Skilled Wages

Construction manager salary in Kentucky

Median $46.64 an hour for 2,990 construction managers, May 2025, with the union scale by county, the job trend since 1999 and the state's own outlook.

$46.64/hrMedian hourly wageKentucky, May data
$97,020/yrMedian annual payfull-time equivalent
$25.89 – $94.0010th to 90th percentilehourly range
2,990Jobs countedemployer survey

Data compiled by Skilled WagesBLS OEWS May 2025; prevailing wage as of 2026-11-06

Construction manager pay in Kentucky: the full range

Wage percentiles, KentuckyMarket wage, 10th-90th pctU.S. reference$20$40$60$80$100/hrKentucky: 10th $25.89 · 25th $35.76 · median $46.64 · 75th $64.53 · 90th $94.00Kentucky$46.64$25.89$94.00United States: 10th $33.50 · 25th $42.57 · median $55.28 · 75th $72.91 · 90th $91.08United States$55.28
Hourly wage percentiles for construction managers: Kentucky vs United States, May 2025.

Kentucky ranks 47th of 51 states for median construction manager pay, and 43rd once adjusted for cost of living (the cost-of-living-adjusted median is $51.71). 2,990 construction managers work in the state. The top 10% earn 3.6× what the bottom 10% earn.

Career stage (approximate)HourlyAnnualWhere it sits in the distribution
Apprentice / entry level$25.89 – $35.76$53,850 – $74,380roughly the 10th to 25th percentile
Journeyman$35.76 – $64.53$74,380 – $134,230the middle half, around the median
Master, foreman or specialist$64.53 – $94.00$134,230 – $195,530the 75th to 90th percentile and above

Where does your pay fall?



Construction manager pay by metro in Kentucky

Ranked median wages$0$20$40$60/hrCincinnati: $50.34Cincinnati$50.34Louisville: $48.93Louisville$48.93Bowling Green: $48.75Bowling Green$48.75Clarksville: $48.67Clarksville$48.67Lexington: $48.47Lexington$48.47Huntington: $47.45Huntington$47.45Paducah: $46.95Paducah$46.95Elizabethtown: $44.40Elizabethtown$44.40Owensboro: $44.02Owensboro$44.02
Median hourly wage for construction managers by metro area in Kentucky, May 2025.
Metro10thMedian $/hrCost-of-living adjusted90thJobsvs state
Cincinnati$33.14$50.34$52.77$79.003,0508% above
Louisville$27.42$48.93$52.56$95.899705% above
Bowling Green$25.44$48.75$54.05$97.911405% above
Clarksville$33.15$48.67$53.54$83.091504% above
Lexington$26.11$48.47$52.17$102.515904% above
Huntington$29.71$47.45$53.68$73.421902% above
Paducah$32.58$46.95$54.53$91.33901% above
Elizabethtown$24.50$44.40$49.01$76.57605% below
Owensboro$23.80$44.02$49.68$80.77806% below

Cost-of-living adjusted: median divided by the BEA regional price parity for the metro (2024, US = 100).

Construction manager wages in Kentucky over time

Kentucky, 1999-2025KentuckyUnited StatesSOC 2010SOC 2018 / Method changeExact wages$20$30$40$50$60200020052010201520202025$55.28United States$46.64Kentucky
Median hourly wage for construction managers, Kentucky vs United States, 1999–2025, nominal dollars.
Table
YearKentucky $/hrIn 2025 $US $/hrJobs
1999$23.25$44.93$26.753,880
2000$24.63$46.05$28.003,290
2001$26.66$48.46$29.353,080
2002$26.73$47.84$30.532,590
2003$27.74$48.54$31.962,320
2004$29.94$51.03$33.592,360
2005$27.59$45.48$34.742,110
2006$28.12$44.91$35.432,140
2007$29.16$45.28$36.652,720
2008$30.37$45.41$38.393,350
2009$30.59$45.90$39.583,260
2010$31.80$46.95$40.322,890
2011$33.19$47.50$40.502,810
2012$35.24$49.41$39.803,110
2013$35.51$49.07$40.583,010
2014$35.76$48.63$41.173,220
2015$36.20$49.17$42.023,060
2016$37.89$50.83$42.932,660
2017$37.38$49.10$43.932,380
2018$38.02$48.75$44.892,030
2019$36.34$45.76$45.801,770
2020$37.20$46.27$46.721,270
2021$45.34$53.87$47.55980
2022$39.54$43.50$48.79—
2023$47.44$50.12$50.431,280
2024$47.89$49.15$51.432,330
2025$46.64$46.64$55.282,990

In today's dollars, the median construction manager wage in Kentucky changed by -5.1% over the last ten years of data and by +1.9% since 2019.

