Data report · June 2026
How much do electricians make by US metro?
We ranked electrician pay across all 50 major US metros using real BLS wage figures. The most-asked version of this question is about Chicago — so here's that answer first, then the full picture, with the cost-of-living catch stated plainly.
The short answer · Chicago
$102,350 median / year
That's the BLS median for electricians in the Chicago metro (Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN), about $49.21/hour. Most Chicago electricians land between $74,400 (25th percentile) and $118,660 (75th percentile). It ranks #2 of 50 metros — among the highest-paid electricians in the country. Source: BLS OEWS May 2025. This is an employer-survey wage; it doesn't count benefits, overtime, or what self-employed electricians bill.
Want the Illinois state picture, with union scale and percentiles? See the full Illinois electrician page.
Read this first
These are raw wages, not adjusted for cost of living. A dollar goes a lot further in St. Louis than in San Francisco, and this ranking does not correct for that. We haven't ingested cost-of-living data, so we don't pretend to adjust for it. Read this as “highest-paying before rent,” not “best place to work.”
But the list is not just expensive cities. Detroit, MI (#6, $81,990) and Minneapolis, MN (#7, $81,890) both pay electricians more than New York (#9, $79,020) and Los Angeles (#18, $73,810) — at a fraction of the rent. Strong building-trades unions, not just cost of living, push electrician pay up.
TradesPays data report
How much electricians make, by metro
Median electrician wage across the top 20 of 50 metros. Raw dollars, not cost-of-living adjusted.
- 1. Portland, OR$105,090
- 2. Chicago, ILChicago$102,350
- 3. Seattle, WA$101,780
- 4. San Francisco, CA$92,830
- 5. San Jose, CA$91,030
- 6. Detroit, MI$81,990
- 7. Minneapolis, MN$81,890
- 8. Boston, MA$79,910
- 9. New York, NY$79,020
- 10. Milwaukee, WI$77,800
- 11. St. Louis, MO$77,170
- 12. Kansas City, MO$76,860
- 13. San Diego, CA$76,160
- 14. Washington, DC$75,930
- 15. Sacramento, CA$74,830
- 16. Philadelphia, PA$74,590
- 17. Providence, RI$73,980
- 18. Los Angeles, CA$73,810
- 19. Riverside, CA$72,790
- 20. Las Vegas, NV$70,890
TradesPays · BLS OEWS May 2025 metropolitan files · electrician median (SOC 47-2111) · raw wages, not cost-of-living adjusted.
Share it: download the chart (PNG) or the dataset (JSON). Every figure traces to BLS OEWS May 2025.
What the numbers say
Portland, OR pays electricians the most ($105,090 median), Orlando, FL the least of the covered metros ($50,820) — a $54,270 spread on the same job. The top of the list isn't the priciest coasts — it's union Portland, Chicago, and Seattle. And the union strongholds keep showing up: Detroit, Minneapolis, Milwaukee, St. Louis, and Kansas City all pay electricians more than New York or Los Angeles, at a fraction of the rent. Where the building trades are organized, the wage follows — cost of living or not.
All 50 metros, ranked
Median electrician wage by metro, with the 25th–75th percentile range (the middle half of electricians). Raw dollars, not cost-of-living adjusted. BLS OEWS May 2025.
