Ironworker salary in Bellingham, WA
Updated September 27, 2026 with BLS data from May 2025
Ironworkers in the Bellingham, WA area earn a median of $86,120 a year, or $41.41 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. The highest-paid 10% make over $114,850 a year. Statewide, ironworkers earn a median of $107,660; Bellingham is 20% below it.
- Apprentice starting pay (estimate)
- $23.59/hr
- Jobs in this area
- 50
- After cost of living
- $83,340
- Median hourly pay
- $41.41/hr
- vs U.S. median
- +37%
- vs Washington median
- −20%
Apprentice, journeyman and top ironworker pay
| Stage | Yearly pay | Hourly pay |
|---|---|---|
| Apprentice | $49,070–$58,100$23.59–$27.93/hr | |
| Journeyman | $86,120$41.41/hr | |
| Top earners | $98,160–$114,850$47.19–$55.22/hr |
Estimated from BLS percentiles (10th–25th, median, 75th–90th); BLS does not report pay by license level.
How Bellingham, WA compares
- Bellingham ranks 4th of 5 Washington metro areas for ironworker pay.
- Ironworkers are more concentrated in the Bellingham area than nationally: 0.5 of every 1,000 jobs, 1.2 times the U.S. share.
- The 90th-percentile wage, $114,850, is 2.3 times the 10th-percentile wage, $49,070: a measure of how much pay rises with experience and specialty.
Other Washington metro areas
Other trades in Bellingham, WA
Questions
- How much do ironworkers make in Bellingham, WA?
- Ironworkers in the Bellingham, WA area earn a median of $86,120 a year, or $41.41 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. The highest-paid 10% make over $114,850 a year.
- How much do ironworkers make an hour in Bellingham, WA?
- The median hourly wage is $41.41. The middle half earn between $27.93 and $47.19 an hour. (BLS, May 2025.)
- What do apprentice ironworkers make in Bellingham, WA?
- BLS doesn't report pay by license level. The 10th-percentile wage, $23.59 an hour ($49,070 a year), is a reasonable estimate of starting pay; the 25th percentile is $27.93.
- How much does a journeyman ironworker make in Bellingham, WA?
- BLS doesn't report pay by license level, but the median, $86,120 a year ($41.41 an hour), is a fair estimate of typical journeyman pay. Master-level and top earners are closer to the 75th to 90th percentiles, $98,160–$114,850.
- Do ironworkers make more in Bellingham or Seattle?
- Seattle pays more: the median is $86,120 in Bellingham and $111,440 in Seattle, a 23% difference.
- How does Bellingham pay compare with the rest of Washington?
- The Bellingham median of $86,120 is 20% less than the Washington median of $107,660.
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 13380 (Bellingham, WA). 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 (103.3, where the U.S. average is 100). Page updated September 27, 2026. How we calculate these figures