How much do welders make an hour in Grand Island, NE?

The median hourly wage is $23.53. The middle half earn between $23.25 and $27.62 an hour. (BLS, May 2025.)

What do apprentice welders make in Grand Island, NE?

BLS doesn't report pay by license level. The 10th-percentile wage, $20.68 an hour ($43,010 a year), is a reasonable estimate of starting pay; the 25th percentile is $23.25.

Do welders make more in Grand Island or Sioux City?

Sioux City pays more: the median is $48,940 in Grand Island and $58,230 in Sioux City, a 16% difference.

How does Grand Island pay compare with the rest of Nebraska?

The Grand Island median of $48,940 is 6% less than the Nebraska median of $52,220.

Welder salary in Grand Island, NE

Updated September 26, 2026 with BLS data from May 2025

Welders in the Grand Island, NE area earn a median of $48,940 a year, or $23.53 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. One in ten earns more than $60,860. Across all of Nebraska, the median is $52,220, so Grand Island pays 6% less than the state as a whole.

Median yearly pay$48,940

Bottom 10% under$43,010Top 10% over$60,860

Apprentice starting pay (estimate): $20.68/hr
Jobs in this area: 170
After cost of living: $56,480
Median hourly pay: $23.53/hr
vs U.S. median: −9%
vs Nebraska median: −6%

Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 (area 24260, Grand Island, NE). 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	$43,010–$48,360$20.68–$23.25/hr
Experienced welder	$48,940$23.53/hr
Top earners	$57,440–$60,860$27.62–$29.26/hr

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

How Grand Island, NE compares

Grand Island has the lowest welder median of the 4 Nebraska metro areas with published pay.
Welders are more concentrated in the Grand Island area than nationally: 4.2 of every 1,000 jobs, 1.6 times the U.S. share.
The 90th-percentile wage, $60,860, is 1.4 times the 10th-percentile wage, $43,010: a measure of how much pay rises with experience and specialty.

Other Nebraska metro areas

Other trades in Grand Island, NE

Electrician HVAC technician Lineman Plumber

Questions

How much do welders make in Grand Island, NE?: Welders in the Grand Island, NE area earn a median of $48,940 a year, or $23.53 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. One in ten earns more than $60,860.
How much do welders make an hour in Grand Island, NE?: The median hourly wage is $23.53. The middle half earn between $23.25 and $27.62 an hour. (BLS, May 2025.)
What do apprentice welders make in Grand Island, NE?: BLS doesn't report pay by license level. The 10th-percentile wage, $20.68 an hour ($43,010 a year), is a reasonable estimate of starting pay; the 25th percentile is $23.25.
Do welders make more in Grand Island or Sioux City?: Sioux City pays more: the median is $48,940 in Grand Island and $58,230 in Sioux City, a 16% difference.
How does Grand Island pay compare with the rest of Nebraska?: The Grand Island median of $48,940 is 6% less than the Nebraska median of $52,220.

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 24260 (Grand Island, NE). 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 (86.7, where the U.S. average is 100). Page updated September 26, 2026. How we calculate these figures