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

The median hourly wage is $26.05. The middle half earn between $21.81 and $31.74 an hour. (BLS, May 2025.)

What do apprentice welders make in Wichita, KS?

BLS doesn't report pay by license level. The 10th-percentile wage, $18.76 an hour ($39,020 a year), is a reasonable estimate of starting pay; the 25th percentile is $21.81.

Do welders make more in Wichita or St. Joseph?

St. Joseph pays more: the median is $54,190 in Wichita and $66,060 in St. Joseph, a 18% difference.

How does Wichita pay compare with the rest of Kansas?

The Wichita median of $54,190 is 10% more than the Kansas median of $49,410.

Welder salary in Wichita, KS

Updated September 26, 2026 with BLS data from May 2025

Welders in the Wichita, KS area earn a median of $54,190 a year, or $26.05 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. The top 10% earn more than $71,890. Across all of Kansas, the median is $49,410, so Wichita pays 10% more than the state as a whole.

Median yearly pay$54,190

Bottom 10% under$39,020Top 10% over$71,890

Apprentice starting pay (estimate): $18.76/hr
Jobs in this area: 1,460
After cost of living: $60,920
Median hourly pay: $26.05/hr
vs U.S. median: +1%
vs Kansas median: +10%

Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 (area 48620, Wichita, 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	$39,020–$45,360$18.76–$21.81/hr
Experienced welder	$54,190$26.05/hr
Top earners	$66,010–$71,890$31.74–$34.56/hr

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

How Wichita, KS compares

Wichita ranks 3rd of 7 Kansas metro areas for welder pay.
Welders are more concentrated in the Wichita area than nationally: 4.7 of every 1,000 jobs, 1.8 times the U.S. share.
The 90th-percentile wage, $71,890, is 1.8 times the 10th-percentile wage, $39,020: a measure of how much pay rises with experience and specialty.

Other Kansas metro areas

Other trades in Wichita, KS

Electrician HVAC technician Lineman Plumber

Questions

How much do welders make in Wichita, KS?: Welders in the Wichita, KS area earn a median of $54,190 a year, or $26.05 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. The top 10% earn more than $71,890.
How much do welders make an hour in Wichita, KS?: The median hourly wage is $26.05. The middle half earn between $21.81 and $31.74 an hour. (BLS, May 2025.)
What do apprentice welders make in Wichita, KS?: BLS doesn't report pay by license level. The 10th-percentile wage, $18.76 an hour ($39,020 a year), is a reasonable estimate of starting pay; the 25th percentile is $21.81.
Do welders make more in Wichita or St. Joseph?: St. Joseph pays more: the median is $54,190 in Wichita and $66,060 in St. Joseph, a 18% difference.
How does Wichita pay compare with the rest of Kansas?: The Wichita median of $54,190 is 10% 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 48620 (Wichita, 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 (88.9, where the U.S. average is 100). Page updated September 26, 2026. How we calculate these figures