Side-by-side distribution
Architect
$175,000
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 26.6%
- Live roles
- 10,514
Carpenter
$27.75/hr
per hour · USD
- Disclosing
- 38.6%
- Live roles
- 308
Highest-paying jobs
Principal Technical Architect, Product Management (AWS/Azure)
3P Systems Architect
Director, Solution Architect, AI-Native Engineering
Datacenter Liquid Cooling Architect
Field Executive Architect
Interconnect and Compute Architect
Performance Modeling Architect
Performance Architect, CPU Cluster
Lead Architect, Top Strategic Accounts
Hardware Systems Architect
Highest-paying jobs
Window Installer / Carpenter
Window Installer / Carpenter
Window Installer / Carpenter
Field Carpenter-FAA (100% Travel)
General Service Technician II -Carpenter (Mon-Fri 6:30AM-3PM)
Apprentice Carpenter
Apprentice / Journeyperson Carpenter
Union Carpenter – GE Aerospace Research
Residential Carpenter
Foreman (Carpenter)
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
Booz Allen Hamilton
|
$142,450 | 101 |
Accenture
|
$180,350 | 86 |
Databricks
|
$213,750 | 74 |
Northrop Grumman
|
$169,700 | 56 |
|
Hewlett Packard Enterprise
|
$244,500 | 52 |
Accenture Federal Services
|
$163,700 | 51 |
GDIT
|
$195,000 | 44 |
McKesson
|
$142,450 | 42 |
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
Sunbelt Rentals
|
$44,439 | 26 |
Clarion Housing Group
|
$52,080 | 6 |
| UL US LBM | $52,000 | 6 |
Swinerton
|
$70,845 | 5 |
Clark Construction Group
|
$58,240 | 5 |
Amentum
|
$70,356 | 4 |
Consigli Construction
|
$60,840 | 4 |
Mears Group
|
$48,915 | 4 |
Architect salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco | $202,000 | 237 |
| London | $190,024 | 34 |
| Seattle | $189,685 | 134 |
| New York | $187,500 | 378 |
| Austin | $186,200 | 158 |
| Los Angeles | $180,350 | 121 |
| Chicago | $180,350 | 221 |
| Boston | $180,350 | 183 |
| Denver | $180,350 | 140 |
| Atlanta | $180,350 | 156 |
Architect vs Carpenter: which pays more?
The median for Architect is $175,000 per year (typically $142,400–$206,500), versus $27.75/hr for Carpenter ($23.39/hr–$34.06/hr). That puts Architect about 203% ahead at the median.
Both figures are computed live from active listings on JobsRadar and normalized to annualized USD, so Architect and Carpenter are compared on equal terms regardless of the currency each role was originally posted in. Only roles that publish a salary range feed the medians; numbers refresh every few hours as new roles post and older ones close, so this comparison reflects the market right now rather than a fixed survey. Use it as a directional benchmark when weighing one path against the other.