Electrician vs Welder

Put two roles head to head — any role, in any location or worldwide-remote.

Side A

Side B

Electrician pays about 50% more at the median.

Side-by-side distribution

Electrician Welder
$81k
$54.1k
$40.6k box = 25th–75th · whiskers = 10th–90th $108.7k

Electrician

$38.95/hr

per hour · USD

Median over time ▲ +0.6%
$80,500 $81,016
$32.95/hr 25th
$38.95/hr Median
$44.25/hr 75th
$27.50/hr
$50.00/hr
Box 25th–75th · whiskers 10th–90th Full range $18.50/hr – $92.60/hr · outliers off-axis
Disclosing
44.7%
Live roles
1,320
Browse roles Set alert

Welder

$26.00/hr

per hour · USD

Median over time ▬ 0%
$54,080 $54,080
$24.00/hr 25th
$26.00/hr Median
$29.98/hr 75th
$21.76/hr
$36.00/hr
Box 25th–75th · whiskers 10th–90th Full range $18.00/hr – $64.02/hr · outliers off-axis
Disclosing
41.1%
Live roles
769
Browse roles Set alert

Highest-paying jobs

Anheuser-Busch

Industrial Controls Electrician

Anheuser-Busch · Van Nuys, California

$92,000 – $213,000
NI

Electrician with OCONUS Travel

Nightwing · Sterling, VA

$99,000 – $206,000
SI

Service Electrician

Sila · Manassas, VA

$100,000 – $200,000 Renuity

1099 Master Electrician

Renuity · Boise, ID

SI

Service Electrician

Sila · Beltsville, MD

$100,000 – $200,000 Clark Construction Group

Journeyman Electrician Tech - NICET Level 3

Clark Construction Group · Washington, DC

$192,608 – $192,608 Clark Construction Group

Journeyman Electrician Tech - NICET Level 2

Clark Construction Group · Washington, DC

$186,368 – $186,368 Clark Construction Group

Electrician Foreman

Clark Construction Group · Washington, DC

$176,030 – $184,746 Clark Construction Group

Electrician Foreman

Clark Construction Group · Northern Virginia

$176,030 – $184,746 Clark Construction Group

Electrician Foreman

Clark Construction Group · Capitol Heights, MD

$176,030 – $184,746

Highest-paying jobs

SpaceX

Supervisor, Production (Orbital Tube Welder)

SpaceX · Hawthorne, CA

$115,000 – $155,000 Vast

Senior Welder and Fabrication Technician

Vast · Long Beach, California, United Sta…

$93,808 – $133,162 Finning

Dual Ticket Machinist - Apprentice Welder - Field

Finning · Edmonton, AB, CA

$112,403 – $124,883 Vast

Orbital Tube Welder

Vast · Long Beach, California, United Sta…

$49,920 – $121,056 GDIT

Welder

GDIT · USA WA Seattle

$87,506 – $118,414 Suncor

Pipefitter Welder - Colorado Refinery

Suncor · Commerce City, CO, USA

$114,733 – $114,733 Sierra Space

Welder V

Sierra Space · Louisville, CO

$78,832 – $108,389 Marathon Petroleum

Welder

Marathon Petroleum · St Paul Park, Minnesota

$104,603 – $104,603 Helion

Welder

Helion · Everett, WA

$89,440 – $104,000 Re:Build Manufacturing

Journey-Level Welder

Re:Build Manufacturing · Rochester, NY

$83,200 – $104,000

Top companies hiring

Company Median Roles
Amentum $75,816 33
AE American Electric Power $93,548 17
Mears Group $56,847 13
Johnson Electric $94,815 10
Ameresco $94,234 10
Anheuser-Busch $79,206 10
Silgan $74,807 10
Power Design $72,800 10

Top companies hiring

Company Median Roles
Valmont Industries $54,746 22
Oshkosh Corporation $52,125 21
The Toro Company $50,648 16
SpaceX $52,000 15
Chamberlain Group $50,024 11
Caterpillar $59,810 10
Terex $49,400 10
JC Johnson Controls $64,459 9

Electrician salary by location

Location Median Roles
Boston $94,952 4
Chicago $90,875 9
Seattle $88,400 3
New York $87,651 11
Los Angeles $75,920 6
Austin $61,857 3
London $56,857 5

Welder salary by location

Location Median Roles
Austin $49,400 3
New York $48,942 6

Electrician vs Welder: which pays more?

The median for Electrician is $38.95/hr per year (typically $32.95/hr–$44.25/hr), versus $26.00/hr for Welder ($24.00/hr–$29.98/hr). That puts Electrician about 50% ahead at the median.

Both figures are computed live from active listings on JobsRadar and normalized to annualized USD, so Electrician and Welder 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.

See full salary data

Electrician salary Welder salary

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