A construction painter in Hawaii earns a median $32.80 an hour. A painter in Arkansas earns $19.28. The Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program (SOC 47-2141, Painters, Construction and Maintenance, May 2025 data, the most recent release) puts the national median at $23.75/hr, or $49,400 a year. The state spread, $13.52/hr, is real, but it is narrower than in most construction trades. The bigger spread is inside each state, between residential repaint work, where licensing barriers are low and wage-law enforcement is thin, and commercial and industrial coatings work, where qualifications set the price.
The full ranked table is below. If you paint for a living, though, the sector you paint in can move your wage as much as the state you paint in, so read past the table.
National Baseline: $23.75/hr Median, 225,190 Painters
BLS OEWS counts 225,190 wage-and-salary construction and maintenance painters as of May 2025. The distribution (BLS OEWS, May 2025):
- 10th percentile: $18.00/hr
- 25th percentile: $21.46/hr
- Median: $23.75/hr ($49,400/year)
- Mean: $26.64/hr ($55,420/year)
- 75th percentile: $29.65/hr ($61,660/year)
- 90th percentile: $37.89/hr ($78,810/year)
The bottom half of the trade is packed tightly: only $5.75/hr separates the 10th percentile from the median. The top half spreads out, with $14.14/hr between the median and the 90th percentile, and the mean sits nearly $3/hr above the median. That shape is what you would expect in a trade where most workers do similar residential and light-commercial work and a smaller group earns a premium for industrial, commercial union, or specialty coatings work.
Painters remain one of the lower-paid skilled trades. The national median sits $6.63/hr under the electrician median of $30.38 in the same release. Part of the reason is structural: most states do not require a license to paint, so labor supply is deep and the bottom of the wage curve is set by whoever will take the job.
One more number matters. According to the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, 31% of construction and maintenance painters are self-employed. OEWS covers wage-and-salary workers only, so the self-employed, and anyone paid on a 1099, are not in these medians. That is a large share of the trade outside the table.
Full State Wage Table (SOC 47-2141), Ranked
Median hourly wage, median annual wage, and employment for every state plus the District of Columbia, sorted highest to lowest (BLS OEWS, May 2025). The next OEWS release, covering May 2026, is due in spring 2027.
| Rank | State | Median Hourly | Median Annual | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hawaii | $32.80 | $68,220 | 1,900 |
| 2 | Illinois | $29.45 | $61,260 | 6,820 |
| 3 | Alaska | $29.32 | $60,980 | 440 |
| 4 | Washington | $28.68 | $59,650 | 9,510 |
| 5 | New York | $28.64 | $59,570 | 13,040 |
| 6 | District of Columbia | $28.61 | $59,520 | 500 |
| 7 | Maine | $28.50 | $59,270 | 2,120 |
| 8 | New Jersey | $28.49 | $59,250 | 4,110 |
| 9 | California | $28.38 | $59,020 | 38,430 |
| 10 | Delaware | $28.14 | $58,530 | 480 |
| 11 | Connecticut | $28.12 | $58,480 | 2,230 |
| 12 | Montana | $28.03 | $58,290 | 920 |
| 13 | Massachusetts | $27.65 | $57,510 | 4,430 |
| 14 | Missouri | $27.65 | $57,510 | 3,980 |
| 15 | Minnesota | $27.54 | $57,270 | 3,810 |
| 16 | Nevada | $27.11 | $56,390 | 4,120 |
| 17 | North Dakota | $26.38 | $54,870 | 420 |
| 18 | Vermont | $25.54 | $53,120 | 550 |
| 19 | Colorado | $25.47 | $52,970 | 3,480 |
| 20 | Pennsylvania | $25.06 | $52,120 | 5,980 |
| 21 | Michigan | $24.35 | $50,650 | 4,920 |
| 22 | Indiana | $24.16 | $50,260 | 3,510 |
| 23 | Wisconsin | $24.08 | $50,090 | 3,350 |
| 24 | Iowa | $23.90 | $49,710 | 1,770 |
| 25 | New Hampshire | $23.88 | $49,670 | 910 |
| 26 | Ohio | $23.77 | $49,450 | 5,600 |
| 27 | Maryland | $23.62 | $49,120 | 3,750 |
| 28 | Oregon | $23.51 | $48,900 | 5,410 |
| 29 | Georgia | $23.24 | $48,340 | 2,760 |
| 30 | Arizona | $23.20 | $48,250 | 5,210 |
| 31 | South Dakota | $23.15 | $48,160 | 670 |
| 32 | Kentucky | $23.13 | $48,110 | 1,390 |
| 33 | Florida | $22.85 | $47,530 | 22,450 |
| 34 | Virginia | $22.82 | $47,470 | 5,930 |
| 35 | Nebraska | $22.73 | $47,280 | 1,590 |
| 36 | Wyoming | $22.70 | $47,220 | 480 |
| 37 | Louisiana | $22.31 | $46,410 | 4,090 |
| 38 | New Mexico | $22.23 | $46,240 | 1,010 |
| 39 | Utah | $22.14 | $46,050 | 3,510 |
| 40 | Kansas | $21.88 | $45,510 | 1,570 |
| 41 | Texas | $21.86 | $45,460 | 18,330 |
| 42 | Oklahoma | $21.59 | $44,900 | 1,880 |
| 43 | Idaho | $21.58 | $44,880 | 2,040 |
| 44 | Mississippi | $21.54 | $44,800 | 1,060 |
| 45 | West Virginia | $21.26 | $44,230 | 720 |
| 46 | North Carolina | $21.21 | $44,110 | 5,220 |
| 47 | Alabama | $21.12 | $43,930 | 1,570 |
| 48 | Tennessee | $20.78 | $43,230 | 3,040 |
| 49 | Rhode Island | $20.00 | $41,590 | 1,160 |
| 50 | South Carolina | $19.64 | $40,840 | 2,080 |
| 51 | Arkansas | $19.28 | $40,090 | 890 |
| — | National | $23.75 | $49,400 | 225,190 |
Twenty-six of the 51 jurisdictions sit above the national median, and 48 fall within $5/hr of it. California employs far more painters than any other state (38,430), followed by Florida (22,450) and Texas (18,330).
