Welder salary in North Carolina
Updated September 27, 2026 with BLS data from May 2025
Welders in North Carolina earn a median of $50,590 a year, or $24.32 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. One in ten earns more than $71,240. Nationally the median is $53,750, so North Carolina pays 6% less than the U.S. overall and ranks 37th of 51.
- Entry-level starting pay (estimate)
- $18.53/hr
- Jobs in North Carolina
- 11,750
- After cost of living
- $53,630
- Median hourly pay
- $24.32/hr
- vs U.S. median
- −6%
- Rank among states
- 37th of 51
- Mean (average) pay
- $53,720 a year · $25.83 an hour
Pay by percentile
What welders in North Carolina earn at each point of the pay range, May 2025: 10% earn less than the 10th percentile, half earn less than the median, and 10% earn more than the 90th.
| Percentile | Hourly | Yearly |
|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $18.53 | $38,540 |
| 25th percentile | $21.83 | $45,400 |
| Median (50th) | $24.32 | $50,590 |
| 75th percentile | $29.26 | $60,870 |
| 90th percentile | $34.25 | $71,240 |
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. BLS yearly figures are the hourly wage times 2,080 hours.
Pay over time
The median welder wage in North Carolina rose 8.9%, from $46,450 in May 2021 to $50,590 in May 2025. Prices rose 19.4% over the same period, so after inflation it fell 8.8%.
| Year | Median a year | Median an hour |
|---|---|---|
| May 2021 | $46,450 | $22.33/hr |
| May 2022 | $47,200 | $22.69/hr |
| May 2023 | $48,620 | $23.38/hr |
| May 2024 | $49,860 | $23.97/hr |
| May 2025 | $50,590 | $24.32/hr |
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, each May release; inflation from the BLS Consumer Price Index (CPI-U, May of each year). BLS cautions against reading much into year-to-year changes, so we compare the first and last years. How we compare years
How North Carolina compares
- Welders are less concentrated in North Carolina than nationally: 2.4 of every 1,000 jobs, 0.89 times the U.S. share.
Pay by metro area
Rural North Carolina
- Eastern North Carolina$52,260
- Western North Carolina$49,310
- Central North Carolina$48,050
Other trades in North Carolina
Bidding federal work? Davis-Bacon prevailing wage rates in North Carolina list what contractors must pay welders on federal and federally assisted jobs, county by county.
Questions
- Where in North Carolina do welders earn the most?
- Among North Carolina metro areas, Virginia Beach–Chesapeake–Norfolk has the highest median at $62,670 a year, and Hickory–Lenoir–Morganton the lowest at $46,080.
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 37. 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 (94.3, where the U.S. average is 100). Page updated September 27, 2026. How we calculate these figures