Paperhangers
Median $52,140
Occupation · SOC 47-2141
Painters, Construction and Maintenance: pay and where the jobs are
What painters, construction and maintenance earn in the U.S., how pay varies across workers and states, and tools to plan around it.
National pay, May 2025
$49,400 median annual wage
- Mean (average) annual wage
- $55,420
- Median hourly wage
- $23.75
- Mean hourly wage
- $26.64
- Employment
- 225,190
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 47-2141.
Check your pay
See where your pay falls among painters, construction and maintenance nationally and in your state. Nothing you type leaves your browser.
Enter your pay to see where it falls.
Use these numbers
How much do painters, construction and maintenance make?
The median annual wage for painters, construction and maintenance was $49,400 in May 2025, so half of workers earned more and half earned less. The lowest-paid 10% earned less than $37,440 and the highest-paid 10% more than $78,810. As an hourly rate, the median is $23.75. About 225,190 people work in this occupation nationwide. The highest state medians are in Hawaii ($68,220), Illinois ($61,260) and Alaska ($60,980). After taxes and local prices, though, a median paycheck goes furthest in North Dakota.
Pay ladder
What each step of the pay range for painters, construction and maintenance looks like per month. Take-home here includes federal tax, Social Security and Medicare for a single filer; add your state in the paycheck calculator.
| Step | Annual | Hourly | Monthly gross | Monthly after federal tax & FICA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $37,440 | $18.00 | $3,120 | $2,689 |
| 25th percentile | $44,640 | $21.46 | $3,720 | $3,171 |
| Median | $49,400 | $23.75 | $4,117 | $3,489 |
| 75th percentile | $61,660 | $29.65 | $5,138 | $4,310 |
| 90th percentile | $78,810 | $37.89 | $6,568 | $5,356 |
Painters, Construction and Maintenance: pay by state
54 states and territories have a published median, sorted from highest to lowest. The last two columns are our estimates: the median after 2026 federal and state taxes, and that take-home restated in national-average prices.
1
$52,011 take-home in national prices
2
$51,338 take-home in national prices
3
$49,733 take-home in national prices
Where a median painters, construction and maintenance paycheck goes furthest after 2026 taxes and BEA price levels.
| State | Employment | Median | 10th pct. | 90th pct. | Median after tax* | In national prices† |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hawaii | 1,900 | $68,220 | $47,090 | $90,830 | $53,101 | $48,295 |
| Illinois | 6,820 | $61,260 | $40,820 | $105,350 | $48,515 | $48,535 |
| Alaska | 440 | $60,980 | $43,880 | $85,440 | $50,906 | $49,733 |
| Washington | 9,510 | $59,650 | $45,450 | $80,330 | $49,281 | $46,052 |
| New York | 13,040 | $59,570 | $45,660 | $111,550 | $47,136 | $43,677 |
| District of Columbia | 500 | $59,520 | $46,780 | $81,390 | $47,582 | $43,295 |
| Maine | 2,120 | $59,270 | $47,320 | $75,530 | $47,184 | $48,618 |
| New Jersey | 4,110 | $59,250 | $37,680 | $95,950 | $47,622 | $43,768 |
| California | 38,430 | $59,020 | $42,130 | $91,000 | $47,255 | $42,679 |
| Delaware | 480 | $58,530 | $35,070 | $70,350 | $46,403 | $46,492 |
| Connecticut | 2,230 | $58,480 | $40,120 | $92,390 | $46,410 | $44,793 |
| Montana | 920 | $58,290 | $35,160 | $69,510 | $47,033 | $49,694 |
