High paying construction jobs in District of Columbia with no experience

The best paid construction occupations in District of Columbia that require neither a degree nor prior experience in a related job. This is the narrowest cut on the site, so it is also the shortest list: where a field has only two or three such occupations, there is no page at all rather than a page pretending otherwise.

Cost of living: prices in District of Columbia run 9.9% above the national average (2024), so a District of Columbia salary is worth about 0.91× its face value in national terms. That scales every wage here by the same factor — it changes what the numbers mean, not their order. To see where a job pays a real premium, use jobs that pay more in District of Columbia.

Wages: BLS OEWS, May 2025 · Cost of living: BEA regional price parities, 2024

Find construction jobs in District of Columbia

OccupationMedian, District of Columbia · Employed

1Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters$101,020
High school diploma or equivalent
$52,310 – $117,1801,010
2Electricians$78,970
High school diploma or equivalent
$51,950 – $125,7902,440
3Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators$74,610
High school diploma or equivalent
$50,540 – $98,270620
4Carpenters$61,710
High school diploma or equivalent
$47,840 – $80,7201,540
5Cement Masons and Concrete Finishers$61,680
No formal educational credential
$47,050 – $87,120320
6Painters, Construction and Maintenance$59,520
No formal educational credential
$46,780 – $81,390500
7Construction Laborers$50,020
No formal educational credential
$37,190 – $72,3202,090
8Helpers--Electricians$48,300
High school diploma or equivalent
$40,810 – $54,210330

Bars run from the 10th to the 90th percentile; the middle half is shaded darker, and the tick is the median.

#	Occupation	MedianDistrict of Columbia	10th–90th percentilemiddle half shaded darker	Employed
1	Plumbers, Pipefitters, and SteamfittersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$101,020	$52,310 – $117,180	1,010
2	ElectriciansHigh school diploma or equivalent	$78,970	$51,950 – $125,790	2,440
3	Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment OperatorsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$74,610	$50,540 – $98,270	620
4	CarpentersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$61,710	$47,840 – $80,720	1,540
5	Cement Masons and Concrete FinishersNo formal educational credential	$61,680	$47,050 – $87,120	320
6	Painters, Construction and MaintenanceNo formal educational credential	$59,520	$46,780 – $81,390	500
7	Construction LaborersNo formal educational credential	$50,020	$37,190 – $72,320	2,090
8	Helpers--ElectriciansHigh school diploma or equivalent	$48,300	$40,810 – $54,210	330

Ranked among the occupations common enough to employ roughly one in every three thousand workers in District of Columbia. The rarer ones are real jobs — but a 1,190-person occupation at the top of a list answers a different question than the one most readers are asking.

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Metro areas in District of Columbia

Pay varies more between metros than between states — the spread inside one state is often wider than the gap between two.

Washington-Arlington-Alexandria

By field in District of Columbia

Without a degree

The same fields, narrowed to what you can enter without one. Fields missing here have too few such occupations in District of Columbia to rank honestly.

High paying construction jobs in District of Columbia with no experience

More for District of Columbia

Metro areas in District of Columbia

By field in District of Columbia

Without a degree

High paying construction jobs in each state with no experience