TradeSalary

Lineman salary in Grand Forks, ND-MN

Updated September 26, 2026 with BLS data from May 2025

Linemen in the Grand Forks, ND-MN area earn a median of $113,700 a year, or $54.66 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. The highest-paid 10% make over $121,540 a year. Statewide, linemen earn a median of $105,870; Grand Forks is 7% above it.

Median yearly pay$113,700
Bottom 10% under$91,980Top 10% over$121,540
Apprentice starting pay (estimate)
$44.22/hr
Jobs in this area
70
After cost of living
$131,200
Median hourly pay
$54.66/hr
vs U.S. median
+19%
vs North Dakota median
+7%
Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 (area 24220, Grand Forks, ND-MN). Excludes self-employed linemen. Cost of living: BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024. *Starting pay is estimated from the 10th percentile; BLS does not report pay by license level.

Apprentice and journeyman lineman pay

StageYearly payHourly pay
Apprentice$91,980–$104,300$44.22–$50.15/hr
Journeyman$113,700$54.66/hr
Top earners$121,540–$121,540$58.43–$58.43/hr

Estimated from BLS percentiles (10th–25th, median, 75th–90th); BLS does not report pay by license level.

How Grand Forks, ND-MN compares

  • Grand Forks has the highest lineman median of the 3 North Dakota metro areas with published pay.
  • Linemen are more concentrated in the Grand Forks area than nationally: 1.4 of every 1,000 jobs, 1.7 times the U.S. share.
  • The 90th-percentile wage, $121,540, is 1.3 times the 10th-percentile wage, $91,980: a measure of how much pay rises with experience and specialty.

Other North Dakota metro areas

Other trades in Grand Forks, ND-MN

Questions

How much do linemen make in Grand Forks, ND-MN?
Linemen in the Grand Forks, ND-MN area earn a median of $113,700 a year, or $54.66 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. The highest-paid 10% make over $121,540 a year.
How much do linemen make an hour in Grand Forks, ND-MN?
The median hourly wage is $54.66. The middle half earn between $50.15 and $58.43 an hour. (BLS, May 2025.)
What do apprentice linemen make in Grand Forks, ND-MN?
BLS doesn't report pay by license level. The 10th-percentile wage, $44.22 an hour ($91,980 a year), is a reasonable estimate of starting pay; the 25th percentile is $50.15.
How much does a journeyman lineman make in Grand Forks, ND-MN?
BLS doesn't report pay by license level, but the median, $113,700 a year ($54.66 an hour), is a fair estimate of typical journeyman pay. Master-level and top earners are closer to the 75th to 90th percentiles, $121,540–$121,540.
Do linemen make more in Grand Forks or Fargo?
Grand Forks pays more: the median is $113,700 in Grand Forks and $104,920 in Fargo, a 8% difference.
How does Grand Forks pay compare with the rest of North Dakota?
The Grand Forks median of $113,700 is 7% more 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 24220 (Grand Forks, ND-MN). 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 (86.7, where the U.S. average is 100). Page updated September 26, 2026. How we calculate these figures