Skilled Wages

Plumber salary in New Mexico

Median $29.54 an hour for 2,830 plumbers, May 2025, with the union scale by county, the job trend since 1999 and the state's own outlook.

$29.54/hrMedian hourly wageNew Mexico, May data
$61,440/yrMedian annual payfull-time equivalent
$17.39 – $42.1610th to 90th percentilehourly range
2,830Jobs countedemployer survey

Data compiled by Skilled WagesBLS OEWS May 2025; prevailing wage as of 2026-11-13

Plumber pay in New Mexico: the full range

Wage percentiles, New MexicoMarket wage, 10th-90th pctU.S. reference$0$20$40$60/hrNew Mexico: 10th $17.39 · 25th $21.72 · median $29.54 · 75th $37.60 · 90th $42.16New Mexico$29.54$17.39$42.16United States: 10th $21.22 · 25th $24.13 · median $30.67 · 75th $40.92 · 90th $52.13United States$30.67
Hourly wage percentiles for plumbers: New Mexico vs United States, May 2025.

New Mexico ranks 36th of 51 states for median plumber pay, and 27th once adjusted for cost of living (the cost-of-living-adjusted median is $32.04). 2,830 plumbers work in the state. The top 10% earn 2.4× what the bottom 10% earn.

Career stage (approximate)HourlyAnnualWhere it sits in the distribution
Apprentice / entry level$17.39 – $21.72$36,160 – $45,190roughly the 10th to 25th percentile
Journeyman$21.72 – $37.60$45,190 – $78,210the middle half, around the median
Master, foreman or specialist$37.60 – $42.16$78,210 – $87,700the 75th to 90th percentile and above

Where does your pay fall?



Plumber pay by metro in New Mexico

Ranked median wages$0$10$20$30$40/hrAlbuquerque: $30.72Albuquerque$30.72Las Cruces: $26.23Las Cruces$26.23Santa Fe: $24.13Santa Fe$24.13Farmington: $23.55Farmington$23.55
Median hourly wage for plumbers by metro area in New Mexico, May 2025.
Metro10thMedian $/hrCost-of-living adjusted90thJobsvs state
Albuquerque$17.93$30.72$32.17$42.271,4404% above
Las Cruces$17.38$26.23$29.08$37.6418011% below
Santa Fe$17.82$24.13$24.42$37.5716018% below
Farmington$17.17$23.55$26.85$38.0223020% below

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

Plumber wages in New Mexico over time

New Mexico, 1999-2025New MexicoUnited StatesSOC 2010SOC 2018 / Method changeExact wages$10$15$20$25$30$35200020052010201520202025$30.67United States$29.54New Mexico
Median hourly wage for plumbers, New Mexico vs United States, 1999–2025, nominal dollars.
Table
YearNew Mexico $/hrIn 2025 $US $/hrJobs
1999$14.28$27.60$17.411,800
2000$15.52$29.02$18.192,130
2001$16.72$30.39$18.612,400
2002$17.00$30.42$19.312,470
2003$17.48$30.58$19.692,510
2004$18.57$31.65$19.852,510
2005$17.06$28.12$20.272,570
2006$17.02$27.18$20.562,900
2007$17.55$27.25$21.203,140
2008$18.47$27.62$21.943,430
2009$20.12$30.19$22.273,770
2010$19.73$29.13$22.433,130
2011$20.92$29.94$22.962,950
2012$19.79$27.75$23.622,070
2013$21.46$29.66$24.132,130
2014$21.94$29.84$24.362,120
2015$20.70$28.12$24.342,300
2016$20.22$27.12$24.742,360
2017$20.57$27.02$25.282,540
2018$20.61$26.42$25.922,560
2019$21.28$26.80$26.522,290
2020$21.06$26.20$27.082,440
2021$22.65$26.91$28.793,120
2022$23.21$25.53$28.893,130
2023$24.48$25.87$29.592,890
2024$28.68$29.43$30.272,900
2025$29.54$29.54$30.672,830

In today's dollars, the median plumber wage in New Mexico changed by +5.1% over the last ten years of data and by +10.2% since 2019.

