How much do boilermakers make in Wisconsin in 2026?

The median boilermaker in Wisconsin earns $97,590 per year, which works out to roughly $46.92 per hour based on a standard 2,080-hour work year. That is a strong number by any measure, putting Wisconsin boilermakers well above the national median for many construction trades. The data comes from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey, May 2025 release.

The spread between the bottom and top of the pay range tells you a lot about how this trade works. Workers at the 25th percentile earn $61,770 annually, or about $29.70 per hour. That is typically where you find apprentices in their early years or recently certified journeymen who have not yet built a long project history. The 75th percentile sits at $100,550 per year, roughly $48.34 per hour. The gap between the median and the 75th percentile is narrow — only about $2,960 annually — which suggests that once a Wisconsin boilermaker reaches journeyman standing with solid experience, earnings cluster tightly near the top of the published range. Breaking past $100,550 generally requires consistent work on large industrial shutdowns, refinery outages, or power generation projects where overtime and hazard premiums stack on top of base wages.

Boilermaker work in Wisconsin concentrates around the state's power generation facilities, paper mills, food processing plants, and industrial manufacturing sites. The Fox Valley, Milwaukee metro, and the industrial corridors along Lake Michigan tend to produce the most consistent work volume. Workers in those areas often have access to longer-duration projects and more predictable employment than those working in smaller markets. That geographic reality matters when you are thinking about where to base yourself and which contractors to pursue.

Overtime is a significant factor in this trade that the BLS base figures do not capture on their own. Boilermakers are regularly called for scheduled maintenance outages and emergency repairs that run nights and weekends. A worker at the median base rate of $46.92 per hour earns $70.38 per hour at time-and-a-half. On a shutdown project with 20 hours of overtime in a week, that adds roughly $472 to the weekly check before taxes. Annualized across several outage seasons, overtime can push total compensation well above the published percentiles.

Apprenticeship is the standard entry path. A formal boilermaker apprenticeship typically runs four to five years, combining on-the-job training with related technical instruction. Pay during apprenticeship scales upward as a percentage of the journeyman rate, which is why the 25th percentile figure reflects a wide mix of experience levels rather than a single type of worker. Completing apprenticeship and accumulating a track record on complex vessels — pressure vessels, heat exchangers, steam boilers — is what moves a worker from the 25th toward the median and beyond.

Certifications add measurable value. Welding qualifications, particularly those aligned with ASME codes, are sought after on most industrial boilermaker projects. Workers who hold multiple weld certifications and can qualify on-site for specific procedures are harder to replace, and contractors know it. That leverage typically translates into either higher base rates or priority call for the highest-paying outage work. OSHA 10 and OSHA 30 cards are expected on most industrial sites and should be kept current.

Some boilermakers in Wisconsin work under collective bargaining agreements. If you are covered by one, your pay scale, overtime rules, and benefit contributions are set in that agreement — go to your local's agreement directly for the exact figures. The BLS numbers here represent a blend of union and non-union workers across the state.

The BLS OEWS data has one important limitation worth understanding: it captures base wages paid by employers and does not include the value of employer-paid benefits such as health insurance, pension contributions, or annuity fund payments. For boilermakers whose compensation packages include these components, the total value of employment is higher than the wage figures alone suggest. When comparing offers or evaluating a job change, factor in the full package, not just the hourly rate on the stub.