Top 10 vs Bottom 10: A $13.52/hr Gap
The Top 10: High-Cost States and Strong Building Trades
Hawaii ($32.80), Illinois ($29.45), Alaska ($29.32), Washington ($28.68), and New York ($28.64) lead, followed by the District of Columbia ($28.61), Maine ($28.50), New Jersey ($28.49), California ($28.38), and Delaware ($28.14). Two forces show up repeatedly. First, International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (IUPAT) presence and state prevailing-wage laws in Illinois, New York, New Jersey, and Washington put public repaint and new-construction work at union-equivalent rates. Second, high living costs in Hawaii, Alaska, California, and the New York metro pull even non-union rates up.
Maine is the surprise of the top ten: 2,120 painters at a $28.50 median, well above every other northern New England state.
The Bottom 10: The Repaint Economy
Arkansas ($19.28), South Carolina ($19.64), Rhode Island ($20.00), Tennessee ($20.78), and Alabama ($21.12) anchor the bottom, followed by North Carolina ($21.21), West Virginia ($21.26), Mississippi ($21.54), Idaho ($21.58), and Oklahoma ($21.59). Most are right-to-work states where residential repaint dominates the market. Rhode Island is the exception: a northeastern state with 1,160 painters and a median below Mississippi's. Its neighbors Connecticut ($28.12) and Massachusetts ($27.65) pay far more, which makes Rhode Island the clearest case in the table for commuting across a state line.
Florida deserves its own sentence: the second-largest painter workforce in the country (22,450) at a $22.85 median, below the national figure.
Cost-of-Living Adjustment
Divide each median by the state's Regional Price Parity from the Bureau of Economic Analysis (2024, national average = 100, retrieved via FRED) and the ranking reshuffles more than it does in most trades, because the nominal spread is narrow to begin with:
| State | Median Hourly | BEA RPP (2024) | Adjusted Wage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Missouri | $27.65 | 90.8 | $30.45 |
| Hawaii | $32.80 | 110.0 | $29.83 |
| North Dakota | $26.38 | 89.0 | $29.65 |
| Montana | $28.03 | 94.6 | $29.62 |
| Illinois | $29.45 | 100.0 | $29.46 |
| Maine | $28.50 | 97.0 | $29.37 |
| New York | $28.64 | 107.9 | $26.54 |
| California | $28.38 | 110.7 | $25.63 |
| Florida | $22.85 | 103.4 | $22.10 |
| Rhode Island | $20.00 | 102.3 | $19.55 |
Missouri, tied for 13th in nominal pay at $27.65, becomes the best real-money state for painters, edging out Hawaii. North Dakota and Montana climb into the top four. California drops from ninth nominally to the middle of the pack, and Rhode Island ranks last in the country after adjustment, with Florida close behind. The pipefitter table shows a different pattern, where the top nominal states mostly stay on top after adjustment; for painters, the cheaper interior states catch up.
The Industrial Premium
The same person with the same sprayer can earn very different money by sector. BLS does not publish OEWS painter wages by sector, so the honest benchmark for commercial union or industrial coatings work is the upper percentiles: $29.65/hr at the 75th and $37.89/hr at the 90th, nationally.
Why Industrial Pays More
Industrial coatings work is close to a different occupation wearing the same code. Surface preparation by abrasive blasting, coating application to specification, work on bridges and tanks, confined-space entry, and lead or other metals exposure all narrow the labor pool. OSHA's lead in construction standard, 29 CFR 1926.62, requires exposure assessment, respiratory protection, and medical surveillance where lead is present, and bridge and tank repainting often involves removing old lead-based coatings. The premium is partly a compliance and hazard premium. If your employer takes the premium work but skips the medical monitoring, that is an OSHA complaint, not a perk.
Credentials That Move the Number
The Occupational Outlook Handbook notes that the EPA certifies workers for lead paint abatement, that some states license lead paint removal, and that some specialty painters need certification. Residential renovators working in older housing also fall under EPA's Renovation, Repair and Painting rule (40 CFR Part 745). Industrial coatings employers commonly look for AMPP (formerly SSPC and NACE) coating applicator credentials. Ask a target employer which credentials they require before paying for any course.
