Ironworker salary in Modesto, CA
Updated September 27, 2026 with BLS data from May 2025
Ironworkers in the Modesto, CA area earn a median of $75,820 a year, or $36.45 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. The highest-paid 10% make over $129,460 a year. Statewide, ironworkers earn a median of $76,370; Modesto is 1% below it.
- Apprentice starting pay (estimate)
- $23.01/hr
- Jobs in this area
- 100
- After cost of living
- $72,830
- Median hourly pay
- $36.45/hr
- vs U.S. median
- +21%
- vs California median
- −1%
Apprentice, journeyman and top ironworker pay
| Stage | Yearly pay | Hourly pay |
|---|---|---|
| Apprentice | $47,850–$60,280$23.01–$28.98/hr | |
| Journeyman | $75,820$36.45/hr | |
| Top earners | $115,980–$129,460$55.76–$62.24/hr |
Estimated from BLS percentiles (10th–25th, median, 75th–90th); BLS does not report pay by license level.
How Modesto, CA compares
- Modesto ranks 9th of 15 California metro areas for ironworker pay.
- Ironworkers are more concentrated in the Modesto area than nationally: 0.5 of every 1,000 jobs, 1.1 times the U.S. share.
- The 90th-percentile wage, $129,460, is 2.7 times the 10th-percentile wage, $47,850: a measure of how much pay rises with experience and specialty.
Other California metro areas
Other trades in Modesto, CA
Questions
- How much do ironworkers make in Modesto, CA?
- Ironworkers in the Modesto, CA area earn a median of $75,820 a year, or $36.45 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. The highest-paid 10% make over $129,460 a year.
- How much do ironworkers make an hour in Modesto, CA?
- The median hourly wage is $36.45. The middle half earn between $28.98 and $55.76 an hour. (BLS, May 2025.)
- What do apprentice ironworkers make in Modesto, CA?
- BLS doesn't report pay by license level. The 10th-percentile wage, $23.01 an hour ($47,850 a year), is a reasonable estimate of starting pay; the 25th percentile is $28.98.
- How much does a journeyman ironworker make in Modesto, CA?
- BLS doesn't report pay by license level, but the median, $75,820 a year ($36.45 an hour), is a fair estimate of typical journeyman pay. Master-level and top earners are closer to the 75th to 90th percentiles, $115,980–$129,460.
- Do ironworkers make more in Modesto or San Francisco?
- San Francisco pays more: the median is $75,820 in Modesto and $87,340 in San Francisco, a 13% difference.
- How does Modesto pay compare with the rest of California?
- The Modesto median of $75,820 is 1% less than the California median of $76,370.
About this data
Wages are from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey for May 2025, occupation 47-2221 (Structural Iron and Steel Workers), area code 33700 (Modesto, CA). BLS counts wage and salary workers only, so self-employed ironworkers and business owners aren't included. The cost-of-living figure divides the median by the Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parity for 2024 (104.1, where the U.S. average is 100). Page updated September 27, 2026. How we calculate these figures