Loading
Assembling your view…
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Real salary distribution from 288 tracked cities across 46 states. Compare entry-level, median, and senior compensation — then adjust for cost of living.
Same job title, wildly different paychecks. Here's why. The national median salary for Drywall Installers in 2026 is $58,194, with entry-level positions averaging $41,900 and senior roles reaching $82,636. But those numbers flatten a reality with enormous geographic variation — Sunnyvale pays a median of $106,000, while other markets fall well below the national average. We tracked 288 cities to build the complete picture.
A career as a Drywall Installer sits at the intersection of Construction and Construction & Trades. Most professionals enter with No formal requirement, and the field is characterized by growing. The work itself is job-site. Understanding that context matters: it explains why certain markets pay premiums and others lag.
$64,500 separates the highest and lowest-paying cities. A Drywall Installer in Sunnyvale, California earns a median of $106,000 — $64,500 more than their counterpart in Toledo, Ohio ($41,500). That gap alone is more than many cities' annual rent. That salary-to-cost ratio is genuinely competitive.
Breaking down the numbers: entry-level Drywall Installers average $41,900, the median sits at $58,194, and senior earners pull in $82,636. That $40,736 gap represents the full earning trajectory of this career. The median is $22,173 below the national median household income of $80,367 — which tells you location and cost of living are critical factors in making this salary work.
Compare the extremes: the highest-paying trio of cities (Sunnyvale, Santa Clara, Irvine) averages $99,000, while the lowest-paying trio (Toledo, Detroit, Akron) averages $41,833. The $57,167 difference is the kind of number that reshapes career strategy — assuming the cost of living cooperates.
A Drywall Installer in Sunnyvale, California earns a median of $106,000 — $64,500 more than their counterpart in Toledo, Ohio ($41,500). That gap alone is more than many cities' annual rent.
The national average entry-level (P10) salary for Drywall Installer is $41,900, while senior-level (P90) earners average $82,636. That $40,736 trajectory represents the earning growth a career in this field can deliver.
| Country | Coverage | Entry (P10) | Median | Senior (P90) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | 288 | $41,900 | $58,194 | $82,636 |
| United Kingdom | 27 | £23,030 | £31,986 | £45,420 |
| Canada | 21 | CA$36,398 | CA$50,553 | CA$71,785 |
| Australia | 13 | A$45,134 | A$62,686 | A$89,013 |
| Sweden | 24 | 249,281 kr | 346,224 kr | 491,638 kr |
| State | Cities | Entry (P10) | Median | Senior (P90) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| California | 61 | $50,571 | $70,238 | $99,738 |
| Massachusetts | 4 | $48,870 | $67,875 | $96,383 |
| Hawaii | 1 | $48,600 | $67,500 | $95,850 |
| District of Columbia | 1 | $45,000 | $62,500 | $88,750 |
| New Jersey | 4 | $44,460 | $61,750 | $87,685 |
| Washington | 8 | $43,605 | $60,563 | $85,999 |
| New York | 5 | $41,040 | $57,000 | $80,940 |
| Rhode Island | 1 | $41,040 | $57,000 | $80,940 |
| Florida | 22 | $40,729 | $56,568 | $80,327 |
| Colorado | 11 | $40,025 | $55,591 | $78,939 |
| New Hampshire | 1 | $39,960 | $55,500 | $78,810 |
| Nevada | 5 | $39,888 | $55,400 | $78,668 |
| Arizona | 12 | $39,690 | $55,125 | $78,278 |
| Oregon | 5 | $39,600 | $55,000 | $78,100 |
| Idaho | 3 | $39,480 | $54,833 | $77,863 |
| Connecticut | 5 | $39,168 | $54,400 | $77,248 |
| Utah | 4 | $39,060 | $54,250 | $77,035 |
| Virginia | 7 | $38,417 | $53,357 | $75,767 |
| South Carolina | 3 | $37,920 | $52,667 | $74,787 |
| Alaska | 1 | $37,800 | $52,500 | $74,550 |
| Illinois | 5 | $37,368 | $51,900 | $73,698 |
| North Carolina | 9 | $36,440 | $50,611 | $71,868 |
| New Mexico | 3 | $36,000 | $50,000 | $71,000 |
| Montana | 1 | $36,000 | $50,000 | $71,000 |
| Tennessee | 6 | $35,880 | $49,833 | $70,763 |
| Texas | 40 | $35,703 | $49,588 | $70,414 |
| Minnesota | 2 | $35,640 | $49,500 | $70,290 |
| Wisconsin | 2 | $35,460 | $49,250 | $69,935 |
| Georgia | 6 | $35,340 | $49,083 | $69,698 |
| Pennsylvania | 3 | $35,280 | $49,000 | $69,580 |
| Kansas | 4 | $35,100 | $48,750 | $69,225 |
| Michigan | 6 | $34,980 | $48,583 | $68,988 |
| Kentucky | 2 | $34,560 | $48,000 | $68,160 |
| Maryland | 1 | $34,560 | $48,000 | $68,160 |
| Nebraska | 2 | $34,200 | $47,500 | $67,450 |
| South Dakota | 1 | $34,200 | $47,500 | $67,450 |
| Oklahoma | 4 | $33,300 | $46,250 | $65,675 |
| North Dakota | 1 | $33,120 | $46,000 | $65,320 |
| Louisiana | 4 | $32,670 | $45,375 | $64,433 |
| Missouri | 4 | $32,670 | $45,375 | $64,433 |
| Alabama | 5 | $32,544 | $45,200 | $64,184 |
| Indiana | 3 | $32,040 | $44,500 | $63,190 |
| Arkansas | 1 | $32,040 | $44,500 | $63,190 |
| Iowa | 2 | $31,680 | $44,000 | $62,480 |
| Ohio | 6 | $31,620 | $43,917 | $62,362 |
| Mississippi | 1 | $30,240 | $42,000 | $59,640 |
Geography shapes Drywall Installer pay in predictable and not-so-predictable ways. California tops the state leaderboard at $70,238 median, with 61 cities providing data. Massachusetts and Hawaii follow. On the flip side, Mississippi and Ohio anchor the bottom — reflecting lower local cost structures and smaller metro premiums.
