Painters in the Kiryas Joel area earn a median of $50,420 a year, 6% above the typical U.S. metro. That ranks #114 of 359 metros for painters nationwide.
Within driving distance, the same work pays more in Bridgeport and Waterbury, but less in Kingston.
It's one of 13 New York metros with published pay for this trade; see painter pay in New York.
Painter pay in Kiryas Joel at a glance
- Painters in the Kiryas Joel, NY metro earn a median $50,420 a year ($24.24 an hour), #114 of 359 U.S. metros (BLS, May 2025).
- The middle 80% earn between $39,660 and $78,500.
- After local prices, that median buys what $46,078 would in a typical U.S. place (BEA, 2024).
- A typical 1-bedroom rents for $1,659 a month, 39% of the median pay (HUD, FY2027).
Check your pay here
Enter a rate to see where it falls among painters in Kiryas Joel.
Comparing two real offers with overtime and commutes? Use the job offer checker. The median here works out to about $24 an hour in yearly terms.
What this means Our calculation
Pay for painters here is above average compared with other U.S. metros, but high local prices take back much of it: on buying power it's in the bottom 20%. For the wider job market, unemployment is lower than in most metros (3.6%) and the population is growing at a typical pace (+3.0% since 2020). On your own, you'd join about 1,286 one-person building finishing work businesses averaging $69,350 in revenue, and you'd need to bill roughly $66/hour to match the median salary (at our default assumptions).
Kiryas Joel scorecard for painters Our calculation
Grades compare Kiryas Joel 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 ($47,640).
Compared with nearby metros
What the pay is really worth in Kiryas Joel Our calculation
Prices in Kiryas Joel run 9% above the U.S. average. Adjusted for that, a median paycheck here buys what $46,078 would in a typical place, ranking #289 of 355 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 Kiryas Joel from this pay, local rent and prices.
What painters do
Paint walls, equipment, buildings, bridges, and other structural surfaces, using brushes, rollers, and spray guns. May remove old paint to prepare surface prior to painting. May mix colors or oils to obtain desired color or consistency.
Most important day-to-day tasks
- Cover surfaces with dropcloths or masking tape and paper to protect surfaces during painting.
- Read work orders or receive instructions from supervisors or homeowners to determine work requirements.
- Apply paint, stain, varnish, enamel, or other finishes to equipment, buildings, bridges, or other structures, using brushes, spray guns, or rollers.
- Fill cracks, holes, or joints with caulk, putty, plaster, or other fillers, using caulking guns or putty knives.
- Smooth surfaces, using sandpaper, scrapers, brushes, steel wool, or sanding machines.
Outlook & getting started
Nationally, painter jobs are projected to grow 3.0% from 2025 to 2035 (all jobs: 3.5%), with about 24,900 openings a year. About 31% are self-employed.
What the work is like Government data
How often painters 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 New York Official source
New York licenses most trades at the city or county level (e.g. New York City). Check with the building or licensing office where you plan to work.
Requirements for painters vary by state and sometimes by city; always confirm with the official agency.
On-the-job safety Government data
Nationally, painters have 124 injuries or illnesses serious enough to miss work per 10,000 full-time workers, 1.4× the rate for all jobs (87). The most common cause is overexertion and repetitive strain.
BLS Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses, 2023–2024 (national, cases with days away from work).
Highest-paying NY metros for painters
| Metro | Median | Real pay | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| New YorkNEW YORK · NY | $61,420 | $54,565 | 11,930 |
| ElmiraNEW YORK · NY | $59,490 | $63,020 | 90 |
| IthacaNEW YORK · NY | $59,110 | $57,212 | 40 |
| BuffaloNEW YORK · NY | $53,340 | $55,653 | 750 |
| BinghamtonNEW YORK · NY | $53,190 | $57,278 | 100 |
| AlbanyNEW YORK · NY | $51,650 | $51,875 | 480 |
| UticaNEW YORK · NY | $50,650 | $54,652 | 70 |
| Kiryas JoelNEW YORK · NY | $50,420 | $46,078 | 310 |
| KingstonNEW YORK · NY | $49,570 | $49,221 | 100 |
| SyracuseNEW YORK · NY | $48,600 | $50,761 | 310 |
See every metro in New York.
