Lineman salary in Fort Smith, AR-OK
Updated September 26, 2026 with BLS data from May 2025
Linemen in the Fort Smith, AR-OK area earn a median of $94,800 a year, or $45.58 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. One in ten earns more than $116,580. Statewide, linemen earn a median of $81,450; Fort Smith is 16% above it.
- Apprentice starting pay (estimate)
- $28.27/hr
- Jobs in this area
- 70
- After cost of living
- $110,380
- Median hourly pay
- $45.58/hr
- vs U.S. median
- −1%
- vs Arkansas median
- +16%
Apprentice and journeyman lineman pay
| Stage | Yearly pay | Hourly pay |
|---|---|---|
| Apprentice | $58,800–$69,580$28.27–$33.45/hr | |
| Journeyman | $94,800$45.58/hr | |
| Top earners | $108,330–$116,580$52.08–$56.05/hr |
Estimated from BLS percentiles (10th–25th, median, 75th–90th); BLS does not report pay by license level.
How Fort Smith, AR-OK compares
- Fort Smith ranks 3rd of 5 Arkansas metro areas for lineman pay.
- Linemen are less concentrated in the Fort Smith area than nationally: 0.7 of every 1,000 jobs, 0.86 times the U.S. share.
- The 90th-percentile wage, $116,580, is 2.0 times the 10th-percentile wage, $58,800: a measure of how much pay rises with experience and specialty.
Other Arkansas metro areas
Other trades in Fort Smith, AR-OK
Questions
- How much do linemen make in Fort Smith, AR-OK?
- Linemen in the Fort Smith, AR-OK area earn a median of $94,800 a year, or $45.58 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. One in ten earns more than $116,580.
- How much do linemen make an hour in Fort Smith, AR-OK?
- The median hourly wage is $45.58. The middle half earn between $33.45 and $52.08 an hour. (BLS, May 2025.)
- What do apprentice linemen make in Fort Smith, AR-OK?
- BLS doesn't report pay by license level. The 10th-percentile wage, $28.27 an hour ($58,800 a year), is a reasonable estimate of starting pay; the 25th percentile is $33.45.
- How much does a journeyman lineman make in Fort Smith, AR-OK?
- BLS doesn't report pay by license level, but the median, $94,800 a year ($45.58 an hour), is a fair estimate of typical journeyman pay. Master-level and top earners are closer to the 75th to 90th percentiles, $108,330–$116,580.
- Do linemen make more in Fort Smith or Little Rock?
- Little Rock pays more: the median is $94,800 in Fort Smith and $106,960 in Little Rock, a 11% difference.
- How does Fort Smith pay compare with the rest of Arkansas?
- The Fort Smith median of $94,800 is 16% more than the Arkansas median of $81,450.
About this data
Wages are from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey for May 2025, occupation 49-9051 (Electrical Power-Line Installers and Repairers), area code 22900 (Fort Smith, AR-OK). BLS counts wage and salary workers only, so self-employed linemen 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 (85.9, where the U.S. average is 100). Page updated September 26, 2026. How we calculate these figures