How much do welders make an hour in Virginia Beach, VA-NC?

The median hourly wage is $30.13. The middle half earn between $24.01 and $34.18 an hour. (BLS, May 2025.)

What do apprentice welders make in Virginia Beach, VA-NC?

BLS doesn't report pay by license level. The 10th-percentile wage, $22.36 an hour ($46,510 a year), is a reasonable estimate of starting pay; the 25th percentile is $24.01.

Do welders make more in Virginia Beach or Washington?

Virginia Beach pays more: the median is $62,670 in Virginia Beach and $60,670 in Washington, a 3% difference.

How does Virginia Beach pay compare with the rest of Virginia?

The Virginia Beach median of $62,670 is 6% more than the Virginia median of $59,180.

Welder salary in Virginia Beach, VA-NC

Updated September 26, 2026 with BLS data from May 2025

Welders in the Virginia Beach–Chesapeake–Norfolk, VA-NC area earn a median of $62,670 a year, or $30.13 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. The highest-paid 10% make over $78,180 a year. Across all of Virginia, the median is $59,180, so Virginia Beach pays 6% more than the state as a whole.

Median yearly pay$62,670

Bottom 10% under$46,510Top 10% over$78,180

Apprentice starting pay (estimate): $22.36/hr
Jobs in this area: 3,740
After cost of living: $63,990
Median hourly pay: $30.13/hr
vs U.S. median: +17%
vs Virginia median: +6%

Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 (area 47260, Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC). 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	$46,510–$49,950$22.36–$24.01/hr
Experienced welder	$62,670$30.13/hr
Top earners	$71,090–$78,180$34.18–$37.59/hr

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

How Virginia Beach, VA-NC compares

Virginia Beach ranks 2nd of 11 Virginia metro areas for welder pay.
Welders are more concentrated in the Virginia Beach area than nationally: 4.9 of every 1,000 jobs, 1.8 times the U.S. share.
The 90th-percentile wage, $78,180, is 1.7 times the 10th-percentile wage, $46,510: a measure of how much pay rises with experience and specialty.

Other Virginia metro areas

Other trades in Virginia Beach, VA-NC

Electrician HVAC technician Lineman Plumber

Questions

How much do welders make in Virginia Beach, VA-NC?: Welders in the Virginia Beach–Chesapeake–Norfolk, VA-NC area earn a median of $62,670 a year, or $30.13 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. The highest-paid 10% make over $78,180 a year.
How much do welders make an hour in Virginia Beach, VA-NC?: The median hourly wage is $30.13. The middle half earn between $24.01 and $34.18 an hour. (BLS, May 2025.)
What do apprentice welders make in Virginia Beach, VA-NC?: BLS doesn't report pay by license level. The 10th-percentile wage, $22.36 an hour ($46,510 a year), is a reasonable estimate of starting pay; the 25th percentile is $24.01.
Do welders make more in Virginia Beach or Washington?: Virginia Beach pays more: the median is $62,670 in Virginia Beach and $60,670 in Washington, a 3% difference.
How does Virginia Beach pay compare with the rest of Virginia?: The Virginia Beach median of $62,670 is 6% more than the Virginia median of $59,180.

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 47260 (Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC). 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 (97.9, where the U.S. average is 100). Page updated September 26, 2026. How we calculate these figures