Welders, Cutters, Solderers & Brazers: pay by state
National median: $53,750/yrBLS OEWS OEWSSource: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics · OEWS · May 2025 vintage · released May 2025 · Official API. Below, each state's median wage is adjusted to national prices so you can compare real purchasing power, not just headline pay.
What's the equivalent in another state?
A welder earning the median$80,840in Alaska needs about$76,656in Texas to keep the same purchasing power. The actual median there is $53,340(—).
Show the math
How much the state matters
Nationally, the median welder earns $53,750 a year. But the state-by-state gap is large: from $80,840 in Alaska down to $47,970 in Arkansas — a spread of 69% for the same job.
Where the job really pays best
Headline pay is only half the story. Adjust each state's wage for its cost of living and the map redraws itself. Once prices are accounted for, Alaska offers the strongest real pay ($78,945 in national-average terms). Connecticut, by contrast, pays a high nominal $64,880 but slips to 9th on real pay once its price level is factored in.
Every state, ranked by real pay
“Real pay” = median wage ÷ (state price level ÷ 100). Sorted best-first. 100 = US average price level.
| # | State | Median wage | Price level | Real pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alaska | $80,840 | 102.4 | $78,945 |
| 2 | Hawaii | $79,000 | 110.0 | $71,818 |
| 3 | Louisiana | $62,250 | 88.2 | $70,578 |
| 4 | North Dakota | $62,000 | 89.0 | $69,663 |
| 5 | Wyoming | $63,820 | 92.7 | $68,846 |
| 6 | New Mexico | $59,840 | 92.2 | $64,902 |
| 7 | Maine | $62,220 | 97.1 | $64,078 |
| 8 | Iowa | $55,090 | 87.8 | $62,745 |
| 9 | Connecticut | $64,880 | 103.6 | $62,625 |
| 10 | Vermont | $60,890 | 98.0 | $62,133 |
| 11 | Wisconsin | $58,410 | 94.1 | $62,072 |
| 12 | Nevada | $61,520 | 100.0 | $61,520 |
| 13 | Minnesota | $60,280 | 98.6 | $61,136 |
| 14 | New Hampshire | $62,360 | 104.2 | $59,846 |
| 15 | Massachusetts | $62,570 | 105.8 | $59,140 |
| 16 | Utah | $58,380 | 98.9 | $59,029 |
| 17 | Washington | $63,020 | 107.0 | $58,897 |
| 18 | Montana | $55,610 | 94.6 | $58,784 |
| 19 | Mississippi | $51,100 | 87.0 | $58,736 |
| 20 | Virginia | $59,180 | 101.1 | $58,536 |
| 21 | Nebraska | $52,220 | 90.1 | $57,958 |
| 22 | Oregon | $59,450 | 103.4 | $57,495 |
| 23 | Maryland | $60,310 | 105.0 | $57,438 |
| 24 | Delaware | $57,270 | 99.8 | $57,385 |
| 25 | Missouri | $51,950 | 90.8 | $57,214 |
| 26 | Kentucky | $51,470 | 90.2 | $57,062 |
| 27 | Colorado | $58,590 | 103.1 | $56,828 |
| 28 | Oklahoma | $49,720 | 87.8 | $56,629 |
| 29 | South Dakota | $49,440 | 88.6 | $55,801 |
| 30 | Arizona | $55,600 | 100.7 | $55,214 |
| 31 | Arkansas | $47,970 | 86.9 | $55,201 |
| 32 | Texas | $53,340 | 97.1 | $54,933 |
| 33 | Kansas | $49,410 | 90.1 | $54,839 |
| 34 | New York | $59,140 | 107.9 | $54,810 |
| 35 | District of Columbia | $60,180 | 109.9 | $54,759 |
| 36 | New Jersey | $59,440 | 108.8 | $54,632 |
| 37 | Alabama | $48,490 | 88.8 | $54,606 |
| 38 | West Virginia | $48,810 | 89.5 | $54,536 |
| 39 | Ohio | $50,340 | 92.8 | $54,246 |
| 40 | Pennsylvania | $52,900 | 97.6 | $54,201 |
| 41 | North Carolina | $50,590 | 94.3 | $53,648 |
| 42 | South Carolina | $49,980 | 93.7 | $53,340 |
| 43 | Indiana | $49,730 | 93.3 | $53,301 |
| 44 | Idaho | $50,530 | 95.5 | $52,911 |
| 45 | California | $58,060 | 110.7 | $52,448 |
| 46 | Tennessee | $48,040 | 91.9 | $52,274 |
| 47 | Michigan | $49,990 | 96.2 | $51,965 |
| 48 | Illinois | $51,320 | 100.0 | $51,320 |
| 49 | Georgia | $48,430 | 96.3 | $50,291 |
| 50 | Rhode Island | $50,580 | 102.3 | $49,443 |
| 51 | Florida | $50,640 | 103.4 | $48,975 |
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics · OEWS · May 2025 · rel. May 2025 · Official API
BEA Regional Price Parities · SARPP · 2024 · rel. February 2026 · Official API