Are there more plumber jobs in New Mexico?

3.2Jobs per 1,000 in the stateconcentration 1.1× the US share, 27th of 51 states

BLS counted 2,830 plumbers in New Mexico in May 2025, an estimate with a relative standard error of 9%. 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 plumbers in New Mexico

+6.9%Projected growth in New Mexico2024–2034, state agency
290Openings per yeargrowth plus replacements
3,160Jobs in 20243,380 projected for 2034
+6.8%US projected growth2025-35, BLS, for comparison

New Mexico's labor market agency projects the number of plumbers in the state to change by +6.9% between 2024 and 2034, from 3,160 to 3,380, with about 290 openings a year. Nationally, BLS projects +6.8% over 2025-35. State counts include the self-employed, so the base is larger than the 2,830 counted by the BLS employer survey.

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

Union scale and prevailing wage for plumbers in New Mexico

On federally funded construction in New Mexico, contractors must pay plumbers at least the Davis-Bacon rate for the county. 33 of the 33 counties with a Building rate use a union contract rate (typical package $59.67 an hour including fringe); the rest use a survey rate (typical —). The market median for the state is $29.54.

Union contract rateSurvey rate
Union / prevailing package, $/hr, NMBernalillo: $59.67 (union)Catron: $59.67 (union)Chaves: $59.67 (union)Cibola: $59.67 (union)Colfax: $59.67 (union)Curry: $59.67 (union)De Baca: $59.67 (union)Doña Ana: $59.67 (union)Eddy: $59.67 (union)Grant: $59.67 (union)Guadalupe: $59.67 (union)Harding: $59.67 (union)Hidalgo: $59.67 (union)Lea: $59.67 (union)Lincoln: $59.67 (union)Los Alamos: $59.67 (union)Luna: $59.67 (union)McKinley: $59.67 (union)Mora: $59.67 (union)Otero: $59.67 (union)Quay: $59.67 (union)Rio Arriba: $59.67 (union)Roosevelt: $59.67 (union)Sandoval: $59.67 (union)San Juan: $59.67 (union)San Miguel: $59.67 (union)Santa Fe: $59.67 (union)Sierra: $59.67 (union)Socorro: $59.67 (union)Taos: $59.67 (union)Torrance: $59.67 (union)Union: $59.67 (union)Valencia: $59.67 (union)Union / prevailing package, $/hr
Davis-Bacon base + fringe for plumbers by county, Building construction. Hatched counties use a survey rate rather than a union contract.
Market median vs prevailing wage by countyMarket medianPrevailing (union)$20$40$60$80/hrSan Juan (Farmington): market median $23.55, prevailing (union) $59.67, gap +$36.12San Juan (Farmington)+$36.12Santa Fe (Santa Fe): market median $24.13, prevailing (union) $59.67, gap +$35.54Santa Fe (Santa Fe)+$35.54Doña Ana (Las Cruces): market median $26.23, prevailing (union) $59.67, gap +$33.44Doña Ana (Las Cruces)+$33.44Bernalillo (Albuquerque): market median $30.72, prevailing (union) $59.67, gap +$28.95Bernalillo (Albuquerque)+$28.95
Market median (BLS metro wage) vs the Davis-Bacon package (base + fringe) for plumbers, metro counties in New Mexico.
CountyRate sourceBaseFringeTotalDetermination
BernalilloUnion PLUM0412-014 2025-01-02$43.07$16.60$59.67NM20260044
CatronUnion PLUM0412-007 2025-01-02$43.07$16.60$59.67NM20260013
ChavesUnion PLUM0412-007 2025-01-02$43.07$16.60$59.67NM20260014
CibolaUnion PLUM0412-007 2025-01-02$43.07$16.60$59.67NM20260031
ColfaxUnion PLUM0412-007 2025-01-02$43.07$16.60$59.67NM20260015
CurryUnion PLUM0412-007 2025-01-02$43.07$16.60$59.67NM20260016
De BacaUnion PLUM0412-007 2025-01-02$43.07$16.60$59.67NM20260017
Doña AnaUnion PLUM0412-018 2025-01-02$43.07$16.60$59.67NM20260045
EddyUnion PLUM0412-007 2025-01-02$43.07$16.60$59.67NM20260018
GrantUnion PLUM0412-007 2025-01-02$43.07$16.60$59.67NM20260019
GuadalupeUnion PLUM0412-007 2025-01-02$43.07$16.60$59.67NM20260031
HardingUnion PLUM0412-007 2025-01-02$43.07$16.60$59.67NM20260031
HidalgoUnion PLUM0412-007 2025-01-02$43.07$16.60$59.67NM20260032
LeaUnion PLUM0412-007 2025-01-02$43.07$16.60$59.67NM20260020
LincolnUnion PLUM0412-007 2025-01-02$43.07$16.60$59.67NM20260021