Apprenticeships are less common in painting than in most trades, according to the Handbook; where they exist they last 3 or 4 years. IUPAT and the Finishing Trades Institute run registered programs under 29 CFR Part 29. See our apprenticeship program rankings for how programs compare.
Piece-Rate Reality: The Wage That Isn't a Wage
Much residential painting, especially production new-construction painting, pays by the unit: per house, per room, or per square foot. Piece rate transfers schedule risk from the contractor to the painter. When the drywall crew runs late, when touch-ups are called back unpaid, when the drive between subdivisions eats an hour, the effective hourly rate falls.
Two legal facts every piece-rate painter should hold onto. First, piece rate does not erase minimum wage or overtime. Under the FLSA (29 CFR 778.111), your regular rate is your total weekly piece earnings divided by total hours worked; that rate must clear minimum wage, and hours past 40 are owed an additional half-time premium on that rate. Run your own stub through the overtime calculator: if the check never changes no matter how many hours you work, you are probably owed money. Second, on a Davis-Bacon project, piece rate is lawful only if the effective hourly pay meets the wage determination for painters each week.
For contractors: a painter's base wage is not the cost of a painter-hour. Payroll taxes, workers' compensation (which varies widely by state and carrier for painting classifications), liability, and small tools all add to it. The labor burden calculator does that arithmetic. On the estimating side, the paint quantity calculator guide covers coverage rates by surface.
Where Painter Wages Go From Here
The BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook projects painter employment to grow 3% from 2025 to 2035, about as fast as the average for all occupations, with about 24,900 openings a year, most of them from replacing workers who change occupations or leave the labor force. Three forces matter for pay: commercial repaint cycles on existing building stock, bridge and water-infrastructure coating work that requires qualified industrial painters, and competition from adjacent trades such as roofing and drywall for the same entry-level workers. The next official benchmark is the May 2026 OEWS release, due in spring 2027.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much do painters make in 2026?
The BLS median is $23.75/hr ($49,400/year) for SOC 47-2141, per OEWS May 2025 data, the latest available. State medians run from $19.28 in Arkansas to $32.80 in Hawaii. The 75th percentile is $29.65/hr and the 90th is $37.89/hr.
What state pays painters the most?
Hawaii ($32.80/hr), then Illinois ($29.45), Alaska ($29.32), Washington ($28.68), and New York ($28.64). After cost-of-living adjustment with BEA Regional Price Parities, Missouri ranks first at an effective $30.45/hr, with Hawaii second.
Which state pays painters the least?
Arkansas ($19.28/hr), then South Carolina ($19.64) and Rhode Island ($20.00). After cost-of-living adjustment, Rhode Island ranks last at an effective $19.55/hr.
Is piece-rate painting legal?
Yes, with floors. Weekly piece earnings divided by hours worked must meet minimum wage, hours over 40 must carry an overtime premium based on that regular rate (29 CFR 778.111), and on prevailing-wage projects the effective rate must meet the wage determination. If a floor is broken, you can file with the DOL Wage and Hour Division at 1-866-487-9243.
How do I move from residential to industrial painting?
Target bridge, tank, and water-infrastructure coating contractors and ask what credentials they require. Expect lead-safety training, respirator fit testing and medical clearance under 29 CFR 1926.62, and often an AMPP coating applicator credential. IUPAT locals with industrial programs are another route in.
Do painters get union wages on government jobs?
On federal and federally assisted construction contracts over $2,000, Davis-Bacon requires at least the published painter rate for the county, plus fringe. Many states have their own prevailing-wage laws for state-funded work. Check the wage determination on sam.gov before taking a public job.
Your Action Item for This Week
If you paint: compute your true hourly. Take last week's gross pay and divide by every hour worked, including drive time between sites you were required to make. Compare it to your state median in the table. If you are on piece rate and the result is under minimum wage, or your overtime never appears, document two weeks of hours and call the DOL Wage and Hour Division.
If you hire painters: run your crew through the labor burden calculator and check every piece-rate stub against FLSA floors. One misclassified crew on one public job is a back-wage and debarment risk.
Sources and data cited
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), SOC 47-2141, May 2025 data (national and state medians, percentiles, employment), retrieved via the BLS Public Data API: www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes472141.htm
- BLS OEWS May 2025 national median for SOC 47-2111 (electricians)
- BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, Painters, Construction and Maintenance (self-employment share, training, certification, 2025-2035 projections): www.bls.gov/ooh/construction-and-extraction/painters-construction-and-maintenance.htm
- BEA Regional Price Parities by State, 2024, retrieved via FRED (state series such as ILRPPALL)
- OSHA Lead in Construction, 29 CFR 1926.62; EPA Renovation, Repair and Painting rule, 40 CFR Part 745
- FLSA piece-rate regular rate rules, 29 CFR 778.111; DOL Wage and Hour Division: www.dol.gov/agencies/whd
- Davis-Bacon wage determinations: sam.gov/wage-determinations
- Related: Electrician Wages by State 2026 | Roofer Wages by State 2026
