How Much Do Painters Make?
National median $48,660/yr ($23.40/hr)
Painters, construction and maintenance earned a median of $48,660 a year as of May 2024, which works out to about $23.40 an hour, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Half of all painters made more than that and half made less. The lowest-paid 10 percent brought home under $36,680 a year, while the top 10 percent made more than $76,550. That is a wide spread, and where you land in it is mostly about the choices you make in the trade, not luck.
A few things push a painter's pay up fast. Union membership is the biggest lever. Journeyman painters in an IUPAT local commonly run a base scale in the low $30s to mid $40s an hour before benefits, well above the open-shop average. The type of work matters too. Industrial and commercial jobs, bridge and tank coatings, and anything with spray, sandblasting, or certified coatings pay more than standard residential repaint work. Location is the third lever. Painters in New York, Hawaii, Illinois, New Jersey, and Alaska average the most, and high-cost metros like New York City and the San Francisco Bay Area top the list at over $62,000 a year on average.
Overtime, travel, and per-diem stack on top of all of that. A painter chasing large commercial or industrial projects can add thousands in overtime during a push, and travel jobs often add a daily per-diem for lodging and meals. The trade is projected to grow about 4 percent from 2024 to 2034 with roughly 28,100 openings a year, so the work is steady and there is room to climb.
Pay by experience
Highest-paying paths
Journeyman painters in an International Union of Painters and Allied Trades local commonly run a base scale of roughly $29 to $45 an hour depending on region, plus health and pension benefits on top. That base alone beats the $23.40 national median.
Bridge, tank, refinery, and structural steel coating work pays a premium over residential repaint. Painters who hold SSPC or NACE coating certifications and can spray and blast are worth the most, often pushing into the $30s and $40s per hour on prevailing-wage projects.
By annual mean wage, New York leads at about $60,840, followed by Hawaii near $59,070, Illinois around $58,430, New Jersey about $56,600, and Alaska near $54,360. All sit well above the national median.
New York City averages about $62,490 a year, with San Francisco/Oakland and Champaign-Urbana, IL near $62,380 and San Jose around $61,260. Illinois and Hawaii metros fill out much of the top ten.
Large commercial and industrial pushes bring time-and-a-half hours that can add thousands over a season, and out-of-town jobs often pay a daily per-diem for lodging and meals on top of the hourly rate.
Painting on government, school, and other publicly funded projects pays a legally set prevailing wage that in many states runs far above the local private-sector rate, especially in high-cost regions.
How to earn more
- Join a union apprenticeship (IUPAT). It moves you onto a journeyman base scale in the $30s to $40s per hour with health and pension benefits, well above the open-shop average.
- Learn spray, sandblasting, and industrial coatings, then earn an SSPC or NACE coating certification so you qualify for higher-paying bridge, tank, and structural steel work.
- Chase commercial, industrial, and prevailing-wage public projects instead of only residential repaint. The rate per hour is higher and the hours are steadier.
- Say yes to overtime and travel work with per-diem. A few busy months of time-and-a-half plus a daily lodging and meal allowance can add thousands to your year.
- Move toward foreman or superintendent by proving you can run a crew and a job. Lead pay plus consistent overtime is where employed painters cross into the top 10 percent.
- Consider getting licensed and going out on your own once you have the reps. Painting contractors who own the crew and the customer relationships can clear six figures in a strong market.
See who's hiring
Browse Painter jobs with pay shown upfront, or read the full Painter career guide.
Painter pay: common questions
How much do painters make?
Painters, construction and maintenance earned a median of $48,660 a year, about $23.40 an hour, as of May 2024 according to the BLS. The lowest 10 percent made under $36,680 and the top 10 percent made over $76,550. Union membership, industrial work, and high-cost states all push pay toward the top of that range.
How much do painters make an hour?
The median painter wage is $23.40 an hour as of May 2024. Entry-level and helper painters often start around $16 to $20 an hour, experienced painters run into the low $30s, and union journeymen in strong markets can hit the low-to-mid $40s per hour before benefits.
Do painters make good money?
They can. The typical painter earns a solid middle-class wage of around $48,660 with no college required, and the work is steady with about 28,100 openings a year. The painters who make good money go union, pick up spray and industrial coating skills, and chase commercial and prevailing-wage jobs rather than only residential repaint.
What are the highest-paying painting jobs?
The best pay comes from union journeyman work, industrial and infrastructure coatings (bridges, tanks, structural steel) that reward SSPC or NACE certifications, and prevailing-wage public projects. By location, New York, Hawaii, and Illinois pay the most, and metros like New York City and the San Francisco Bay Area average over $62,000 a year.
Can you make $100k a year as a painter?
Yes, though it is not the norm. The top 10 percent of employed painters make over $76,550, and crossing $100,000 usually takes a foreman or superintendent role with heavy overtime, high-scale union industrial work in an expensive metro, or owning a painting business with your own crew and customers.