Building construction type, current revisions as of 2026-11-13. Residential, Heavy and Highway rates differ; look them up on the New Mexico prevailing wage page. This is not the official wage determination.

Is construction work growing in New Mexico?

58.0kConstruction jobsNew Mexico, 2026-09
+5.1%Change over 12 monthsseasonally unadjusted
Construction employment, 1990-202620k30k40k50k60k70k1990199520002005201020152020202558kSep 2026
Construction employment in New Mexico (thousands), construction supersector, BLS CES, not seasonally adjusted. Grey bands are recessions.

Contractor pay by county

Average pay at plumbing, heating and air-conditioning contractors establishments by county (all employees, not just plumbers), from the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2025 annual averages. Across the 22 counties that report both years, specialty trade contractor employment (all trades) went from 22,922 in 2015 to 28,689 in 2025, +25.2%.

CountyEstablishmentsEmployeesAverage annual payAvg weekly wage
Luna County765$205,782$3,957
Bernalillo County2583,449$73,171$1,407
Sandoval County46282$68,377$1,315
San Juan County32383$65,842$1,266
Santa Fe County80499$61,032$1,174
Doña Ana County63614$56,931$1,095
Taos County2192$53,938$1,037
San Miguel County755$52,958$1,018
Rio Arriba County1028$51,765$995
Chaves County27192$51,519$991
Curry County12340$50,622$973
McKinley County10193$48,872$940

Keep comparing

Plumber pay in neighbouring states

Other trades in New Mexico

More on New Mexico

Questions this page answers

How much do plumbers make in New Mexico?

The median plumber in New Mexico earned $29.54 an hour ($61,440 a year) in May 2025, 4% below the national median of $30.67. The middle half earn $21.72–$37.60; the top 10% earn more than $42.16.

Where does New Mexico rank for plumber pay?

New Mexico ranks 36th of 51 states for plumber pay, with a median of $29.54 an hour, and 27th after adjusting for New Mexico's cost of living (BEA price parity 92.2, US = 100).

What is the union plumber rate in New Mexico?

Davis-Bacon determinations list a union contract rate for plumbers in 33 counties, with a typical package of $59.67 an hour including fringe benefits; see the county table above.

How many plumbers work in New Mexico?

BLS counted 2,830 plumbers in New Mexico in May 2025, 3.2 per 1,000 jobs (location quotient 1.09; 1.0 is the national average concentration).

Is plumber work growing in New Mexico?

New Mexico's labor market agency projects +6.9% growth for plumbers between 2024 and 2034, from 3,160 to 3,380 jobs.

How many plumber openings a year are there in New Mexico?

New Mexico projects about 290 openings a year for plumbers over 2024–2034, counting both new positions and replacements for people who retire or change occupation. Nationally BLS projects about 42,000 a year.

Sources and notes

  • BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, New Mexico and metro areas, SOC 47-2152. 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 2026-11-13. Not the official determination.
  • BLS Employment Projections, national, 2025-35.
  • State projection: New Mexico labor market information agency via Projections Central, 2024–2034, fetched 2026-10-05.