Carpenter Hourly Pay, Skills & Requirements (2026)
Advertised pay, starting pay, skills and experience from 3,775 US job postings by 1,344 employers. Data as of October 2026.
What US employers post for carpenters: advertised pay, the skills and experience they ask for, and the job titles they use, from 3,775 open job postings (October 2026).
- The median advertised pay for carpenters in US job postings is $27.50 an hour (891 postings from 329 employers, October 2026).
- The middle half of those postings offer $22.88 to $32.50 an hour.
- The skills that most set carpenter postings apart are carpentry experience, hand and power tools.
- Postings that state a minimum ask for a median of 3 years of experience.
Carpenter job postings in the US, October 2026
- $27.50/hr
- Median advertised pay (891 postings)
- $22.88–$32.50
- Middle 50% of postings
- 3,775
- US job postings from 1,344 employers
- 3 years
- Median experience asked
How much does a carpenter make an hour?
The median advertised pay is $27.50 an hour, from 891 US job postings by 329 employers that state pay. That is about $58,000 a year at 2,080 hours.
Advertised pay in 891 US carpenter job postings: median $58,000 a year ($27.50 an hour), middle half $49,000 to $68,000.
- Median: $58,000 ($27.50/hr)
- 25th percentile: $49,000
- 75th percentile: $68,000
The figures as a table
| Annual pay | Share of postings |
|---|---|
| $20K–$30K | 1.1% |
| $30K–$40K | 9.5% |
| $40K–$50K | 19.5% |
| $50K–$60K | 25.0% |
| $60K–$70K | 23.5% |
| $70K–$80K | 10.4% |
| $80K–$90K | 3.6% |
| $90K–$100K | 3.9% |
| $100K–$110K | 1.7% |
| $110K–$120K | 0.3% |
| $120K–$130K | 0.3% |
| $130K–$140K | 0.4% |
Midpoint of each posting's pay range, hourly pay × 2,080 hours; at most 20 postings per employer; US, October 2026.
| Median | Middle 50% | Postings | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Postings that state an hourly rate | $27.50 | $22.88–$32.50 | 592 |
| All pay postings, annualised | $58,000 | $49K–$68K | 891 |
For comparison, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics puts the national median annual wage of Carpenters (47-2031) at $61,000 (May 2025). Postings advertise pay; the BLS measures what people earn, across all employers and levels.
What is the starting salary for a carpenter?
Figure withheld: fewer than 250 US postings list pay. How we decide.
Highest-paying carpenter jobs
Specializations with at least 250 postings that state pay.
| Specialization | Median pay | Postings with pay | Employers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Carpenter (general) | $28.12/hr | 757 | 285 |
Skills employers ask for in carpenter job postings
| Skill | Share of postings |
|---|---|
| Attention to detail | 20% |
| Communication | 19% |
| Work independently | 14% |
| Problem-solving | 9% |
| Power tools | 9% |
| Carpentry | 9% |
| Hand and power tools | 9% |
| Customer service | 7% |
| Hand tools | 7% |
| Self-motivated | 6% |
Skills named in the posting text; at most 20 postings per employer; US, October 2026. Methodology.
Skills that set carpenters apart
- Carpentry experience406.5× as often as in all postings · 6%
- Carpentry31.4× as often as in all postings · 9%
- Hand and power tools29.1× as often as in all postings · 9%
- Power tools23.7× as often as in all postings · 9%
- Hand tools12.6× as often as in all postings · 7%
Skills named in at least 5% of these postings and at least 3 times as often as in job postings overall.
Have a carpenter job posting in front of you? See which of its skills your resume is missing.
What does a carpenter do?
Employers post these jobs as Lead Carpenter, Finish Carpenter, Cabinet Maker, Experienced Carpenter, Carpenter Foreman and other titles. The largest specializations are Cabinet Maker (9%), Drywall Finisher (1%).
The closest official occupation is Carpenters (47-2031.00). Its most important tasks:
- Measure and mark cutting lines on materials, using a ruler, pencil, chalk, and marking gauge.
- Follow established safety rules and regulations and maintain a safe and clean environment.
- Shape or cut materials to specified measurements, using hand tools, machines, or power saws.
- Select and order lumber or other required materials.
