How much do welders make an hour in Louisville, KY-IN?

The median hourly wage is $24.46. The middle half earn between $22.81 and $29.01 an hour. (BLS, May 2025.)

What do apprentice welders make in Louisville, KY-IN?

BLS doesn't report pay by license level. The 10th-percentile wage, $19.75 an hour ($41,070 a year), is a reasonable estimate of starting pay; the 25th percentile is $22.81.

Do welders make more in Louisville or Elizabethtown?

Elizabethtown pays more: the median is $50,870 in Louisville and $59,900 in Elizabethtown, a 15% difference.

How does Louisville pay compare with the rest of Kentucky?

The Louisville median of $50,870 is 1% less than the Kentucky median of $51,470.

Welder salary in Louisville, KY-IN

Updated September 26, 2026 with BLS data from May 2025

Welders in the Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN area earn a median of $50,870 a year, or $24.46 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. The highest-paid 10% make over $70,360 a year. Across all of Kentucky, the median is $51,470, so Louisville pays 1% less than the state as a whole.

Median yearly pay$50,870

Bottom 10% under$41,070Top 10% over$70,360

Apprentice starting pay (estimate): $19.75/hr
Jobs in this area: 1,790
After cost of living: $54,660
Median hourly pay: $24.46/hr
vs U.S. median: −5%
vs Kentucky median: −1%

Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 (area 31140, Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN). 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	$41,070–$47,440$19.75–$22.81/hr
Experienced welder	$50,870$24.46/hr
Top earners	$60,330–$70,360$29.01–$33.83/hr

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

How Louisville, KY-IN compares

Louisville ranks 7th of 9 Kentucky metro areas for welder pay.
Welders hold about the same share of jobs in the Louisville area as nationally: 2.6 of every 1,000 jobs.
The 90th-percentile wage, $70,360, is 1.7 times the 10th-percentile wage, $41,070: a measure of how much pay rises with experience and specialty.

Other Kentucky metro areas

Other trades in Louisville, KY-IN

Electrician HVAC technician Lineman Plumber

Questions

How much do welders make in Louisville, KY-IN?: Welders in the Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN area earn a median of $50,870 a year, or $24.46 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. The highest-paid 10% make over $70,360 a year.
How much do welders make an hour in Louisville, KY-IN?: The median hourly wage is $24.46. The middle half earn between $22.81 and $29.01 an hour. (BLS, May 2025.)
What do apprentice welders make in Louisville, KY-IN?: BLS doesn't report pay by license level. The 10th-percentile wage, $19.75 an hour ($41,070 a year), is a reasonable estimate of starting pay; the 25th percentile is $22.81.
Do welders make more in Louisville or Elizabethtown?: Elizabethtown pays more: the median is $50,870 in Louisville and $59,900 in Elizabethtown, a 15% difference.
How does Louisville pay compare with the rest of Kentucky?: The Louisville median of $50,870 is 1% less than the Kentucky median of $51,470.

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 31140 (Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN). 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 (93.1, where the U.S. average is 100). Page updated September 26, 2026. How we calculate these figures