Best US Cities for Construction Workers
Top US cities for Construction Workers ranked by estimated median salary, with cost-of-living-adjusted earning power.
| # | City | Estimated salary | Cost mult. | vs national |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oakland, CA | $60,800 | 1.35× | +$16,800 |
| 2 | San Francisco, CA | $57,900 | 1.45× | +$13,900 |
| 3 | Long Beach, CA | $54,900 | 1.18× | +$10,900 |
| 4 | New York City, NY | $53,900 | 1.32× | +$9,900 |
| 5 | Los Angeles, CA | $53,800 | 1.22× | +$9,800 |
| 6 | Honolulu, HI | $53,200 | 1.30× | +$9,200 |
| 7 | Irvine, CA | $53,200 | 1.30× | +$9,200 |
| 8 | Anchorage, AK | $53,200 | 1.20× | +$9,200 |
| 9 | Seattle, WA | $52,500 | 1.18× | +$8,500 |
| 10 | Anaheim, CA | $52,500 | 1.18× | +$8,500 |
| # | City | Salary | Hourly |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oakland, CA | $60,800 | $29/hr |
| 2 | San Francisco, CA | $57,900 | $28/hr |
| 3 | Long Beach, CA | $54,900 | $26/hr |
| 4 | New York City, NY | $53,900 | $26/hr |
| 5 | Los Angeles, CA | $53,800 | $26/hr |
| 6 | Honolulu, HI | $53,200 | $26/hr |
| 7 | Irvine, CA | $53,200 | $26/hr |
| 8 | Anchorage, AK | $53,200 | $26/hr |
| 9 | Seattle, WA | $52,500 | $25/hr |
| 10 | Anaheim, CA | $52,500 | $25/hr |
| 11 | Newark, NJ | $52,300 | $25/hr |
| 12 | Boston, MA | $50,800 | $24/hr |
| 13 | Chicago, IL | $50,500 | $24/hr |
| 14 | San Diego, CA | $50,500 | $24/hr |
| 15 | Baltimore, MD | $50,500 | $24/hr |
| 16 | Hialeah, FL | $50,500 | $24/hr |
| 17 | Las Vegas, NV | $50,200 | $24/hr |
| 18 | Yonkers, NY | $50,200 | $24/hr |
| 19 | Portland, OR | $49,900 | $24/hr |
| 20 | Riverside, CA | $49,900 | $24/hr |
| 21 | Tampa, FL | $49,500 | $24/hr |
| 22 | Reno, NV | $49,500 | $24/hr |
| 23 | Scottsdale, AZ | $49,500 | $24/hr |
| 24 | Charleston, SC | $49,500 | $24/hr |
| 25 | Denver, CO | $49,300 | $24/hr |
| 26 | North Las Vegas, NV | $48,800 | $23/hr |
| 27 | Chula Vista, CA | $48,600 | $23/hr |
| 28 | Stockton, CA | $48,200 | $23/hr |
| 29 | Aurora, CO | $48,200 | $23/hr |
| 30 | Norfolk, VA | $48,200 | $23/hr |
| 31 | Frisco, TX | $48,200 | $23/hr |
| 32 | Jacksonville, FL | $47,800 | $23/hr |
| 33 | Charlotte, NC | $47,800 | $23/hr |
| 34 | Miami, FL | $47,700 | $23/hr |
| 35 | Houston, TX | $47,500 | $23/hr |
| 36 | Fort Worth, TX | $47,500 | $23/hr |
| 37 | Glendale, AZ | $47,500 | $23/hr |
| 38 | Garland, TX | $47,500 | $23/hr |
| 39 | Spokane, WA | $47,500 | $23/hr |
| 40 | Atlanta, GA | $47,300 | $23/hr |
| 41 | Henderson, NV | $47,300 | $23/hr |
| 42 | Arlington, TX | $47,200 | $23/hr |
| 43 | Sacramento, CA | $47,100 | $23/hr |
| 44 | Virginia Beach, VA | $46,600 | $22/hr |
| 45 | Chesapeake, VA | $46,600 | $22/hr |
| 46 | Boise, ID | $46,600 | $22/hr |
| 47 | Fresno, CA | $46,600 | $22/hr |
| 48 | Dallas, TX | $46,300 | $22/hr |
| 49 | Nashville, TN | $46,300 | $22/hr |
| 50 | Bakersfield, CA | $46,300 | $22/hr |
| 51 | Corpus Christi, TX | $46,100 | $22/hr |
| 52 | Greensboro, NC | $46,100 | $22/hr |
| 53 | El Paso, TX | $45,700 | $22/hr |
| 54 | Mesa, AZ | $45,700 | $22/hr |
| 55 | Austin, TX | $45,500 | $22/hr |
| 56 | Indianapolis, IN | $45,400 | $22/hr |