- Install structures or fixtures, such as windows, frames, floorings, trim, or hardware, using carpenters' hand or power tools.
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database, U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (CC BY 4.0).
How much experience do you need to be a carpenter?
Among 1,042 postings that state a minimum, the median is 3 years. Under 1% say 0 years and 19% ask for 1 year or less.
Minimum experience asked in 1,042 US carpenter job postings: median 3 years, and 19% ask for 1 year or less.
The figures as a table
| Minimum experience asked | Share of postings |
|---|---|
| 0 yr | under 1% |
| 1 yr | 18% |
| 2 yrs | 22% |
| 3-4 yrs | 32% |
| 5-7 yrs | 21% |
| 8-9 yrs | 1% |
| 10+ yrs | 4% |
Postings that state a minimum (required or preferred); at most 20 postings per employer; US, October 2026.
We do not show a degree figure: in our checks, degree requirements in posting text were found too rarely to publish one. Why.
Full-time 96%, Part-time 4% of the 430 postings that state working hours.
Other names for a carpenter: job titles employers use
| Job title | Employers using it |
|---|---|
| Carpenter | 691 (51.4%) |
| Lead Carpenter | 81 (6.0%) |
| Finish Carpenter | 59 (4.4%) |
| Cabinet Maker | 42 (3.1%) |
| Experienced Carpenter | 32 (2.4%) |
| Carpenter Foreman | 31 (2.3%) |
| Cabinet Installer | 31 (2.3%) |
| Carpenter Helper | 30 (2.2%) |
| Carpenter Apprentice | 29 (2.2%) |
| Skilled Carpenter | 25 (1.9%) |
| Carpenter I | 25 (1.9%) |
| Construction Carpenter | 25 (1.9%) |
| Commercial Carpenter | 24 (1.8%) |
| Carpenter Journeyman | 23 (1.7%) |
| Journeyman Carpenter | 20 (1.5%) |
| Form Carpenter | 18 (1.3%) |
| Trim Carpenter | 18 (1.3%) |
| Carpentry Install Assistant | 17 (1.3%) |
| Cabinet Builder | 17 (1.3%) |
| Closet Installer | 15 (1.1%) |
Titles read in our audit and used by at least 3 employers.
Carpenter job titles compared
The titles people search for most, from the US job postings that use each exact title (October 2026).
| Job title | Open postings | Employers | Median pay | Median experience | Skills named most |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Finish Carpenter | 133 | 59 | – | – | – |
Carpenter compared with similar careers
| Career | Median pay | Median experience | Postings | Shares N of top 25 skills |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carpenter | $27.50/hr | 3 years | 3,775 | – |
| General Laborer | $20.00/hr | 1 year | 6,220 | 20 |
| Mason | – | 3 years | 1,097 | 19 |
| Groundskeeper | $19.73/hr | 2 years | 5,631 | 20 |
| Painter | $23.50/hr | 2 years | 3,060 | 18 |
Similar careers
| Career | Shares N of the top 25 skills | Median pay |
|---|---|---|
| General Laborer | 20 | $20.00/hr |
| Mason | 19 | – |
| Groundskeeper | 20 | $19.73/hr |
| Painter | 18 | $23.50/hr |
| Assembler | 17 | $21.45/hr |
| Maintenance Technician | 13 | $27.50/hr |
Applying for carpenter jobs?
- Carpenter resume examples: one-page examples for these roles
- Match your resume to a job: paste a posting and see the skills your resume is missing
- Check your resume: see how an applicant tracking system reads it
- Find carpenter jobs: search open postings
Frequently asked questions
How much does a carpenter make an hour?
Source and method
Open US job postings collected from employers' applicant tracking systems, de-duplicated, counted only when their job title was read in our audit. Shares count at most 20 postings per employer, and franchise locations of one brand count as one employer. Pay uses hourly and annual figures only; a figure is shown when leaving out the largest employer moves it by 10% or less. Every figure states its number of postings. Methodology and measured accuracy.
Accuracy check: we read 20 randomly chosen postings counted on this page in full; 18 of them were this career or a closely related one (October 2026).
Download the figures on this page (CSV): every number above with its count of postings. Aggregate figures are licensed CC BY 4.0; cite the page when you reuse them.