| Massachusetts | 4,430 | $57,510 | $43,520 | $109,850 | $45,469 | $42,994 |
| Missouri | 3,980 | $57,510 | $39,150 | $79,600 | $46,624 | $51,338 |
| Minnesota | 3,810 | $57,270 | $36,460 | $87,970 | $45,573 | $46,211 |
| Nevada | 4,120 | $56,390 | $41,430 | $98,190 | $47,489 | $47,499 |
| North Dakota | 420 | $54,870 | $36,840 | $78,290 | $46,268 | $52,011 |
| Vermont | 550 | $53,120 | $48,060 | $64,000 | $43,516 | $44,423 |
| Colorado | 3,480 | $52,970 | $40,570 | $77,710 | $42,886 | $41,616 |
| Pennsylvania | 5,980 | $52,120 | $37,250 | $72,230 | $42,422 | $43,477 |
| Michigan | 4,920 | $50,650 | $37,440 | $75,670 | $40,975 | $42,586 |
| Indiana | 3,510 | $50,260 | $36,410 | $69,520 | $41,111 | $44,049 |
| Wisconsin | 3,350 | $50,090 | $37,870 | $75,040 | $40,846 | $43,409 |
| Iowa | 1,770 | $49,710 | $37,080 | $67,010 | $40,885 | $46,586 |
| New Hampshire | 910 | $49,670 | $40,830 | $63,530 | $42,090 | $40,407 |
| Ohio | 5,600 | $49,450 | $37,060 | $74,400 | $40,997 | $44,190 |
| Maryland | 3,750 | $49,120 | $40,560 | $78,050 | $39,681 | $37,806 |
| Oregon | 5,410 | $48,900 | $38,260 | $73,560 | $38,058 | $36,821 |
| Georgia | 2,760 | $48,340 | $36,690 | $68,060 | $39,358 | $40,873 |
| Arizona | 5,210 | $48,250 | $40,180 | $63,640 | $40,136 | $39,866 |
| South Dakota | 670 | $48,160 | $35,900 | $59,560 | $40,877 | $46,143 |
| Kentucky | 1,390 | $48,110 | $35,900 | $64,720 | $39,270 | $43,557 |
| Florida | 22,450 | $47,530 | $36,700 | $61,300 | $40,370 | $39,038 |
| Virginia | 5,930 | $47,470 | $36,400 | $63,310 | $38,407 | $37,987 |
| Nebraska | 1,590 | $47,280 | $33,410 | $57,990 | $38,898 | $43,170 |
| Wyoming | 480 | $47,220 | $31,360 | $62,580 | $40,121 | $43,285 |
| Louisiana | 4,090 | $46,410 | $32,000 | $59,330 | $38,464 | $43,607 |
| New Mexico | 1,010 | $46,240 | $37,760 | $70,560 | $38,313 | $41,549 |
| Utah | 3,510 | $46,050 | $36,220 | $65,780 | $37,736 | $38,170 |
| Kansas | 1,570 | $45,510 | $33,780 | $58,510 | $37,008 | $41,088 |
| Texas | 18,330 | $45,460 | $35,870 | $58,910 | $38,707 | $39,881 |
| Oklahoma | 1,880 | $44,900 | $30,650 | $67,410 | $36,782 | $41,873 |
| Idaho | 2,040 | $44,880 | $34,390 | $60,890 | $36,971 | $38,715 |
| Mississippi | 1,060 | $44,800 | $34,530 | $64,720 | $37,117 | $42,686 |
| West Virginia | 720 | $44,230 | $29,200 | $63,640 | $36,518 | $40,804 |
| North Carolina | 5,220 | $44,110 | $33,410 | $58,300 | $36,371 | $38,559 |
| Alabama | 1,570 | $43,930 | $34,190 | $57,490 | $35,676 | $40,165 |
| Tennessee | 3,040 | $43,230 | $35,110 | $61,030 | $36,915 | $40,182 |
| Virgin Islands | 40 | $42,520 | $29,160 | $48,100 | — | — |
| Rhode Island | 1,160 | $41,590 | $31,200 | $64,410 | $34,197 | $33,435 |
| South Carolina | 2,080 | $40,840 | $27,240 | $57,520 | $34,476 | $36,775 |
| Arkansas | 890 | $40,090 | $31,150 | $54,610 | $33,397 | $38,415 |
| Guam | 330 | $32,960 | $30,850 | $42,320 | — | — |
| Puerto Rico | 600 | $24,070 | $22,160 | $36,160 | — | — |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 47-2141. *Our estimate for a single filer paid biweekly with no pre-tax deductions or local tax, 2026 federal and state rules. †Take-home ÷ BEA Regional Price Parity × 100 (2024 price levels).
Sources
- OEWS May 2025 (oesm25nat.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.
- OEWS May 2025 (oesm25st.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.