$42 an hour is $87,360 a year working 40 hours a week, 52 weeks a year, before taxes. That's $7,280 a month, $3,360 every two weeks or $1,680 a week.
Yearly pay $87,360
| Period | Pay before tax |
|---|---|
| Year (40 hrs × 52 weeks) | $87,360 |
| Month | $7,280 |
| Every two weeks | $3,360 |
| Week | $1,680 |
| Day (8 hours) | $336 |
| Year at 30 hrs/week | $65,520 |
| Year with 5 hrs/week overtime at 1.5× | $103,740 |
How $42 an hour compares in the trades Government data
In PayByTrade's data, $42 an hour is above the typical pay for 40 of 42 skilled trades and higher than the median in about 95% of the 10,213 trade-and-city combinations BLS publishes. The trades whose typical pay is closest to $42 are electrical lineworkers ($46.54), construction supervisors ($37.12) and building inspectors ($32.39).
Jobs that pay about $42 an hour
- Plumbers in Detroit, MI: median $41.53 ($86,370 a year)
- Construction supervisors in Cedar Rapids, IA: median $41.77 ($86,880 a year)
- Telecom equipment installers in San Jose, CA: median $42.28 ($87,950 a year)
- Ironworkers in San Francisco, CA: median $41.99 ($87,340 a year)
- Brickmasons in Providence, RI: median $41.82 ($86,990 a year)
- Heavy equipment operators in Peoria, IL: median $41.56 ($86,440 a year)
Where $42 an hour beats the local median Our calculation
For each trade, the share of U.S. metros where $42 an hour is more than the local median:
36 trades pay less than $42 in at least 9 of 10 metros; 0 pay more almost everywhere.
$42 is entry-level pay (between the 10th and 25th percentile) for construction supervisors in Chicago, elevator installers in New York, building inspectors in San Francisco and heavy equipment operators in Honolulu.
It's top pay (above the 90th percentile) for landscapers in New York, maintenance technicians in Los Angeles, construction laborers in Houston and electricians in Dallas.
$42 an hour by state Our calculation
$42 an hour beats the statewide median for most trades in every state. It clears the most trades in Arkansas, Georgia and Arizona and the fewest in Illinois, Hawaii and Alaska.
Where $42 an hour goes furthest Our calculation
The same $87,360 stretches very differently depending on local prices. It goes furthest in Monroe, LA (worth $104,501), Eagle Pass, TX (worth $104,242) and Dothan, AL (worth $104,207), and least in San Francisco, CA ($75,562), Miami, FL ($76,528) and Los Angeles, CA ($76,924). A typical 1-bedroom would take 10% of this pay in the cheapest metro for rent and 47% in the most expensive.
Next steps
Got an offer at $42? See where it lands with the job offer checker, or if you're going independent, work out what to bill with the rate calculator.
$41 an hour · all hourly rates · $43 an hour
Pay: BLS OEWS May 2025. Prices: BEA 2024. Rent: HUD FY2027. Conversions assume pay for every hour listed and no unpaid time off; figures are before tax.