When you adjust the top-paying cities for cost of living, the ranking reshuffles. Sunnyvale ($106,000 nominal, 212 cost index) delivers $50,000 in purchasing power — maintaining its lead even after cost adjustment. This is the metric that matters for anyone considering a geo-based career move.
Raw salary divided by the local cost index — this shows where your paycheck buys the most.
| # | City | Nominal Salary | Cost Index | Adjusted Salary | Est. Take-Home |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sunnyvale California | $106,000 | 212 | $50,000 | $65,311 |
| 2 | Santa Clara California | $99,000 | 198 | $50,000 | $61,427 |
| 3 | Irvine California | $92,000 | 184 | $50,000 | $57,433 |
| 4 | San Francisco California | $90,500 | 181 | $50,000 | $56,577 |
| 5 | Carlsbad California | $89,000 | 178 | $50,000 | $55,722 |
| 6 | San Jose California | $88,500 | 177 | $50,000 | $55,436 |
| 7 | Fremont California | $88,500 | 177 | $50,000 | $55,436 |
| 8 | Berkeley California | $86,500 | 173 | $50,000 | $54,295 |
| 9 | Costa Mesa California | $86,500 | 173 | $50,000 | $54,295 |
| 10 | Huntington Beach California | $84,500 | 169 | $50,000 | $53,154 |
The $40,736 gap between P10 and P90 represents the earning trajectory of a Drywall Installer career. Senior-level earners make 2.0× what entry-level professionals do — a solid progression that justifies the upfront investment. In the Construction & Trades sector, growing, which shapes both starting salaries and long-term ceiling.
The weighted national median salary for Drywall Installers is $58,194 in 2026, based on BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics across 288 U.S. metro areas. Entry-level (10th percentile) averages $41,900, while experienced professionals at the 90th percentile average $82,636.
The highest-paying city for Drywall Installers is Sunnyvale, California with a median salary of $106,000. The top 3 cities are Sunnyvale ($106,000), Santa Clara ($99,000), Irvine ($92,000). Note: high-paying cities often have higher costs of living — check the cost-adjusted rankings above for purchasing power.
The lowest median Drywall Installer salary in our data is in Toledo, Ohio at $41,500. However, lower-paying cities often have significantly lower costs of living, which can offset the pay gap. Always compare salary data alongside local cost of living.
Entry-level Drywall Installers (10th percentile) average $41,900 nationally. This varies by city — in the highest-paying markets, entry-level pay can be close to $76,320. Experience, certifications, and employer type all influence starting salary.
At the 90th percentile (senior level), Drywall Installers average $82,636 nationally — $40,736 more than entry-level. In top-paying cities, senior Drywall Installers can earn up to $150,520.
The top-paying states for Drywall Installers are California ($70,238 median), Massachusetts ($67,875 median), Hawaii ($67,500 median). State averages are computed across all tracked cities in each state, weighted equally.
The typical education path for a Drywall Installer involves No formal requirement. The field is in the Construction & Trades sector (Construction), and the career outlook is growing. Work style is typically job-site.
With a national median of $58,194 and representation across 288 metro areas, Drywall Installer offers a foundation that can be strengthened by strategic location choices. The $40,736 gap between entry and senior pay shows room for salary growth. Industry outlook: growing.
All salary data on this page is sourced from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) program, which surveys employers across U.S. metropolitan areas. We present 10th percentile (entry), 50th percentile (median), and 90th percentile (senior) pay benchmarks. Cost-of-living adjustments use our core database of 288 cities.
Salary data is sourced from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) program, which surveys employers across U.S. metropolitan and non-metropolitan areas. We present the 10th percentile (entry-level), 50th percentile (median), and 90th percentile (senior) pay benchmarks.
Cost-of-living adjustments use Livably's core index derived from Zillow rent data, Census income surveys, and regional BLS price data. Take-home pay estimates apply simplified federal brackets, 7.65% FICA, and state income tax rates from the Tax Foundation.
State and national averages are computed as simple means across all tracked cities with data for this occupation. Rankings are updated monthly as new BLS releases become available.