🔥Welders, Cutters & Brazers
National Median Wage
$47,540
National Employment
427K
Best Value: Top Metros by Cost-Adjusted Wage
Wages adjusted for local cost of living. Higher = your salary goes further.
All Metro Areas
78 metro areas
| # | Metro Area | State | Median Wage | Cost-Adj. Wage▼ | Employment | Emp / 1K |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | WA | $62,262 | $57,121 | 2,946 | 7.4 |
| 2 | San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley, CA | CA | $63,477 | $56,174 | 3,615 | 8.0 |
| 3 | Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | VA | $56,632 | $56,071 | 3,732 | 6.2 |
| 4 | Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH | MA | $59,891 | $55,455 | 4,826 | 9.7 |
| 5 | Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX | TX | $52,807 | $54,440 | 7,081 | 10.9 |
| 6 | New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA | NY | $58,735 | $54,384 | 7,843 | 6.3 |
| 7 | Raleigh-Cary, NC | NC | $50,910 | $54,160 | 956 | 6.4 |
| 8 | Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO | CO | $54,590 | $54,050 | 3,270 | 10.9 |
| 9 | Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI | IL | $52,928 | $53,463 | 8,365 | 10.5 |
| 10 | Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI | MN | $51,650 | $52,704 | 3,058 | 8.7 |
| 11 | Anchorage, AK | AK | $53,333 | $52,287 | 449 | 9.0 |
| 12 | Wilmington, DE-MD-NJ | DE | $51,714 | $52,236 | 493 | 9.9 |
| 13 | Austin-Round Rock-Georgetown, TX | TX | $50,622 | $52,188 | 2,618 | 10.5 |
| 14 | St. Louis, MO-IL | MO | $48,010 | $52,185 | 2,160 | 8.6 |
| 15 | Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI | WI | $48,524 | $52,176 | 1,355 | 9.0 |
| 16 | Madison, WI | WI | $48,329 | $51,967 | 505 | 6.7 |
| 17 | Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI | MI | $48,543 | $51,641 | 4,182 | 10.5 |
| 18 | Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD | PA | $50,607 | $51,640 | 4,519 | 8.2 |
| 19 | Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT | CT | $53,462 | $51,406 | 682 | 9.1 |
| 20 | Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA | IA | $45,652 | $51,294 | 827 | 11.0 |
| 21 | Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | TX | $49,754 | $51,293 | 6,997 | 10.0 |
| 22 | Kansas City, MO-KS | MO | $47,112 | $51,209 | 1,460 | 7.3 |
| 23 | Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN | OH | $47,099 | $51,195 | 1,664 | 8.3 |
| 24 | Nashville-Davidson-Murfreesboro-Franklin, TN | TN | $47,242 | $50,798 | 1,636 | 8.2 |
| 25 | Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson, IN | IN | $46,683 | $50,742 | 2,189 | 10.9 |
| 26 | Hartford-East Hartford-Middletown, CT | CT | $52,704 | $50,677 | 981 | 9.8 |
| 27 | Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Alpharetta, GA | GA | $49,107 | $50,626 | 5,166 | 9.4 |
| 28 | Omaha-Council Bluffs, NE-IA | NE | $45,528 | $50,587 | 631 | 6.3 |
| 29 | Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | CA | $56,434 | $49,942 | 8,636 | 8.6 |
| 30 | Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD | MD | $51,765 | $49,774 | 2,476 | 9.9 |
| 31 | Oklahoma City, OK | OK | $43,661 | $49,615 | 1,656 | 11.0 |
| 32 | New Orleans-Metairie, LA | LA | $43,088 | $48,964 | 850 | 8.5 |
| 33 | Salt Lake City, UT | UT | $46,417 | $48,860 | 1,223 | 8.2 |
| 34 | Columbus, OH | OH | $44,881 | $48,784 | 1,415 | 7.1 |
| 35 | Birmingham-Hoover, AL | AL | $43,773 | $48,637 | 674 | 6.7 |
| 36 | San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA | CA | $54,532 | $48,258 | 3,266 | 10.9 |
| 37 | Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA | OR | $50,477 | $48,073 | 2,179 | 8.7 |
| 38 | Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC | NC | $45,186 | $48,070 | 1,603 | 6.4 |
| 39 | Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, FL | FL | $49,453 | $48,013 | 4,517 | 8.2 |
| 40 | Albuquerque, NM | NM | $43,141 | $47,934 | 825 | 8.3 |
| 41 | Burlington-South Burlington, VT | VT | $46,330 | $47,763 | 176 | 7.0 |
| 42 | Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN | KY | $42,904 | $47,671 | 1,320 | 8.8 |
| 43 | Tulsa, OK | OK | $41,631 | $47,308 | 906 | 9.1 |
| 44 | Charleston-North Charleston, SC | SC | $43,536 | $46,813 | 681 | 9.1 |
| 45 | Richmond, VA | VA | $47,212 | $46,745 | 1,654 | 11.0 |
| 46 | Cleveland-Elyria, OH | OH | $42,910 | $46,641 | 915 | 6.1 |
| 47 | Columbia, SC | SC | $43,226 | $46,480 | 475 | 6.3 |
| 48 | Providence-Warwick, RI-MA | RI | $46,902 | $46,438 | 913 | 6.1 |
| 49 | Manchester-Nashua, NH | NH | $48,284 | $45,985 | 496 | 9.9 |
| 50 | Boise City, ID | ID | $41,844 | $45,982 | 572 | 7.6 |
