How much do elevator installers make in Texas in 2026?

The median elevator installer salary in Texas is $102,140 per year, which works out to roughly $49.11 per hour based on a standard 2,080-hour work year. That number sits well above what most other construction trades earn in the state, reflecting the specialized licensing, technical training, and physical demands this work requires.

Pay varies meaningfully depending on experience and employer. Workers at the 25th percentile — typically those newer to the trade or in lower-cost markets — earn around $74,180 per year, or about $35.66 per hour. Workers at the 75th percentile earn $109,650 per year, or roughly $52.72 per hour. That $35,470 spread between the bottom and top quartile tells you there's real upside as you build hours and move into more complex work.

Elevator installation in Texas covers a wide range of equipment: traction elevators in high-rise commercial buildings, hydraulic lifts in smaller structures, escalators in transit hubs and shopping centers, and accessibility equipment. Workers who specialize in the more complex traction systems — particularly high-rise units in cities like Houston, Dallas, and Austin — tend to command higher pay because the work demands precision, a working knowledge of electrical and mechanical systems, and code compliance under the Texas Department of Insurance, which oversees elevator licensing in the state.

Texas requires elevator mechanics to hold a state license issued through the TDI Elevator Safety program. Getting that license involves completing an apprenticeship — typically four years of on-the-job training combined with technical coursework — and passing a state exam. Until that license is in hand, you're working under a licensed mechanic, and your pay will reflect that. The 25th-percentile figure is the realistic starting zone for newer apprentices and helpers who have not yet reached journeyman status.

Geography within Texas matters. The Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex, Houston, and Austin all have heavy concentrations of commercial construction and high-rise development, which drives demand for elevator mechanics and supports wages at the higher end of the range. Smaller markets and rural areas generate less elevator work and tend to offer fewer hours rather than dramatically lower rates, since most elevator contractors dispatch crews statewide for major jobs.

Overtime is a real factor in this trade. Large construction projects run on deadlines, and elevator installation is often one of the last systems to be completed before a building is commissioned. That creates concentrated bursts of overtime hours — sometimes 50- to 60-hour weeks — particularly during a building's final push to certificate of occupancy. Because elevator mechanics are typically non-exempt hourly workers, that overtime pays at 1.5 times the base rate. A mechanic earning $49/hr base clears roughly $73.50/hr on overtime hours, which can add thousands of dollars to annual take-home during a busy stretch.

Some elevator installers in Texas work under collective bargaining agreements, while others work for open-shop contractors. If you work under a union contract, your pay, benefits, and working conditions are set by that agreement — check directly with your local's contract for the specific scale. No union-specific pay data is included here.

The BLS OEWS figures used on this page capture base wages and salaries but do not include overtime earnings, per diem, travel pay, or the value of benefits like health insurance and pension contributions. For elevator mechanics working under strong benefit packages, total compensation can run considerably higher than the wage figures alone suggest.

To push your pay toward the 75th percentile and beyond, the clearest path is accumulating years of journeyman experience, maintaining your Texas license in good standing, and developing expertise in high-voltage traction systems, modernization projects, and computer-controlled drive systems. Mechanics who can handle modernization work — retrofitting older hydraulic or relay-logic systems with newer solid-state controls — are in consistent demand and rarely lack for hours.

All figures on this page come from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program, May 2025 release.