How much do plumbers make: Plumber Pay Benchmark
The median published figure in the Plumber Pay Benchmark is 29.20 USD across 6 figures from 3 sources' own pages (range 18.22 to 32.62 USD), read 12 September 2026.
RoughInDesk sells its own paid plan in this category (our pricing). It is not counted here: every figure in this index is another provider's own published price, read from its own page.
3 of the 6 named sources read in full publish a figure; 3 publish none, read 12 September 2026.
By state and time and licence level
| Breakdown | Median | Range | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| stateUnited States (OES mean hourly) | 32.62USD | 32.62 to 32.62USD | 1 |
| stateUnited States (OES median hourly) | 29.59USD | 29.59 to 29.59USD | 1 |
| timeMay 2025 (OOH median hourly) | 30.67USD | 30.67 to 30.67USD | 1 |
| time2026 (PayScale average hourly) | 28.81USD | 28.81 to 28.81USD | 1 |
| licence levelentry level, under 1 year | 18.22USD | 18.22 to 18.22USD | 1 |
| licence levelearly career, 1 to 4 years | 23.56USD | 23.56 to 23.56USD | 1 |
Every figure, with its source
One row per source: the figure the source's own page publishes, the page, and the day it was read. A figure that is not on a page we read is not on this one.
| Source | Figure | Breakdown | Read |
|---|---|---|---|
| BLS OES 47-2152, May 2023 | 32.62USD | United States (OES mean hourly) | 2026-09-11 |
| BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook - plumbers, pipefitters and steamfitters | 30.67USD | May 2025 (OOH median hourly) | 2026-09-12 |
| BLS OES 47-2152, May 2023 | 29.59USD | United States (OES median hourly) | 2026-09-11 |
| PayScale plumber hourly rate | 28.81USD | 2026 (PayScale average hourly) | 2026-09-12 |
| PayScale plumber hourly rate | 23.56USD | early career, 1 to 4 years | 2026-09-12 |
| PayScale plumber hourly rate | 18.22USD | entry level, under 1 year | 2026-09-12 |
The sentence each figure was read from (6)
- BLS OES 47-2152, May 2023, read 2026-09-11:
wage (2) Wage RSE (3) 436,160 1.0 % $ 32.62 $ 67,840 0.6 %
- BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook - plumbers, pipefitters and steamfitters, read 2026-09-12:
$30.67 per hour
- BLS OES 47-2152, May 2023, read 2026-09-11:
Hourly Wage $ 18.60 $ 22.99 $ 29.59 $ 38.56 $ 49.59
- PayScale plumber hourly rate, read 2026-09-12:
The average hourly pay for a Plumber is $28.81 in 2026
- PayScale plumber hourly rate, read 2026-09-12:
An early career Plumber with 1-4 years of experience earns an average total compensation of $23.56 based on 397 salaries.
- PayScale plumber hourly rate, read 2026-09-12:
An entry-level Plumber with less than 1 year experience can expect to earn an average total compensation (includes tips, bonus, and overtime pay) of $18.22 based on 51 salaries.
Read in full, publishes no figure
3 named sources were read in full on the dates shown and print no usable figure. They are counted, never filled in.
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics 47-2152, current, read 2026-09-12: every candidate on the page was refused
- Apprenticeship.gov, read 2026-09-12: read in full and no accepted figure on the page
- the wage series per jurisdiction, read 2026-09-12: every candidate on the page was refused
Methodology
Every row is a verbatim sentence read from the named source's own page through our fetch service on the date shown, hash-pinned to the stored read (the sha of the page's visible text; the raw page is mirrored to R2).
3 of the 6 named sources that could be read published a usable figure; 3 published none and are recorded as not published, never filled in; 1 could not be read (blocked, dead or unreachable) and count nowhere.
The headline figures (median, minimum, maximum, quartiles) are over ONE figure per source in USD (a source's median where its page yielded several accepted sentences), so N counts sources, never sentences; 38 candidate sentence(s) were refused by a reviewer with the reason recorded.
The fuller derivation this dataset is chartered to grow into (not yet what the figures above are; they are each source's own published figure as read): the BLS OES wage for SOC 47-2152 by state and metropolitan area, set beside the hourly rate contractors publish in the same metro from the job price index; the gap between what the trade charges per hour and what it pays per hour - the loaded-labour multiple by metro - is the figure nobody publishes, and it is the number a contractor setting a price book needs
38 candidate sentences on these pages were refused by a reviewer; each refusal and its reason is recorded in the review ledger.
Sources (7)
- BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook - plumbers, pipefitters and steamfitters(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics 47-2152, current(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- BLS OES 47-2152, May 2023(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- Apprenticeship.gov(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- PayScale plumber hourly rate(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wages news release (PDF)(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- the wage series per jurisdiction(the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
Cite or embed this figure
Cite or embed this figure
The median published figure in the Plumber Pay Benchmark is 29.20 USD across 6 figures from 3 sources' own pages (range 18.22 to 32.62 USD), read 12 September 2026.
3 of the 6 named sources read in full publish a figure; 3 publish none, read 12 September 2026.
Plumber Pay Benchmark, state United States (OES mean hourly): median 32.62 USD across 1 source, read 12 September 2026.
Plumber Pay Benchmark, state United States (OES median hourly): median 29.59 USD across 1 source, read 12 September 2026.
Plumber Pay Benchmark, time May 2025 (OOH median hourly): median 30.67 USD across 1 source, read 12 September 2026.
Plumber Pay Benchmark, time 2026 (PayScale average hourly): median 28.81 USD across 1 source, read 12 September 2026.
Plumber Pay Benchmark, licence level entry level, under 1 year: median 18.22 USD across 1 source, read 12 September 2026.
Plumber Pay Benchmark, licence level early career, 1 to 4 years: median 23.56 USD across 1 source, read 12 September 2026.
Cite as: "RoughInDesk Plumber Pay Benchmark", updated 2026-10-05, https://roughindesk.com/datasets/plumber-pay-benchmark/.
Download the CSV (6 rows, computed 2026-10-05)