How much do ironworkers make in Indiana in 2026?

The median ironworker in Indiana earns $70,130 a year, which works out to roughly $33.72 an hour based on a standard 2,080-hour work year. That number is the midpoint — half of Indiana's ironworkers earn more, half earn less. It's a solid anchor for anyone sizing up a job offer or deciding whether to stay or move on.

The bottom quarter of earners — those just getting started or working in less demanding settings — land around $56,830 annually, or about $27.32 an hour. Reach the 75th percentile and you're looking at $80,770 a year, roughly $38.83 an hour. That $23,940 spread between the 25th and 75th percentile is wide, and it's not random. Experience, specialization, overtime, and the type of work you're doing all drive where you fall in that range. These figures come from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey, May 2025.

Ironwork in Indiana covers a range of tasks: structural steel erection on commercial and industrial buildings, reinforcing iron and rebar for bridges and infrastructure, ornamental work, and rigging. The work you specialize in matters for pay. Structural ironworkers erecting steel frames on large commercial or industrial projects in the Indianapolis metro, Gary/Northwest Indiana corridor, or Fort Wayne typically command wages closer to or above the median. Workers doing smaller ornamental or miscellaneous iron jobs in rural parts of the state may find themselves closer to the 25th percentile, at least early in their career.

Geography within Indiana plays a real role. The Gary and Hammond area in the northwest is tied closely to the Chicago construction market — one of the busiest in the Midwest — and wages there can reflect that demand. Indianapolis, as the state's largest construction market, drives consistent volume. Smaller metros like South Bend, Evansville, and Terre Haute have active construction scenes but fewer large-scale steel projects, which can limit hours and total annual earnings even if the hourly rate is competitive.

Overtime is a significant factor in this trade. Ironwork is physically demanding and project-driven. When a bridge or building is on a deadline, crews can run 50- to 60-hour weeks for stretches at a time. A worker at the median hourly rate of $33.72 putting in 300 hours of overtime in a year — at time-and-a-half — adds roughly $15,174 on top of their base annual pay. That's the difference between a mid-range and a top-quartile annual income, without any change in base wage.

Apprenticeship is the standard path into this trade. A four-year apprenticeship combines on-the-job training with related technical instruction, progressively increasing pay as you advance through the program. By the time a worker completes their apprenticeship and journeys out, they're typically earning at or near the median wage. Those who pursue additional certifications — welding credentials, rigging endorsements, or crane signaling certifications — often find themselves on higher-paying assignments and in a stronger position when foremen are building out a crew.

Some workers may be covered by a collective bargaining agreement — check with your local for current rates.

The BLS figures here are a reliable baseline, but they have limits worth knowing. The survey captures base wages — it does not count overtime, per diem, travel pay, or benefits like employer-funded pension contributions and health insurance, all of which can add meaningful value to a total compensation package in this trade. If you're comparing two job offers and one comes with strong benefits and steady overtime versus one with a higher hourly rate but fewer hours, the BLS number alone won't tell you which one pays better over a year.

To move up in the pay range, the clearest levers are: accumulating years in the field on complex structural projects, getting welding certified (AWS D1.1 structural welding is particularly valued), developing rigging expertise, and being willing to work in markets where the project volume is highest. Foremen and general foremen earn above journeyman scale, so leadership experience on the job site is another path to higher annual income.

Indiana's construction pipeline — infrastructure funding, industrial expansions, and continued commercial development — keeps demand for qualified ironworkers steady. That demand is part of why the 75th percentile sits nearly $25,000 above the entry-level figure. Workers who put in the time and build the right skills have a clear path to the top of this range.