Painters in the Mayaguez area earn a median of $26,480 a year, 44% below the typical U.S. metro. That ranks #357 of 359 metros for painter pay nationwide.
Within driving distance, the same work pays more in Aguadilla, but less in Ponce.
It's one of 4 Puerto Rico metros with published pay for this trade; see painters across Puerto Rico.
Painter pay in Mayaguez at a glance
- Painters in the Mayaguez, PR metro earn a median $26,480 a year ($12.73 an hour), #357 of 359 U.S. metros (BLS, May 2025).
- The middle 80% earn between $22,460 and $34,890.
- A typical 1-bedroom rents for $496 a month, 22% of the median pay (HUD, FY2027).
- About 30 painters work in the metro.
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Enter a rate to see where it falls among painters in Mayaguez.
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What this means Our calculation
Pay for painters here is in the bottom 20% of U.S. metros.
Mayaguez scorecard for painters Our calculation
Grades compare Mayaguez with every other U.S. metro for this trade (A = top 20%).
Pay Government data
Pay range
Shaded: the middle half of workers.
Compared with nearby metros
Rent in Mayaguez
Typical rent is $496 a month for a 1-bedroom and $590 for a 2-bedroom.
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 Puerto Rico Official source
Check with local authorities in Puerto Rico. 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 PR metros for painters
| Metro | Median | Real pay | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| AguadillaPUERTO RICO · PR | $27,180 | — | 40 |
| MayaguezPUERTO RICO · PR | $26,480 | — | 30 |
| San JuanPUERTO RICO · PR | $24,950 | — | 440 |
| PoncePUERTO RICO · PR | $23,180 | — | 30 |
See every metro in Puerto Rico.
How much work is there? Government data
Getting to work
The average commute in the Mayaguez area is 25 minutes each way, about the same as the typical metro (24 min). 9% of commuters spend 45 minutes or more.
Census American Community Survey, 2024 1-year estimates (table S0801).
Homes in Mayaguez
The Mayaguez area has about 117,079 homes. 55% were built before 1980 (typical metro 45%), so its housing is older than most; 4% were built in 2010 or later. Older homes often need more repair, replacement and upgrade work. 62% of households own their home, and the median home value is $133,000.
Census American Community Survey, 2024 1-year estimates (table DP04).
New construction
In 2025 the Mayaguez area approved permits for 343 new homes (329 single-family), or 1.6 per 1,000 residents, ranking #325 of 393 metros, a slower building market than most.
Employee vs. working for yourself Your scenario
A model, not a market rate. It shows the break-even rate to match a $26,480 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 Mayaguez with another city →
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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 MayaguezSee where it falls among local painters, after the commute.Could you afford to live here?
ToolMayaguez budgetMonthly take-home, HUD rent and local prices on this pay.About this data
Local to the Mayaguez 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 Mayaguez against every other metro for painters. Every source, year and formula is on our data page.
Report a data issue on this page
BEA doesn't publish price levels for Mayaguez, so real pay isn't shown. The Census doesn't publish one-person business or competition figures for painters as a separate industry, so that section is left out.