Trades & Construction
Hands-on work that builds and maintains the physical world.
In-home service
Appliance Repair Technician
Almost nobody is entering this trade, which is the whole opportunity.
$40k-$85k
Dealership & independent shop
Automotive Technician
Diagnosing what the customer described as a weird noise.
$38k-$90k
Industrial vessels & power plants
Boilermaker
Enormous money, and you go where the work is.
$60k-$130k
Custom millwork & casework
Cabinet Maker
Woodworking as a job, which means production, not leisure.
$38k-$80k
Framing & finish
Carpenter
Building the thing that everything else attaches to.
$40k-$85k
Flatwork & structural
Concrete Finisher
The clock starts when the truck pours and it does not stop.
$40k-$85k
Mobile & tower cranes
Crane Operator
Very high pay for a job where one mistake is catastrophic.
$60k-$130k
Fleet & heavy truck
Diesel Mechanic
Keeping the trucks that move everything on the road.
$48k-$95k
Taping & texture
Drywall Finisher
Piece rate, and the finish is judged under a bright light.
$38k-$80k
Residential & commercial
Electrician
Wiring the buildings everyone else works in.
$45k-$110k
Installation & service
Elevator Mechanic
The best-paid trade almost nobody thinks to enter.
$70k-$140k
Tile, hardwood & LVP
Flooring Installer
Paid by the square foot, so speed is literally the wage.
$38k-$85k
Residential & commercial doors
Garage Door Technician
High service call rates, and springs that can genuinely kill you.
$40k-$85k
Commercial & architectural glass
Glazier
Handling something that is heavy, expensive and breaks.
$45k-$95k
Excavation & site work
Heavy Equipment Operator
Moving the earth before anyone can build on it.
$45k-$110k
Residential & light commercial
HVAC Technician
The person everyone is desperate to see in July.
$45k-$95k
Residential & mechanical insulation
Insulation Installer
Attics and crawlspaces, and mechanical insulation pays double.
$36k-$80k
Structural & reinforcing
Ironworker
Walking steel at altitude for very good money.
$50k-$110k
Maintenance & design-build
Landscaper
Outside every day, and the season decides your income.
$32k-$70k
Residential, commercial & automotive
Locksmith
A trade you can run alone out of one van.
$38k-$85k
Security, networking & AV
Low Voltage Technician
Electrical work without the licensing gauntlet.
$42k-$85k
CNC & manual
Machinist
Working to a thousandth of an inch, all day.
$45k-$90k
Brick, block & stone
Mason
Building things that outlast everyone who built them.
$45k-$90k
Industrial machinery
Millwright
Installing and aligning the machines a plant cannot run without.
$55k-$115k
Residential & commercial
Painter
Ninety percent preparation, ten percent paint.
$35k-$70k
Residential & commercial
Pest Control Technician
Recession-proof, route-based, and nobody wants your job.
$36k-$70k
Industrial & mechanical piping
Pipefitter
Plumbing moves water; pipefitting moves everything else.
$55k-$115k
Service & new construction
Plumber
Water in, water out, and the emergencies in between.
$45k-$100k
Residential & commercial
Roofer
The hardest money in construction, earned in the sun.
$38k-$80k
HVAC ductwork & architectural
Sheet Metal Worker
Fabricating in the shop, installing in the ceiling.
$50k-$100k
Outdoor power & powersports
Small Engine Mechanic
A garage, a bench, and equipment nobody else will fix.
$34k-$68k
Residential & commercial PV
Solar Installer
On a roof in the sun, building the thing that uses it.
$38k-$75k
Ceramic, stone & large format
Tile Setter
The trade where being fussy is the qualification.
$45k-$95k
Structural & pipe
Welder
Joining metal for bridges, pipelines and shops.
$40k-$120k+
Utility-scale wind
Wind Turbine Technician
Two years of school, and a 300-foot ladder every morning.
$50k-$85k