$50 an hour is $104,000 a year working 40 hours a week, 52 weeks a year, before taxes. That's $8,667 a month, $4,000 every two weeks or $2,000 a week.
Yearly pay $104,000
| Period | Pay before tax |
|---|---|
| Year (40 hrs × 52 weeks) | $104,000 |
| Month | $8,667 |
| Every two weeks | $4,000 |
| Week | $2,000 |
| Day (8 hours) | $400 |
| Year at 30 hrs/week | $78,000 |
| Year with 5 hrs/week overtime at 1.5× | $123,500 |
How $50 an hour compares in the trades Government data
In PayByTrade's data, $50 an hour is above the typical pay for 41 of 42 skilled trades and higher than the median in about 98% of the 10,213 trade-and-city combinations BLS publishes. The trades whose typical pay is closest to $50 are elevator installers ($52.04), electrical lineworkers ($46.54) and construction supervisors ($37.12).
Jobs that pay about $50 an hour
- Construction supervisors in New York, NY: median $50.00 ($103,990 a year)
- Plumbers in Chicago, IL: median $49.70 ($103,380 a year)
- Heavy equipment operators in Chicago, IL: median $49.57 ($103,100 a year)
- Telecom line installers in Boston, MA: median $49.56 ($103,090 a year)
- Building inspectors in Sacramento, CA: median $49.99 ($103,980 a year)
- Electrical lineworkers in St. Louis, MO: median $49.98 ($103,960 a year)
Where $50 an hour beats the local median Our calculation
For each trade, the share of U.S. metros where $50 an hour is more than the local median:
40 trades pay less than $50 in at least 9 of 10 metros; 0 pay more almost everywhere.
$50 is entry-level pay (between the 10th and 25th percentile) for elevator installers in New York, electrical lineworkers in Chicago and ironworkers in Boston.
It's top pay (above the 90th percentile) for maintenance technicians in New York, construction laborers in Houston, electricians in Dallas and construction supervisors in Phoenix.
$50 an hour by state Our calculation
$50 an hour beats the statewide median for most trades in every state. It clears the most trades in Alaska, Alabama and Arkansas and the fewest in Washington, New Jersey and Hawaii.
Where $50 an hour goes furthest Our calculation
The same $104,000 stretches very differently depending on local prices. It goes furthest in Monroe, LA (worth $124,406), Eagle Pass, TX (worth $124,098) and Dothan, AL (worth $124,056), and least in San Francisco, CA ($89,955), Miami, FL ($91,104) and Los Angeles, CA ($91,577). A typical 1-bedroom would take 9% of this pay in the cheapest metro for rent and 39% in the most expensive.
Next steps
Got an offer at $50? See where it lands with the job offer checker, or if you're going independent, work out what to bill with the rate calculator.
$49 an hour · all hourly rates · $51 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.