Lineman salary in Bismarck, ND
Updated September 26, 2026 with BLS data from May 2025
Linemen in the Bismarck, ND area earn a median of $104,800 a year, or $50.39 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. One in ten earns more than $125,010. Across all of North Dakota, the median is $105,870, so Bismarck pays 1% less than the state as a whole.
- Apprentice starting pay (estimate)
- $29.22/hr
- Jobs in this area
- 90
- After cost of living
- $115,130
- Median hourly pay
- $50.39/hr
- vs U.S. median
- +10%
- vs North Dakota median
- −1%
Apprentice and journeyman lineman pay
| Stage | Yearly pay | Hourly pay |
|---|---|---|
| Apprentice | $60,770–$77,480$29.22–$37.25/hr | |
| Journeyman | $104,800$50.39/hr | |
| Top earners | $115,110–$125,010$55.34–$60.10/hr |
Estimated from BLS percentiles (10th–25th, median, 75th–90th); BLS does not report pay by license level.
How Bismarck, ND compares
- Bismarck has the lowest lineman median of the 3 North Dakota metro areas with published pay.
- Linemen are more concentrated in the Bismarck area than nationally: 1.3 of every 1,000 jobs, 1.5 times the U.S. share.
- The 90th-percentile wage, $125,010, is 2.1 times the 10th-percentile wage, $60,770: a measure of how much pay rises with experience and specialty.
Other North Dakota metro areas
Other trades in Bismarck, ND
Questions
- How much do linemen make in Bismarck, ND?
- Linemen in the Bismarck, ND area earn a median of $104,800 a year, or $50.39 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. One in ten earns more than $125,010.
- How much do linemen make an hour in Bismarck, ND?
- The median hourly wage is $50.39. The middle half earn between $37.25 and $55.34 an hour. (BLS, May 2025.)
- What do apprentice linemen make in Bismarck, ND?
- BLS doesn't report pay by license level. The 10th-percentile wage, $29.22 an hour ($60,770 a year), is a reasonable estimate of starting pay; the 25th percentile is $37.25.
- How much does a journeyman lineman make in Bismarck, ND?
- BLS doesn't report pay by license level, but the median, $104,800 a year ($50.39 an hour), is a fair estimate of typical journeyman pay. Master-level and top earners are closer to the 75th to 90th percentiles, $115,110–$125,010.
- Do linemen make more in Bismarck or Grand Forks?
- Grand Forks pays more: the median is $104,800 in Bismarck and $113,700 in Grand Forks, a 8% difference.
- How does Bismarck pay compare with the rest of North Dakota?
- The Bismarck median of $104,800 is 1% less than the North Dakota median of $105,870.
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 13900 (Bismarck, ND). 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 (91.0, where the U.S. average is 100). Page updated September 26, 2026. How we calculate these figures