| # | Metro | Median | 25th–75th pct |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Portland, OR | $105,090 | $78,930–$125,330 |
| 2 | Chicago, IL | $102,350 | $74,400–$118,660 |
| 3 | Seattle, WA | $101,780 | $75,610–$125,950 |
| 4 | San Francisco, CA | $92,830 | $70,090–$130,260 |
| 5 | San Jose, CA | $91,030 | $63,420–$128,530 |
| 6 | Detroit, MI | $81,990 | $60,250–$94,340 |
| 7 | Minneapolis, MN | $81,890 | $59,320–$104,890 |
| 8 | Boston, MA | $79,910 | $58,300–$102,160 |
| 9 | New York, NY | $79,020 | $61,990–$126,030 |
| 10 | Milwaukee, WI | $77,800 | $57,170–$98,560 |
| 11 | St. Louis, MO | $77,170 | $54,350–$98,690 |
| 12 | Kansas City, MO | $76,860 | $52,850–$97,450 |
| 13 | San Diego, CA | $76,160 | $60,110–$101,760 |
| 14 | Washington, DC | $75,930 | $59,080–$103,270 |
| 15 | Sacramento, CA | $74,830 | $52,720–$98,130 |
| 16 | Philadelphia, PA | $74,590 | $57,900–$104,230 |
| 17 | Providence, RI | $73,980 | $55,370–$94,470 |
| 18 | Los Angeles, CA | $73,810 | $58,830–$101,930 |
| 19 | Riverside, CA | $72,790 | $54,080–$97,530 |
| 20 | Las Vegas, NV | $70,890 | $48,390–$97,170 |
| 21 | Cleveland, OH | $70,860 | $50,350–$86,250 |
| 22 | Pittsburgh, PA | $69,340 | $56,980–$99,050 |
| 23 | Baltimore, MD | $65,590 | $56,080–$91,930 |
| 24 | Baton Rouge, LA | $65,330 | $58,470–$77,800 |
| 25 | Indianapolis, IN | $65,130 | $48,180–$87,300 |
| 26 | Columbus, OH | $64,700 | $50,300–$79,970 |
| 27 | Cincinnati, OH | $63,490 | $49,290–$79,510 |
| 28 | Nashville, TN | $63,340 | $52,200–$78,940 |
| 29 | Denver, CO | $63,150 | $48,920–$79,620 |
| 30 | Salt Lake City, UT | $62,620 | $48,990–$80,190 |
| 31 | Louisville, KY | $62,440 | $48,530–$80,950 |
| 32 | Omaha, NE | $62,440 | $48,880–$80,460 |
| 33 | Virginia Beach, VA | $62,350 | $49,410–$73,670 |
| 34 | Grand Rapids, MI | $62,240 | $47,940–$79,420 |
| 35 | Boise City, ID | $61,610 | $49,050–$82,040 |
| 36 | Richmond, VA | $61,350 | $48,100–$76,500 |
| 37 | Phoenix, AZ | $61,210 | $48,900–$77,060 |
| 38 | Oklahoma City, OK | $61,010 | $46,820–$76,730 |
| 39 | Austin, TX | $60,390 | $47,780–$73,310 |
| 40 | Houston, TX | $59,180 | $47,240–$73,710 |
| 41 | Charlotte, NC | $59,080 | $48,880–$64,380 |
| 42 | Dallas, TX | $59,010 | $47,530–$71,390 |
| 43 | Atlanta, GA | $58,650 | $46,820–$78,910 |
| 44 | Miami, FL | $58,630 | $49,060–$63,220 |
| 45 | Jacksonville, FL | $58,280 | $47,620–$61,440 |
| 46 | Tampa, FL | $57,450 | $48,310–$61,810 |
| 47 | San Antonio, TX | $57,010 | $45,300–$65,750 |
| 48 | Raleigh, NC | $56,800 | $48,740–$61,820 |
| 49 | Birmingham, AL | $56,630 | $47,500–$63,840 |
| 50 | Orlando, FL | $50,820 | $47,310–$59,860 |
Electrician pay questions, answered
- How much do electricians make in Chicago?
- The median electrician wage in the Chicago metro is $102,350 a year (about $49.21/hour), per BLS OEWS May 2025. Half of Chicago metro electricians earn between $74,400 (25th percentile) and $118,660 (75th percentile). It ranks #2 of 50 metros - among the highest-paying in the country. This is the BLS figure for the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin area; it is a before-tax employer-survey wage and does not include benefits, overtime, or self-employment income.
- Which US metro pays electricians the most?
