Electrician$63,190
Plumber$63,800
2026 career comparison
Electrician vs Plumber
Electrician and plumbing careers are unusually close on national pay, so the better choice usually depends more on the systems you want to work on, the type of service work you prefer and the licensing path in your state.
May 2025
Electrician$108,510
Plumber$108,420
Electrician+9%
Plumber+7%
Electrician72.7K
Plumber42K
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Wages are national May 2025 medians and percentiles; growth and annual openings use the 2025 to 2035 projection window. These are not starting wages or guaranteed local outcomes.
Beyond the headline numbers
What the work and training actually feel like.
National pay can be close while the day-to-day career is completely different. These practical differences are often more useful than a tiny salary gap.
FactorElectricianPlumber
Typical entry
Electrician
Paid apprenticeship is the most common route; some workers start with technical school.
Plumber
Paid apprenticeship is a common route, sometimes preceded by vocational or technical coursework.
Training timeline
Electrician
Often 4 to 5 years to journey-level competency through apprenticeship; licensing varies by state/locality.
Plumber
Often 4 to 5 years through apprenticeship; journey/master licensing rules vary by state and locality.
Day-to-day work
Electrician
Install, troubleshoot and repair wiring, panels, controls, lighting and power systems.
Plumber
Install, maintain and repair water, drainage, gas, steam and process-piping systems.
Work setting
Electrician
Homes, commercial buildings, factories, construction sites and industrial facilities.
Plumber
Homes, commercial buildings, industrial sites, construction projects and service calls.
Schedule
Electrician
Usually full time; evenings, weekends and overtime can occur during projects or maintenance windows.
Plumber
Usually full time; emergency calls, nights or weekends are more common in service plumbing.
Credentials
Electrician
Most states require electricians to be licensed. Requirements vary by jurisdiction.
Plumber
Most states or local jurisdictions regulate plumbing licenses; requirements differ widely.
Career fit lens
Full guide →Electrician
May fit you if…
- People who like precise, code-driven technical work
- People comfortable with math, diagrams and troubleshooting
- People interested in residential, commercial or industrial specialization
Know the realities
- •Electrical safety and code compliance are non-negotiable
- •Work may involve ladders, confined spaces and construction conditions
- •Advancement often depends on documented hours, exams and local licensing rules
Career fit lens
Full guide →Plumber / Pipefitter
May fit you if…
- People who prefer hands-on mechanical systems and visible problem solving
- People comfortable with physical work and service calls
- People interested in eventually running a service or contracting business
Know the realities
- •The work can be physically demanding and sometimes messy
- •Service work may include emergency or after-hours calls
- •Licensing and code rules can be highly location-specific
Location changes the answer
Now compare the same careers where you live.
State wages, licensing and apprenticeship systems can matter more than a small national pay difference. TrainingForFuture currently publishes quality-controlled state guides for 10 states.
National comparisonGood for direction
State + metro dataBetter for planning
Personal fitBest for the final decision
State differences
The national gap is $610. Your state may flip it.
Nationally, plumbers ($63,800) and electricians ($63,190) are separated by about $610 a year. State medians move much more than that. Among the ten states below, electricians have the higher median in 6 and plumbers in 4.
| State | Electrician median | Plumber median | Higher |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | $76,160 | $72,830 | Electrician |
| Texas | $58,570 | $59,840 | Plumber |
| Florida | $57,250 | $52,910 | Electrician |
| New York | $78,750 | $77,490 | Electrician |
| Pennsylvania | $67,600 | $68,080 | Plumber |
| North Carolina | $56,800 | $57,080 | Plumber |
| Georgia | $58,320 | $57,200 | Electrician |
| Arizona | $61,060 | $62,070 | Plumber |
| Ohio | $64,700 | $63,330 | Electrician |
| Virginia | $62,900 | $60,470 | Electrician |
Source: BLS May 2025 state wage data as shown in our state career guides (wage-and-salary workers). National medians: BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook for electricians and plumbers. A state median is not what a first-year apprentice earns, and living costs differ by state.
Training and licensing
Two apprenticeship trades, two sets of state rules.
