How much do underwater welders make in 2026?
Underwater welders are counted in the BLS welders, cutters, solderers and brazers series: OEWS May 2025 puts the SOC 51-4121 national median at $53,750 a year ($25.84 an hour), with the bottom 10% near $39,240 and the top 10% at $77,530. That series does not identify diving work at all, and some underwater welders are recorded as commercial divers instead, so this page is explicit: the published figure cannot be presented as an underwater welding wage. What can be said accurately is how the pay is built. Commercial diving is paid by day rate plus depth pay and sometimes bonus per foot below a threshold, with mobilisation and per-diem on top, so a working day pays well but the year contains weather days, transit and seasonal gaps. Before any of it you must complete commercial dive school and hold a welding qualification — a substantial upfront cost. Employment across the welders series is projected to grow 2.2% through 2034 with roughly 45,600 openings a year. → Full underwater welder career guide, career path, credentials & placement →
Note: $53,750 blends every experience level and every setting in this occupation. For pay by level alone, see Pay by Level below.
- Underwater Welders earn a national median $53,750/yr ($25.84/hr) (BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 51-4121); the P10 to P90 range is $39,240 to $77,530.
- BLS does not identify underwater welding — the role sits inside the general welders series, and some divers are counted in a diving occupation instead, so no published figure is specific to this work.
- Pay is structured as a day rate plus depth pay, mobilisation and per-diem rather than an annual salary, so weather days, transit and seasonal gaps determine annual earnings.
- Entry requires commercial dive school and a welding qualification, a significant upfront cost that should be weighed against the physical risk and the industry's project-driven hiring.
US Underwater Welder Pay Distribution · BLS OEWS May 2025
Pay by Level · BLS OEWS May 2025
How much do underwater welders earn at each level?
BLS OEWS publishes one blended wage for the whole occupation and does not break pay out by credential or practice level. The levels below distribute the published percentile range across the credential tiers this role actually hires at.
Level medians are aligned to the BLS OEWS May 2025 percentile distribution for SOC 51-4121; GlobalCybers does not yet publish a verified placement sample for this role, so no verified median is shown.
Methodology & Sources
How the numbers on this page are built
Published (BLS): BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 51-4121, United States national estimate. Public, methodologically rigorous, but sampled on a rolling 3-year basis and published ~10 months after collection — so it reflects wages that are already 1–2 years old by the time you read them.
Level and certification medians: distributed across the published BLS percentile range for this SOC code (P10 through P90) according to the credential tiers this occupation actually hires at. They are modeled reference points, not separately surveyed wages.
State and metro figures: modeled — the BLS national median multiplied by the GlobalCybers state wage index, and for metros by the published metro index for that state. They are estimates of local pay, not BLS state or metropolitan-area observations, and are labelled as modeled in the tables below.
No verified placement sample:GlobalCybers does not yet publish a placement median for this role, so no "verified" figure appears anywhere on this page.
Pay by Career Level
How much does an underwater welder earn at each career stage?
Underwater welding pay follows dive certification, depth and system qualifications, and project availability. Each median is anchored to the BLS OEWS welders distribution (SOC 51-4121), which does not separate diving work.
By State
Which states pay underwater welders the most in 2026?
These are modeled state estimates — the BLS national welders median scaled by the GlobalCybers state wage index — not BLS state observations. Underwater work is located rather than distributed: Gulf offshore energy, coastal ports and shipyards, and inland river, lock and dam systems are where the contracts are. Diving is regulated federally through occupational safety rules for commercial diving operations rather than by state licensure, so mobility depends on contractor hiring cycles.
6 of 51 state guides shown, ranked by median. Bar is relative to California ($61,810), the highest-paying state shown. See all role salary guides →
underwater welder pay by state — all 3 state guides
By Metro
Which cities pay underwater welders the most?
Modeled metro estimates: the national welders median scaled by the state wage index and then by that state's published metro index. They estimate local wage levels and are not BLS metropolitan-area observations.
BLS OEWS MSA estimates, May 2025. Nominal pay — weigh each metro against its cost of living before relocating.
Certification Impact
Which certifications raise an underwater welder’s pay the most?
Median annual pay before and after each credential, based on GlobalCybers placement data cross-referenced with BLS. License upgrades move the needle most; stackable certs add on top.
Impacts are not additive, the licensing rows share the same career ladder. Browse all 167 certifications →
Trade Comparison
How does underwater welder pay compare to related roles?
BLS OEWS national median across the closest trades. Underwater Welders sit mid-pack on median but carry one of the widest P10–P90 spreads, licensing and specialization drive the upside.
BLS OEWS May 2025. Verify underwater welder wages on BLS.gov →
Take-Home Pay
What does an underwater welder actually take home after taxes?
The medians above are gross base wage.
Estimates use 2026 federal brackets, standard deduction, and 7.65% FICA. Actual take-home varies with filing status, deductions, and local tax.
FAQ
Underwater Welder Salary, Frequently Asked Questions
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