- Of the 50 metros with BLS electrician data, Portland, OR pays the highest median at $105,090 a year, per BLS OEWS May 2025. These are raw wages, not adjusted for cost of living.
- Do electricians make more in expensive coastal cities?
- Not always. In raw BLS dollars, Chicago, IL electricians (median $102,350, rank #2) out-earn San Francisco, CA electricians (median $92,830, rank #4) - and Chicago is far cheaper to live in (BLS OEWS May 2025). Strong building-trades unions, not just local cost of living, push electrician wages up. We don't cost-of-living adjust, so read the ranking as "highest-paying before rent," not "best place to work."
- How much do electricians make in New York?
- The median electrician wage in the New York metro is $79,020 a year ($61,990 to $126,030 between the 25th and 75th percentiles), per BLS OEWS May 2025. It ranks #9 of 50 metros. This covers the New York-Newark-Jersey City area, not the five boroughs alone.
- How much do electricians make in Los Angeles?
- The median electrician wage in the Los Angeles metro is $73,810 a year ($58,830 to $101,930 between the 25th and 75th percentiles), per BLS OEWS May 2025.
- How much do electricians make in Houston?
- The median electrician wage in the Houston metro is $59,180 a year ($47,240 to $73,710 between the 25th and 75th percentiles), per BLS OEWS May 2025.
- What is the typical electrician wage across major US metros?
- Across the 50 metros with BLS electrician data, the metro medians run from $50,820 (Orlando, FL) to $105,090 (Portland, OR), a $54,270 spread. The middle of that set sits near $64,915. That figure describes these metros, not a national average. All numbers are BLS OEWS May 2025 medians.
What this is not
The numbers are real BLS medians. Read honestly, here is what they can and can't tell you.
Not cost-of-living adjusted.
Expensive metros rank high partly because they're expensive. Portland, OR dollars and Orlando, FL dollars don't buy the same life. We didn't adjust, and we won't pretend a high raw wage means a high real one.
Not total compensation.
OEWS is an employer wage survey. It leaves out benefits, overtime, and self-employment income — and plenty of electricians run their own shop. Treat this as the W-2 wage line, not everything an electrician takes home.
A metro, not a neighborhood.
BLS metros are whole commuting areas. The "Chicago" figure covers Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN, not the city alone.
Full electrician coverage, on purpose.
BLS published electrician wages for all 50 of 50 metros in our set, so nothing here is imputed or dropped. But these are the 50 metros with the most skilled-trades employment — a smaller metro could pay more and not appear.
One snapshot, not a trend.
Every figure is the single BLS OEWS May 2025 vintage. It's a point in time, not a trajectory.
Methodology
- Source
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2025, metropolitan (CBSA) files, for electricians (SOC 47-2111). Annual 25th/50th/75th-percentile wages by metro. Public domain.
- Metros covered
- The 50 US metros with the most combined skilled-trades employment. Each is a Metropolitan Statistical Area (BLS area type 4); no metropolitan divisions, so there's no parent/child double-counting. BLS published electrician wages in all 50 (100% coverage) — nothing imputed.
- How a metro is ranked
- By its raw BLS annual median (p50) electrician wage. Ties break on metro name. No figure is modeled, blended, or cost-of-living adjusted.
- The percentile range
- The 25th–75th percentile columns are the BLS p25 and p75 — the band the middle half of electricians in that metro fall within. We show it so a single median can't hide a wide spread.
- Known limitations
- Raw wages, no cost-of-living adjustment. OEWS measures wages, not total compensation (no benefits, overtime, or self-employment). A single May 2025 vintage; not a trend.
More on how we source everything: our methodology. See also the electrician pay hub for state-by-state numbers and union scale, the companion plumber pay by metro report, and the highest-paying metros across all trades.
Know what electricians really make in your metro?
BLS gives the median. It can't tell you what the shop down the road is actually paying. Send us your metro and your pay. We publish anonymously, never with a raw email address.