Both trades are usually learned through a paid apprenticeship of about four to five years, so the real difference is often the license and the local program you can get into. The rows below mix BLS national descriptions with examples from California and Texas. They are examples, not a state-by-state guide.
| Topic | Electrician | Plumber |
|---|---|---|
| Typical route (BLS) | Paid apprenticeship with technical instruction. BLS says technical school graduates usually receive credit toward the apprenticeship. | 4 or 5 year apprenticeship with about 2,000 hours of paid on-the-job training each year. Some attend a vocational-technical school first. |
| Licensing (BLS) | Most states require a license. | Most states and some localities require a license. |
| California example | General electrician certification requires 8,000 hours of work for an electrical contractor, across at least two work areas. California DIR | The state contractor board (CSLB) licenses plumbing contractors and asks for four years of qualifying journey-level experience, with up to three years of credit for apprenticeship or technical training. CSLB |
| Texas example | Journeyman license: 8,000 hours under a Texas master electrician. Applicants can apply to test with at least 7,000 hours. Texas TDLR | Journeyman plumber: at least 8,000 hours under a responsible master plumber, plus the exam. Tradesman plumber-limited: 4,000 hours as a plumber's apprentice or a qualifying career and technical education course sequence. Texas Plumbing License Law |
Licensing rules change. Confirm with your state licensing board before you rely on a number. To find real apprenticeship openings, use the Apprenticeship.gov Job Finder and read our guide to paid apprenticeships for beginners.
Our editorial view
How to choose when the pay is nearly tied.
This section is our opinion, not BLS data. It is meant to turn the numbers above into questions you can test.
- Start with what you can actually enter.A $610 national gap is smaller than the difference between sponsors. The apprenticeship that will accept you, at a wage schedule you can live on, usually matters more than which trade has the slightly higher median.
- Watch the work for an hour.Ask a local contractor or sponsor whether you can observe a day of work, or talk to someone in the trade. Tight crawl spaces, ladders, wet conditions and on-call service work feel different in person.
- Check your state's license path first.The hours, exams and who supervises you differ by state. Look up your licensing board before you commit, and ask the sponsor how their program counts toward it.
- Use the quiz to find out which kind of work suits you.Take the free 3-minute career quiz. It needs no account and suggests trades to research. It is a starting point, not a guarantee of a job or income.
Changing careers with no trade experience
Starting from scratch? Here is how to use this comparison.
The table above shows the usual training routes into each trade. Confirm each program's entry requirements, since many accept people who have not done the work before. These steps turn the comparison into a decision.
- 1. Check the work against your lifeCompare the schedule and work setting rows above with the hours, travel and physical effort you can sustain. Ask people who do each job what a normal week is like.
- 2. Price the training and your runwayThe Training timeline row above shows how differently these two paths run. Work out the lowest income you can accept while you train, and ask each program what it costs and what it includes.
- 3. Confirm your state's rulesLicensing and certification differ by state and sometimes by city. Read your state agency's page before paying for training. Our state career guides link to official sources.
- 4. Look for paid ways inRegistered apprenticeships combine paid work with instruction. See how to find and apply for one, and how five trades compare for career changers over 40.
Not sure which fits you? Take the free trade-match quiz, which needs no account. Pay figures above are national medians for all experience levels, not starting wages, and nothing here guarantees a job, admission or a license. Sources were last checked October 21, 2026.
Frequently asked questions
Quick answers for this comparison.
Which pays more: Electrician or Plumber?
Electrician has a May 2025 national median of $63,190 and Plumber / Pipefitter has a national median of $63,800. The gap is $610 per year. State, metro, union status, specialty and experience can change the local picture.
Which has the stronger job outlook: Electrician or Plumber?
BLS projects 9% national employment growth for electrician and 7% for plumber / pipefitter from 2025 to 2035. Annual openings are 72.7K and 42K respectively.
Which is faster to enter: Electrician or Plumber?
Electrician: Paid apprenticeship is the most common route; some workers start with technical school. Plumber / Pipefitter: Paid apprenticeship is a common route, sometimes preceded by vocational or technical coursework. Exact timelines depend on the employer, apprenticeship sponsor, school and licensing rules where you live.
How should I choose between Electrician and Plumber?
Compare the day-to-day work, training route, schedule, local licensing and the kind of problems you enjoy solving. National salary is useful context, but it should not be the only deciding factor.
Do electricians or plumbers earn more in my state?
It depends on the state. In the ten states covered by our state guides, May 2025 BLS state medians favor electricians in some and plumbers in others, and the national gap is only $610 a year. Check your state's figures in the table on this page or in the state guides.
How many hours does it take to get licensed as an electrician or plumber?
Licensing is set by each state, and some localities add rules. As examples, California certifies general electricians after 8,000 hours of work experience, and Texas licenses journeyman electricians after 8,000 hours under a master electrician and journeyman plumbers after 8,000 hours under a responsible master plumber. Confirm the current rules with your state licensing board.
Related comparisons