-living adjusted $22.64)Glazier$22.84Roofer: $22.68 (cost-of-living adjusted $22.48)Roofer$22.68Tile setter: $22.25 (cost-of-living adjusted $22.05)Tile setter$22.25Construction laborer: $21.04 (cost-of-living adjusted $20.85)Construction laborer$21.04
Median hourly wage by trade, Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL, May 2025. Thin marker: cost-of-living adjusted (BEA metro price parity 100.9).
#Trade10thMedian $/hr90thMedian $/yrJobsvs statevs US
1Construction manager$30.39$58.08$102.39$120,8004,7607% above5% above
2Elevator mechanic$28.46$50.96$59.79$105,9903801% above4% below
3Lineman$28.38$45.44$51.37$94,5109509% above1% below
4Crane operator$24.86$37.22$45.93$77,4203708% above14% above
5Construction supervisor$23.77$36.05$56.04$74,9809,8401% below6% below
6Diesel mechanic$21.61$29.36$37.56$61,0601,9101% above1% below
7Brickmason$17.85$27.64$30.98$57,4903609% above7% below
8Electrician$18.73$27.62$36.87$57,4507,170about the same as9% below
9Machinist$20.29$27.48$35.05$57,1601,530about the same as3% below
10Carpenter$17.88$25.06$33.63$52,1306,0105% above14% below
11Plumber$20.00$25.00$32.13$52,0004,1802% below18% below
12Solar installer$22.25$24.60$37.26$51,170—1% above4% below
13HVAC technician$19.05$24.30$36.20$50,5406,09011% below17% below
14Heavy equipment operator$19.42$24.18$35.25$50,3003,9802% above16% below
15Welder$19.18$24.00$32.39$49,9302,5201% below7% below
16Cement mason$18.50$23.84$36.09$49,5901,7802% above13% below
17Drywall installer$17.60$23.83$29.58$49,5607701% above16% below
18Sheet metal worker$17.25$23.80$31.71$49,510970about the same as20% below
19Ironworker$19.07$23.42$32.95$48,72032013% below22% below
20Plasterer$16.33$23.20$30.04$48,2601702% above16% below
21Painter$17.72$22.87$28.30$47,5703,080about the same as4% below
22Glazier$17.65$22.84$29.96$47,5008201% above17% below
23Roofer$16.00$22.68$30.57$47,1703,3801% below15% below
24Tile setter$13.38$22.25$31.58$46,2804802% below17% below
25Construction laborer$16.15$21.04$28.42$43,75012,8601% below7% below

Union scale in the Tampa area

The highest Davis-Bacon Building-construction package among the counties in the Tampa metro, next to the metro market median from BLS.

TradeMetro market medianDB baseFringeTotal packageRate sourceCounties with a rate
Electrician$27.62$33.11$14.59$47.70Union4 of 4
Plumber$25.00$35.30$18.24$53.54Union4 of 4
Carpenter$25.06$17.37$3.85$21.22Survey4 of 4
Construction laborer$21.04$11.84$1.95$13.79Survey4 of 4
Heavy equipment operator$24.18$22.07$8.80$30.87Survey4 of 4
Ironworker$23.42$35.25$17.32$52.57Union4 of 4
Sheet metal worker$23.80$25.75$16.92$42.67Union4 of 4
Painter$22.87$14.72$2.13$16.85Survey4 of 4

Not the official determination. County-level lookup on the Florida prevailing wage page.

Construction jobs in Tampa

99.6kConstruction jobs2026-08
+1.6%Change over 12 months
+16.1%Change over 5 years
Construction employment, 1990-202640k60k80k100k120k19901995200020052010201520202025100kAug 2026
Construction employment, Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL, thousands, BLS CES, not seasonally adjusted.

Questions this page answers

What is the highest-paying trade in Tampa?

In the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL metro area, construction managers had the highest median wage at $58.08 an hour in May 2025, with 4,760 jobs counted.

Do trades pay more in Tampa than the rest of Florida?

In Tampa, 13 of 25 trades pay above the Florida state median and 8 pay below it; the biggest premium is for construction managers at $58.08.

Sources and notes

  • BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL MSA.
  • BLS CES metro employment.
  • BEA metro Regional Price Parities.
  • SAM.gov Davis-Bacon wage determinations.