| 57 | Louisville, KY | $45,400 | $22/hr |
| 58 | Minneapolis, MN | $45,200 | $22/hr |
| 59 | Plano, TX | $45,200 | $22/hr |
| 60 | Chandler, AZ | $45,200 | $22/hr |
| 61 | Milwaukee, WI | $44,700 | $21/hr |
| 62 | Albuquerque, NM | $44,700 | $21/hr |
| 63 | New Orleans, LA | $44,700 | $21/hr |
| 64 | Phoenix, AZ | $44,600 | $21/hr |
| 65 | Philadelphia, PA | $44,600 | $21/hr |
| 66 | Gilbert, AZ | $44,600 | $21/hr |
| 67 | Salt Lake City, UT | $44,600 | $21/hr |
| 68 | Grand Rapids, MI | $44,300 | $21/hr |
| 69 | Orlando, FL | $44,300 | $21/hr |
| 70 | Fort Wayne, IN | $44,100 | $21/hr |
| 71 | Columbus, OH | $44,000 | $21/hr |
| 72 | Detroit, MI | $44,000 | $21/hr |
| 73 | Cincinnati, OH | $44,000 | $21/hr |
| 74 | Kansas City, MO | $44,000 | $21/hr |
| 75 | Wilmington, DE | $44,000 | $21/hr |
| 76 | Lexington, KY | $44,000 | $21/hr |
| 77 | Raleigh, NC | $44,000 | $21/hr |
| 78 | St. Paul, MN | $44,000 | $21/hr |
| 79 | Knoxville, TN | $44,000 | $21/hr |
| 80 | Worcester, MA | $44,000 | $21/hr |
| 81 | Cleveland, OH | $43,700 | $21/hr |
| 82 | St. Louis, MO | $43,700 | $21/hr |
| 83 | Colorado Springs, CO | $43,700 | $21/hr |
| 84 | St. Petersburg, FL | $43,700 | $21/hr |
| 85 | Madison, WI | $43,700 | $21/hr |
| 86 | Omaha, NE | $43,400 | $21/hr |
| 87 | Memphis, TN | $43,000 | $21/hr |
| 88 | Oklahoma City, OK | $43,000 | $21/hr |
| 89 | Tucson, AZ | $42,800 | $21/hr |
| 90 | Birmingham, AL | $42,700 | $21/hr |
| 91 | Toledo, OH | $42,700 | $21/hr |
| 92 | Lubbock, TX | $42,700 | $21/hr |
| 93 | Pittsburgh, PA | $42,500 | $20/hr |
| 94 | Tallahassee, FL | $42,500 | $20/hr |
| 95 | Wichita, KS | $42,100 | $20/hr |
| 96 | Mobile, AL | $42,100 | $20/hr |
| 97 | San Antonio, TX | $41,800 | $20/hr |
| 98 | Buffalo, NY | $41,500 | $20/hr |
| 99 | Winston-Salem, NC | $41,200 | $20/hr |
| 100 | Lincoln, NE | $40,600 | $20/hr |
Does location actually decide Construction Worker pay?
Construction Worker work has to be done on site, so where you live and where you earn are the same question. The 50% spread between Oakland ($60,800) and Lincoln ($40,600) is a spread you can only capture by actually relocating.
Highest-paying is not the same as best-off
Gross pay and what you keep are different lists. In Oakland, $60,800 against $2,100/month rent leaves roughly $35,600 a year after housing. In Lincoln, $40,600 against $950 leaves about $29,200. The top still wins after rent, but by $6,400 rather than the $20,200 the headline suggests.
Why these metros and not others
Pay follows employer concentration more than cost of living. Among the top of this list: Oakland (Kaiser Permanente (HQ), Port of Oakland); San Francisco (Salesforce, Google); Long Beach (Port of Long Beach, Long Beach Memorial Medical Center). A Construction Worker at a large employer in a metro where trades work clusters will typically out-earn the local median for the role — the ranking reflects where those employers sit.
Salaries are modelled from BLS national medians adjusted for local price level at a wage elasticity below 1 — pay rises with local costs but not proportionally. See our methodology.