| 51 | Honolulu, HI | HI | $50,097 | $45,961 | 528 | 7.0 |
| 52 | Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ | AZ | $46,386 | $45,927 | 3,852 | 8.6 |
| 53 | Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR | AR | $39,674 | $45,602 | 518 | 6.9 |
| 54 | Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, VA-NC | VA | $45,852 | $45,398 | 1,158 | 7.7 |
| 55 | Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV | NV | $43,725 | $45,077 | 1,262 | 6.3 |
| 56 | Cheyenne, WY | WY | $40,916 | $44,963 | 101 | 6.7 |
| 57 | Billings, MT | MT | $40,201 | $44,668 | 168 | 6.7 |
| 58 | Baton Rouge, LA | LA | $39,111 | $44,444 | 495 | 6.6 |
| 59 | Portland-South Portland, ME | ME | $43,101 | $44,434 | 277 | 6.9 |
| 60 | Pittsburgh, PA | PA | $43,329 | $44,213 | 1,377 | 6.9 |
| 61 | Sioux Falls, SD | SD | $38,498 | $43,748 | 367 | 9.2 |
| 62 | Fargo, ND-MN | ND | $38,919 | $43,729 | 443 | 11.1 |
| 63 | Grand Rapids-Kentwood, MI | MI | $40,861 | $43,469 | 831 | 8.3 |
| 64 | Jacksonville, FL | FL | $44,681 | $43,380 | 1,398 | 9.3 |
| 65 | Memphis, TN-MS-AR | TN | $40,240 | $43,269 | 953 | 9.5 |
| 66 | Knoxville, TN | TN | $40,193 | $43,218 | 1,021 | 10.2 |
| 67 | Jackson, MS | MS | $37,315 | $42,891 | 332 | 6.6 |
| 68 | Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA | CA | $47,815 | $42,314 | 1,981 | 9.9 |
| 69 | San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX | TX | $40,960 | $42,227 | 2,119 | 8.5 |
| 70 | Rochester, NY | NY | $45,252 | $41,900 | 897 | 9.0 |
| 71 | Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL | FL | $42,761 | $41,516 | 1,862 | 7.5 |
| 72 | Wichita, KS | KS | $37,359 | $41,510 | 416 | 8.3 |
| 73 | Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL | FL | $42,520 | $41,282 | 2,649 | 8.8 |
| 74 | Charleston, WV | WV | $36,760 | $40,844 | 177 | 7.1 |
| 75 | Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA | CA | $45,582 | $40,338 | 3,008 | 7.5 |
| 76 | Tucson, AZ | AZ | $40,253 | $39,854 | 842 | 8.4 |
| 77 | El Paso, TX | TX | $37,852 | $39,023 | 697 | 9.3 |
| 78 | Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY | NY | $41,974 | $38,865 | 873 | 8.7 |
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the median salary for Welders, Cutters & Brazers?
The national median annual wage for welders, cutters & brazers is $47,540, based on Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES) data.
Where do welders, cutters & brazers earn the most after adjusting for cost of living?
After adjusting for local cost of living, the top-paying metro areas for welders, cutters & brazers are Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA ($57,121), San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley, CA ($56,174), Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV ($56,071).
How many metro areas have data for welders, cutters & brazers?
We have wage and employment data for welders, cutters & brazers across 78 metro areas in the United States.
Data Sources
📎Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS (Dec 2025)📎U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2024📎FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, 2024📎America's Health Rankings, 2025📎WalletHub/NAEP, 2025📎U.S. Census Bureau, Vintage 2024📎Cook Political Report, PVI 2024📎Tax Foundation, Facts & Figures 2025📎ALEC Rich States Poor States, 2025📎WalletHub Tax Burden Study, 2025📎U.S. Census Bureau / FHFA, 2025📎BEA Regional Price Parities, 2023📎EPA AirData, Median AQI by County 2024📎EIA State Electricity Profiles, 2024📎FEMA National Risk Index v1.20, 2025📎U.S. Census Bureau, Net Domestic Migration 2024📎FCC / BroadbandNow, Broadband Access 2025📎National Park Service API, 2024📎USGS Protected Areas Database (PAD-US), 2024📎U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2022📎U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2023 (Commuting)📎FHWA Highway Statistics, 2023📎U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2022📎EIA State Electricity Profiles, 2024📎EIA Natural Gas Prices, 2024📎DOL National Database of Childcare Prices, 2023📎BEA Regional Price Parities (Food), 2023📎NCES Common Core of Data (CCD), 2023-24📎EDFacts ACGR Graduation Rates, 2021-22📎NCES School District Finance Survey (F-33), 2022-23📎BEA GDP by State (SAGDP9), 2023📎NASBO Fiscal Survey of States, FY2023📎Census Bureau State Government Finances, FY2022📎Pew Charitable Trusts Fiscal 50, FY2023📎Pew Charitable Trusts, FY2022📎S&P/Moody's via Ballotpedia, 2025📎Bureau of Labor Statistics, OES (May 2023)📎IRS Statistics of Income, Migration Data 2021-2022