How much work is there? Government data
Local job market
The Kiryas Joel area's unemployment rate was 3.6% in 2025 (all workers, not just painters), below the typical U.S. metro's 4.1%. It was 4.7% in 2021.
BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics, annual averages 2021–2025 (2025 preliminary).
Getting to work
The average commute in the Kiryas Joel area is 34 minutes each way, longer than the typical metro (24 min). 26% of commuters spend 45 minutes or more. 69% drive alone, 6% take transit and 12% work from home (all workers, not just trades).
Census American Community Survey, 2024 1-year estimates (table S0801).
Population
The Kiryas Joel area's population grew 3.0% from 2020 to 2025 (697,282 → 718,377), ranking #169 of 387 metros for growth (typical metro +2.5%). People moving in (net +9,478) account for part of the change.
Census Bureau population estimates, July 1 of each year, 2020–2025.
Homes in Kiryas Joel
The Kiryas Joel area has about 276,690 homes. 58% were built before 1980 (typical metro 45%), so its housing is older than most; 9% were built in 2010 or later. Older homes often need more repair, replacement and upgrade work. 67% of households own their home, and the median home value is $434,900.
Census American Community Survey, 2024 1-year estimates (table DP04).
New construction
New-home permits in Kiryas Joel are down 21% from 2024 to 2025 (2,805 → 2,220).
In 2025 the Kiryas Joel area approved permits for 2,220 new homes (841 single-family), or 3.1 per 1,000 residents, ranking #215 of 393 metros.
Competition
In 2024 the area had 1,286 one-person businesses (no employees) in building finishing work, averaging $69,350 a year in revenue before expenses. See how Kiryas Joel compares among the best cities to start a painter business.
They compete with 383 building finishing work companies that have employees (about 1,375 workers in total). 84% of those companies have fewer than 5 employees.
What new hires earn here
People newly hired into construction jobs in the Kiryas Joel area earn about $69,500 a year at the start, compared with $78,600 for all construction workers who've stayed with their employer. By age, construction workers 19 to 24 average about $48,800 a year here, and those 45 to 54 about $88,700. That's for every construction job combined, not just painters, but it shows how much experience is worth here.
Census Quarterly Workforce Indicators, construction (NAICS 23), private employers, 2024 Q4–2025 Q3. Monthly earnings × 12.
Storm and disaster rebuild work
Since 2016, the Kiryas Joel area has had 3 federal major disasters, fewer than most metros, mostly hurricanes and severe storms. The latest was declared in 2023 (Severe Storms And Flooding).
FEMA disaster declarations, counties in this metro, fiscal years 2016–2026. COVID-19 declarations are left out.
Traveling here for work
Out-of-town painters on travel jobs here are often paid per diem. The federal rate is $129 a night for lodging plus $80 a day for meals, the West Point rate: about $1,463 a week on top of wages. Compare a travel job here with a local one.
GSA per diem rates, FY2027 (October 2026–September 2027). Employers set their own per diem; many use the GSA rate as a guide.
Working outdoors in Kiryas Joel Government data
In an average year, Kiryas Joel has 19 days at 90°F or hotter (fewer than most metros; typical metro 33), 135 nights below freezing (typical 90) and 77 days with a tenth of an inch of rain or more. Summer afternoons average 82°F and winter nights 20°F. That matters for painters: heat and freezes shape the working season and the hours.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020 averages, Poughkeepsie Dutchess Co Airport, NY 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 $50,420 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 painter pricing & estimate templates →Compare Kiryas Joel with another city →
Keep exploring
Could this trade pay more somewhere else?
ToolBest cities for paintersRank every metro on pay, buying power, rent and jobs.Is a job offer here any good?
ToolCheck an offer in Kiryas JoelSee where it falls among local painters, after the commute.Could you afford to live here?
ToolKiryas Joel budgetMonthly take-home, HUD rent and local prices on this pay.About this data
Local to the Kiryas Joel 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 Kiryas Joel against every other metro for painters. Every source, year and formula is on our data page.