Insulation Installers in the Billings area earn a median of $50,210 a year, 4% above the typical U.S. metro. That ranks #38 of 106 metros for insulation installers nationwide.
Within driving distance, the same work pays less in Helena.
It's one of 2 Montana metros with published pay for this trade; see insulation installer pay in Montana.
Insulation Installer pay in Billings at a glance
- Insulation installers in the Billings, MT metro earn a median $50,210 a year ($24.14 an hour), #38 of 106 U.S. metros (BLS, May 2025).
- The middle 80% earn between $38,150 and $86,010.
- After local prices, that median buys what $53,686 would in a typical U.S. place (BEA, 2024).
- A typical 1-bedroom rents for $1,124 a month, 27% of the median pay (HUD, FY2027).
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Enter a rate to see where it falls among insulation installers in Billings.
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What this means Our calculation
Pay for insulation installers here is above average compared with other U.S. metros, and also above average once local prices are factored in. For the wider job market, unemployment is lower than in most metros (3.3%) and the population is growing faster than most (+4.8% since 2020). On your own, you'd join about 24 one-person building equipment installation businesses averaging $55,792 in revenue, and you'd need to bill roughly $66/hour to match the median salary (at our default assumptions).
Billings scorecard for insulation installers Our calculation
Grades compare Billings with every other U.S. metro for this trade (A = top 20%).
Pay Government data
Pay range
Shaded: the middle half of workers. Grey line: typical U.S. metro ($48,305).
Pay over time
The median pay for insulation installers in the Billings area went from $45,010 in 2020 to $50,210 in 2025, up 11.6%. Prices rose 25% over the same period, so after inflation that's -11.0% — a real pay cut. Some years are missing because BLS redrew or didn't publish this metro.
BLS OEWS, May 2020–May 2025; inflation: CPI-U (May to May). Year-to-year changes can include survey noise.
Compared with nearby metros
What the pay is really worth in Billings Our calculation
Prices in Billings run 6% below the U.S. average. Adjusted for that, a median paycheck here buys what $53,686 would in a typical place, ranking #38 of 105 on real pay.
Real pay or rent burden?
Real pay already accounts for housing, because the price index includes rent. Rent burden shows what share of pay a typical 1-bedroom takes. Use either one, not both together.
Want the full picture? Build a cost-of-living budget for Billings from this pay, local rent and prices.
What insulation installers do
Line and cover structures with insulating materials. May work with batt, roll, or blown insulation materials.
Most important day-to-day tasks
- Measure and cut insulation for covering surfaces, using tape measures, handsaws, power saws, knives, or scissors.
- Fit, wrap, staple, or glue insulating materials to structures or surfaces, using hand tools or wires.
- Cover and line structures with blown or rolled forms of materials to insulate against cold, heat, or moisture, using saws, knives, rasps, trowels, blowers, or other tools and implements.
- Distribute insulating materials evenly into small spaces within floors, ceilings, or walls, using blowers and hose attachments, or cement mortars.
- Move controls, buttons, or levers to start blowers and regulate flow of materials through nozzles.
Outlook & getting started
Nationally, insulation installer jobs are projected to grow 2.4% from 2025 to 2035 (all jobs: 3.5%), with about 3,000 openings a year. About 2% are self-employed.
What the work is like Government data
How often insulation installers 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.
Licensing in Montana Official source
The main state licensing office in Montana is the Montana Department of Labor and Industry (Business Standards). It can point you to the right license for insulation installers.
Official Montana licensing site ↗
Requirements for insulation installers vary by state and sometimes by city; always confirm with the official agency.
On-the-job safety Government data
Nationally, insulation installers have 312 injuries or illnesses serious enough to miss work per 10,000 full-time workers, 3.6× the rate for all jobs (87). The most common cause is falls, slips and trips.
BLS Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses, 2023–2024 (national, cases with days away from work).
Highest-paying MT metros for insulation installers
| Metro | Median | Real pay | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| BillingsMONTANA · MT | $50,210 | $53,686 | 70 |
| HelenaMONTANA · MT | $47,330 | $49,470 | 60 |
See every metro in Montana.
How much work is there? Government data
Local job market
The Billings area's unemployment rate was 3.3% in 2025 (all workers, not just insulation installers), below the typical U.S. metro's 4.1%. It was 3.1% in 2021.
BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics, annual averages 2021–2025 (2025 preliminary).
Getting to work
The average commute in the Billings area is 21 minutes each way, shorter than the typical metro (24 min). 7% of commuters spend 45 minutes or more. 77% drive alone, 1% take transit and 9% work from home (all workers, not just trades).
Census American Community Survey, 2024 1-year estimates (table S0801).
Population
The Billings area's population grew 4.8% from 2020 to 2025 (184,717 → 193,603), ranking #104 of 387 metros for growth (typical metro +2.5%). People moving in (net +8,900) account for more than all of the change.
Census Bureau population estimates, July 1 of each year, 2020–2025.
Homes in Billings
The Billings area has about 87,005 homes. 49% were built before 1980 (typical metro 45%), so its housing is older than most; 17% were built in 2010 or later. Older homes often need more repair, replacement and upgrade work. 71% of households own their home, and the median home value is $383,900.
Census American Community Survey, 2024 1-year estimates (table DP04).
New construction
New-home permits in Billings are up 5% from 2021 to 2025 (979 → 1,029).
In 2025 the Billings area approved permits for 1,029 new homes (709 single-family), or 5.4 per 1,000 residents, ranking #121 of 393 metros.
Competition
In 2024 the area had 24 one-person businesses (no employees) in building equipment installation, averaging $55,792 a year in revenue before expenses. See how Billings compares among the best cities to start an insulation installer business.
They compete with 7 building equipment installation companies that have employees (about 104 workers in total). 57% of those companies have fewer than 5 employees.
Working outdoors in Billings Government data
In an average year, Billings has 32 days at 90°F or hotter (about typical; typical metro 33), including 2 at 100°F or more, 142 nights below freezing (typical 90) and 39 days with a tenth of an inch of rain or more, and 57 inches of snow. Summer afternoons average 83°F and winter nights 19°F. That matters for insulation installers: heat and freezes shape the working season and the hours.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020 averages, Billings Logan International Airport, MT station. Compare cities on outdoor work weather.
Employee vs. working for yourself Your scenario
A model, not a market rate. It shows the break-even rate to match a $50,210 employee salary once you cover what an employer normally pays for (including the employer half of Social Security and Medicare, 7.65%), then adds your profit margin. Change any number.
Break-even rate
With your profit margin
How this calculator works. Weighing a contractor job against a W-2 one? Try the 1099 vs. W-2 comparison. Billable hours are hours you can charge a customer. Driving, quoting, paperwork and slow weeks aren't billable, which is why 1,400 is a common starting point versus 2,080 paid hours as an employee.
Get insulation installer pricing & estimate templates →Compare Billings with another city →
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ToolBest cities for insulation installersRank every metro on pay, buying power, rent and jobs.Is a job offer here any good?
ToolCheck an offer in BillingsSee where it falls among local insulation installers, after the commute.Could you afford to live here?
ToolBillings budgetMonthly take-home, HUD rent and local prices on this pay.About this data
Local to the Billings metro: pay (BLS, May 2025) and pay over time (2020–2025, CPI-adjusted), prices (BEA, 2024), rent (HUD, FY2027), new construction, housing, population and commuting (Census), unemployment (BLS) and business counts (Census, by industry). National: job outlook and training (BLS projections), injury rates (BLS) and duties (O*NET). Jobs are employment estimates, not open positions; grades rank Billings against every other metro for insulation installers. Every source, year and formula is on our data page.