Are there more construction manager jobs in Kentucky?

1.5Jobs per 1,000 in the stateconcentration 0.6× the US share, 40th of 49 states

BLS counted 2,990 construction managers in Kentucky in May 2025, an estimate with a relative standard error of 6%. With fewer than 3,000 jobs or a wide margin of error, year-to-year changes are within the survey's noise and are not shown as a trend.

Outlook for construction managers in Kentucky

+3.7%Projected growth in Kentucky2024–2034, state agency
290Openings per yeargrowth plus replacements
3,650Jobs in 20243,790 projected for 2034
+9.1%US projected growth2025-35, BLS, for comparison

Kentucky's labor market agency projects the number of construction managers in the state to change by +3.7% between 2024 and 2034, from 3,650 to 3,790, with about 290 openings a year. Nationally, BLS projects +9.1% over 2025-35. State counts include the self-employed, so the base is larger than the 2,990 counted by the BLS employer survey.

Source: Kentucky labor market information agency via Projections Central, 2024–2034 long-term projections (state projections page).

Is construction work growing in Kentucky?

95.6kConstruction jobsKentucky, 2026-09
+0.1%Change over 12 monthsseasonally unadjusted
Construction employment, 1990-202640k60k80k100k120k1990199520002005201020152020202596kSep 2026
Construction employment in Kentucky (thousands), construction supersector, BLS CES, not seasonally adjusted. Grey bands are recessions.

Contractor pay by county

Average pay at construction establishments by county (all employees, not just construction managers), from the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2025 annual averages. Across the 92 counties that report both years, specialty trade contractor employment (all trades) went from 43,567 in 2015 to 56,410 in 2025, +29.5%.

CountyEstablishmentsEmployeesAverage annual payAvg weekly wage
Monroe County27331$94,871$1,824
Muhlenberg County61428$94,376$1,815
Lewis County18162$90,999$1,750
Harrison County42163$89,297$1,717
Livingston County31787$88,300$1,698
Jefferson County2,09221,821$82,638$1,589
Boyd County1371,655$81,834$1,574
Mason County40439$80,265$1,544
Fayette County92311,077$80,029$1,539
Webster County31492$78,074$1,501
Trimble County2593$77,530$1,491
Henderson County1291,002$76,429$1,470

Keep comparing

Construction manager pay in neighbouring states

Other trades in Kentucky

More on Kentucky

Questions this page answers

How much do construction managers make in Kentucky?

The median construction manager in Kentucky earned $46.64 an hour ($97,020 a year) in May 2025, 16% below the national median of $55.28. The middle half earn $35.76–$64.53; the top 10% earn more than $94.00.

Where does Kentucky rank for construction manager pay?

Kentucky ranks 47th of 51 states for construction manager pay, with a median of $46.64 an hour, and 43rd after adjusting for Kentucky's cost of living (BEA price parity 90.2, US = 100).

What is the union construction manager rate in Kentucky?

Davis-Bacon determinations do not list a construction manager classification for most Kentucky counties, or the trade is not covered; the BLS wage figures above are the best available measure.

How many construction managers work in Kentucky?

BLS counted 2,990 construction managers in Kentucky in May 2025, 1.5 per 1,000 jobs (location quotient 0.61; 1.0 is the national average concentration).

Is construction manager work growing in Kentucky?

Kentucky's labor market agency projects +3.7% growth for construction managers between 2024 and 2034, from 3,650 to 3,790 jobs.

How many construction manager openings a year are there in Kentucky?

Kentucky projects about 290 openings a year for construction managers over 2024–2034, counting both new positions and replacements for people who retire or change occupation. Nationally BLS projects about 49,700 a year.

Sources and notes

  • BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, Kentucky and metro areas, SOC 11-9021. Job counts are survey estimates and exclude the self-employed.
  • BLS Current Employment Statistics, state construction employment through 2026-09.
  • BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2025 annual averages.
  • BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024 (cost-of-living adjustment).
  • SAM.gov Davis-Bacon wage determinations, current revisions as of 2026-11-06. Not the official determination.
  • BLS Employment Projections, national, 2025-35.
  • State projection: Kentucky labor market information agency via Projections Central, 2024–2034, fetched 2026-10-05.