Statewide pay Government data
Carpenters in Iowa earn a statewide median of $57,710 a year, 3% above the typical U.S. metro, ranking #31 of 50 states and DC. About 5,770 people work in the trade statewide.
Statewide pay range
States ranked near Iowa
See all states on the carpenter overview.
Pay by city Government data
BLS publishes carpenter pay for 8 Iowa metros: Ames, Cedar Rapids, Davenport, Des Moines, Dubuque, Iowa City, Sioux City and Waterloo.
| Metro | Median pay | Real pay | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Des MoinesIOWA · IA | $61,360 | $66,913 | 1,810 |
| DavenportIOWA · IA | $60,440 | $67,850 | 670 |
| DubuqueIOWA · IA | $60,090 | $68,810 | 260 |
| Cedar RapidsIOWA · IA | $58,920 | $66,230 | 530 |
| WaterlooIOWA · IA | $55,840 | $64,142 | 260 |
| AmesIOWA · IA | $55,640 | $62,636 | 210 |
| Sioux CityIOWA · IA | $51,100 | $59,107 | 350 |
| Iowa CityIOWA · IA | $49,680 | $54,290 | 360 |
Pay: BLS OEWS, May 2025 (metro-level). Real pay: BEA price parities, 2024. How we calculate
Pay outside the cities Government data
BLS also reports pay for Iowa's rural (nonmetropolitan) regions.
BLS OEWS nonmetropolitan areas, May 2025.
The job (national)
Construct, erect, install, or repair structures and fixtures made of wood and comparable materials, such as concrete forms; building frameworks, including partitions, joists, studding, and rafters; and wood stairways, window and door frames, and hardwood floors. May also install cabinets, siding, drywall, and batt or roll insulation. Includes brattice builders who build doors or brattices (ventilation walls or partitions) in underground passageways.
Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 3.9% from 2025 to 2035, with about 62,800 openings a year. Typical training: apprenticeship.
Nationally, carpenters have 165 injuries or illnesses serious enough to miss work per 10,000 full-time workers, 1.9× the rate for all jobs (87). The most common cause is being struck by or caught in objects and equipment.
What the work is like Government data
How often carpenters deal with each condition, from surveys of workers in the job.
Getting started usually takes some preparation (high school plus months of training).
O*NET 31.0 Work Context and Job Zones (U.S. Department of Labor), national.
Getting started: registered apprenticeship Government data
Most carpenters train through a paid apprenticeship: you work and earn under experienced pros while taking classes, and pay usually rises as you progress. 727,586 people were active registered apprentices nationwide in FY2026, up 87% since FY2016, and construction is the largest field with 290,043 of them (40%), according to the U.S. Department of Labor.
Search apprenticeship openings ↗Find training programs & sponsors ↗
Official U.S. Department of Labor tools at Apprenticeship.gov. Counts: DOL Apprentices by State dashboard, FY2026 (all occupations).
Registered apprenticeships Government data
Of carpenter apprentices in Iowa who finished or left a registered program in fiscal years 2020–2024, 32% completed (U.S.: 40%), about 49 graduates a year. The typical program runs 8,000 hours, about 4 years of full-time work. Union programs had a 32% completion rate, compared with 26% for non-union programs. Search open registered programs near you on the official Apprenticeship Finder.
U.S. Department of Labor, RAPIDS apprentice records (Completion Rate Analysis), FY2020–2024 exits.
Serious injuries & deaths reported to OSHA Government data
Iowa runs its own workplace-safety program (an OSHA State Plan), so its injury reports aren't in the federal dataset. Nationally, in states federal OSHA covers, framing contractors filed 482 severe injury reports from 2015 to 2024; the most common cause was falls, slips and trips (66%). OSHA also opened 3 fatality investigations at framing contractors in Iowa over the same years (federal and state programs).
OSHA Severe Injury Reports, January 2015–December 2024 (states under federal OSHA only).
Fatality investigations: OSHA Fatality Inspection Data, events 2015–2024, all states.
Where to train in Iowa Government data
12 schools in Iowa offer carpentry programs below the bachelor's level. Many people in this trade learn through an apprenticeship instead; a program can shorten it or get you hired as a helper.
| School | Credential | Yearly cost | Recent grads | First-year pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southwestern Community College Creston, IA · Public | Certificate | $21,059 | 29 | — |
| Western Iowa Tech Community College Sioux City, IA · Public | Certificate | $14,800 | 21 | — |
| North Iowa Area Community College Mason City, IA · Public | Certificate | $15,733 | 20 | — |
| Des Moines Area Community College Ankeny, IA · Public | Associate degree | $12,609 | 14 | — |
| Des Moines Area Community College Ankeny, IA · Public | Certificate | $12,609 | 13 | — |
| Southeastern Community College West Burlington, IA · Public | Certificate | $19,716 | 12 | — |
| Hawkeye Community College Waterloo, IA · Public | Associate degree | $20,986 | 12 | — |
| Iowa Central Community College Fort Dodge, IA · Public | Certificate | $19,280 | 10 | — |
U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (data updated October 2026). Cost is the school's average yearly cost of attendance before financial aid; earnings are the median for graduates one year after finishing, shown only where the school has enough graduates to publish. “—” means not published.
Licensing in Iowa Official source
The main state licensing office in Iowa is the Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals and Licensing. It can point you to the right license for carpenters.
Official Iowa licensing site ↗
Requirements for carpenters vary by state and sometimes by city; always confirm with the official agency.
Union membership
In 2025, 6.8% of wage and salary workers in Iowa were union members, below the U.S. rate of about 10% (#28 of 51 states and D.C.), and 8.2% were covered by a union contract. These figures cover all jobs in the state, not only carpenters.
BLS Union Members, 2025 (Current Population Survey), table 5.
Cities in Iowa
All trades in Iowa.