Electrician Salary (2026), outlook and how to become one

Electricians earn a median of $63,190 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025), 24% above the $50,980 US median across all occupations. That works out at $30.38/hr. The middle half earn between $49,430 and $83,940. The top 10% earn $108,510 or more.

The median hourly wage for electricians is $30.38 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). On a full-year basis the $63,190 annual median works out to about $5,270 a month before tax.

BLS does not publish a starting salary. The nearest measure is the low end of the pay range: the lowest-paid 10% of electricians earn less than $42,640 a year and the bottom quarter less than $49,430 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). New workers often start near that end, but where a particular job starts depends on the employer, the state and the credentials you bring, so read these as the bottom of the range rather than a guaranteed entry wage.

A minority do. $100,000 sits between the 75th percentile ($83,940) and the 90th ($108,510), so roughly 10% to 25% of electricians earn more than that (BLS OEWS, May 2025). One state has a median above $100,000: Oregon ($101,310).

The highest state medians for Electricians are Oregon ($101,310), Illinois ($99,560), Hawaii ($96,460) (BLS OEWS, May 2025). Adjusted for local prices using BEA Regional Price Parities, Illinois moves to the top at $99,602.

BLS does not split electricians' pay by specialty or employer, but its range shows how far the top end runs: the highest-paid 10% earn more than $108,510, against a median of $63,190 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). Location moves pay the most in the published data: the best-paying states are Oregon ($101,310), Illinois ($99,560), Hawaii ($96,460). BLS also counts a specialty career inside this occupation (EV charging technician), which shares its federal pay figures.

No. A bachelor's degree is not the norm: BLS reports a high school diploma or equivalent as the typical entry-level education for Electricians. BLS also lists apprenticeship as typical on-the-job training. In O*NET's survey of people already doing the job, 61.7% hold post-secondary certificate.

Yes, strongly. Employment is projected to grow 9.2% over 2025–2035, more than double the 3.5% projected for all occupations (BLS EP, 2025–2035). BLS still projects about 72,700 openings a year, mostly from workers retiring or moving to other work.

Electricians install, maintain, and repair electrical power, communications, lighting, and control systems in homes, businesses, and factories. A core O*NET task: prepare sketches or follow blueprints to determine the location of wiring or equipment and to ensure conformance to building and safety codes. Employers most often ask for Computer aided design CAD software, Document management software, Electronic mail software.

More work over 40 hours than at exactly 40. In O*NET's survey of people in the job, 0% of electricians usually work more than 40 hours a week, 0% work exactly 40 and 0% work fewer. 0% say their schedule is regular and 0% irregular. Source: O*NET 31.0 Database, Work Context.

O*NET scores Electricians highest on the Realistic and Conventional interest areas, so the work mixes hands-on, practical work with tools, machines or the outdoors with organising, following procedures and working precisely with data. On NueCareer's MBTI-to-interest mapping that lines up most closely with ISTJ personalities. Personality is a fit signal, not a gate. The free NueCareer quiz scores your own profile against all 1,731 careers in the bank.

4-5 years. Most apprenticeships run 4 or 5 years, with roughly 2,000 hours of paid on-the-job training per year plus technical instruction. Prior electrical experience from the military or construction may shorten the program, subject to testing.

Yes, and it is issued by the state you work in, not nationally. Most states require electricians to pass a test and be licensed, and requirements vary by state; apprenticeship requirements also vary by state and locality. Many places license at city or county level in addition to the state, and the electrical training ALLIANCE notes that each state's certification exam is unique and that the qualifications for an electrician's license vary. Journey workers may perform work on their own only subject to local or state licensing rules.

The State or local electrician licensing examination. Taken after the apprenticeship to work unsupervised at journey level. Questions cover the National Electrical Code plus the state and local electrical codes that govern safe installation of wiring and equipment. The exam and the qualifying requirements are set by each jurisdiction, not nationally.

Women make up 3.5% of electricians, against 47.1% of all employed people: a heavily male-dominated occupation. Only 18.0% are 55 or older (23.2% across all jobs): a young workforce. The median worker is 39.6 years old (all workers: 42.1). Source: BLS Current Population Survey, 2025 annual averages.