How much do brickmasons make in Wisconsin in 2026?

The median brickmason in Wisconsin earns $80,120 a year, which works out to roughly $38.52 an hour based on a standard 2,080-hour work year. That number sits in the middle of the range — half of Wisconsin brickmasons earn more, half earn less. If you're just starting out or working in a slower market, the 25th percentile comes in at $61,550 a year ($29.59/hr). Experienced masons in busier markets reach the 75th percentile at $96,970 annually ($46.62/hr). That's a spread of more than $35,000 between the lower and upper ends of typical pay, which tells you experience and location move the needle significantly in this trade.

The gap between the 25th and 75th percentile is worth paying attention to. A mason clearing $29.59 an hour and one clearing $46.62 an hour may be doing similar work — laying brick, block, and stone — but the differences come down to years on the tools, the complexity of jobs they can handle, their reputation with contractors, and where in the state they're working. Getting from the bottom quartile to the top isn't just about time served; it's about expanding what you can do on the job.

Geography within Wisconsin matters. The Milwaukee metro area and the broader southeastern part of the state have more commercial and industrial construction activity than rural central or northern Wisconsin. More activity means more competition among contractors for qualified masons, which tends to push wages up. If you're willing to travel or relocate for larger commercial projects, you can often find work that pays above the state median.

Seasonality is a real factor for Wisconsin brickmasons. Masonry work slows in winter because mortar doesn't set properly in freezing temperatures, and most exterior work stalls out. That means a significant share of masons either shift to interior work, take on repairs, or reduce their hours from roughly November through March. The annual figures from BLS reflect average annual earnings, but what a mason actually takes home in a given year depends on how many weeks they work. Masons who line up interior commercial work through winter protect their annual income far better than those who go idle.

Overtime in busy seasons can add meaningfully to total earnings. A mason putting in 50-hour weeks during the spring and summer construction push — which is common on larger commercial projects — earns time-and-a-half beyond 40 hours under federal law. Even at the median base rate of $38.52/hr, overtime hours pay out at $57.78/hr. Four months of consistent overtime can push a median-wage mason's annual take well above $80,120.

The path into the trade in Wisconsin typically runs through an apprenticeship program, which combines paid on-the-job training with classroom instruction covering layout, mortar mixing ratios, materials, and blueprint reading. Apprentices start at a percentage of journeyman wages and step up as they progress. Completing a formal apprenticeship is one of the clearest ways to close the gap between entry-level pay and journeyman-level wages faster than simply accumulating years on the job.

There is no state licensing requirement specific to brickmasons in Wisconsin, but individual municipalities may have their own requirements, and contractors typically expect apprenticeship completion or demonstrated experience before putting someone on skilled work. Some workers may be covered by a collective bargaining agreement — check with your local for current rates.

The BLS OEWS figures used here come from employer surveys and represent wage and salary workers. They do not capture self-employed masons who own their own contracting businesses, where total earnings can look quite different depending on how much work they bring in. The figures also don't separate specialty masonry (decorative stonework, restoration work on historic structures) from standard residential or commercial brick and block work, even though those specialty areas often command a premium.

For a Wisconsin brickmason looking to raise their pay, the most direct levers are: moving into commercial and industrial work rather than staying on residential projects, developing skills in restoration and historic masonry (a niche with less competition and higher rates), taking on lead or foreman responsibilities, and staying geographically flexible to follow the larger contracts. The $35,000-plus range between the 25th and 75th percentile shows there's real room to grow — the ceiling in this trade is higher than the floor by a significant margin.