All careersSkilled trades

Elevator Installer & Repairer

$109,910
median pay per year
$59,270 – $158,890
what most earn (10th–90th percentile)

What the job actually is

Install, maintain, and repair elevators, escalators, and moving walkways, testing safety systems as you go.

Where you work

Buildings under construction and in use; shafts, machine rooms, and heights.

The hours

Full-time; on-call nights and weekends for emergency repairs.

By the numbers

May 2024–25 BLS wage data · 2024–34 BLS employment projections.

Median pay
$109,910
per year
What most earn
$59,270–$158,890
10th to 90th percentile
Openings a year
~2,000
projected, 2024–34
Outlook to 2034
+5%
Faster than average
Working in the U.S.
23,790
people, nationwide

Openings a year counts new jobs plus the ones that open when people retire or move on — a truer picture of your odds than growth alone.

“Median” means half earn more and half earn less. Your city, employer, and years on the job move it a lot — that is what the 10th-to-90th range shows.

How you get in

Typical starting education

High school / no degree

Training path: 4-year paid apprenticeship.

License or certification

Many states require a license; skills come through a long paid apprenticeship.

You can earn while you train. This field has a genuinely paid pathway in — an apprenticeship, a paid academy, or employer-funded training — so you draw a paycheck instead of taking on debt to learn it.

What it takes

Mechanical skillsTroubleshootingPhysical staminaSafety awareness

The honest take

The best-paid trade in America — six figures, no degree, union apprenticeship.

Standard Occupational Classification 47-4021. Pay, employment, and outlook from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS wage survey and 2024–34 employment projections). See something off? Tell us.