How much do welders make an hour in Manhattan, KS?

The median hourly wage is $24.30. The middle half earn between $22.88 and $24.30 an hour. (BLS, May 2025.)

What do apprentice welders make in Manhattan, KS?

BLS doesn't report pay by license level. The 10th-percentile wage, $18.51 an hour ($38,500 a year), is a reasonable estimate of starting pay; the 25th percentile is $22.88.

Do welders make more in Manhattan or St. Joseph?

St. Joseph pays more: the median is $50,550 in Manhattan and $66,060 in St. Joseph, a 23% difference.

How does Manhattan pay compare with the rest of Kansas?

The Manhattan median of $50,550 is 2% more than the Kansas median of $49,410.

Welder salary in Manhattan, KS

Updated September 26, 2026 with BLS data from May 2025

Welders in the Manhattan, KS area earn a median of $50,550 a year, or $24.30 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. The top 10% earn more than $62,780. Across all of Kansas, the median is $49,410, so Manhattan pays 2% more than the state as a whole.

Median yearly pay$50,550

Bottom 10% under$38,500Top 10% over$62,780

Apprentice starting pay (estimate): $18.51/hr
Jobs in this area: 180
After cost of living: $56,070
Median hourly pay: $24.30/hr
vs U.S. median: −6%
vs Kansas median: +2%

Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 (area 31740, Manhattan, KS). Excludes self-employed welders. Cost of living: BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024. *Starting pay is estimated from the 10th percentile; BLS does not report pay by license level.

Entry-level to top welder pay

Stage	Yearly pay	Hourly pay
Entry level	$38,500–$47,590$18.51–$22.88/hr
Experienced welder	$50,550$24.30/hr
Top earners	$50,550–$62,780$24.30–$30.18/hr

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

How Manhattan, KS compares

Manhattan ranks 5th of 7 Kansas metro areas for welder pay.
Welders are more concentrated in the Manhattan area than nationally: 3.4 of every 1,000 jobs, 1.3 times the U.S. share.
The 90th-percentile wage, $62,780, is 1.6 times the 10th-percentile wage, $38,500: a measure of how much pay rises with experience and specialty.

Other Kansas metro areas

Other trades in Manhattan, KS

Electrician HVAC technician Lineman Plumber

Questions

How much do welders make in Manhattan, KS?: Welders in the Manhattan, KS area earn a median of $50,550 a year, or $24.30 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. The top 10% earn more than $62,780.
How much do welders make an hour in Manhattan, KS?: The median hourly wage is $24.30. The middle half earn between $22.88 and $24.30 an hour. (BLS, May 2025.)
What do apprentice welders make in Manhattan, KS?: BLS doesn't report pay by license level. The 10th-percentile wage, $18.51 an hour ($38,500 a year), is a reasonable estimate of starting pay; the 25th percentile is $22.88.
Do welders make more in Manhattan or St. Joseph?: St. Joseph pays more: the median is $50,550 in Manhattan and $66,060 in St. Joseph, a 23% difference.
How does Manhattan pay compare with the rest of Kansas?: The Manhattan median of $50,550 is 2% more than the Kansas median of $49,410.

About this data

Wages are from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey for May 2025, occupation 51-4121 (Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers), area code 31740 (Manhattan, KS). BLS counts wage and salary workers only, so self-employed welders 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 (90.2, where the U.S. average is 100). Page updated September 26, 2026. How we calculate these figures