Plumbers in the San Juan area earn a median of $32,300 a year, 47% below the typical U.S. metro. That ranks #384 of 387 metros for plumber pay nationwide.
Within driving distance, the same work pays less in Ponce.
It's one of 4 Puerto Rico metros with published pay for this trade; see plumbers across Puerto Rico.
Plumber pay in San Juan at a glance
- Plumbers in the San Juan, PR metro earn a median $32,300 a year ($15.53 an hour), #384 of 387 U.S. metros (BLS, May 2025).
- The middle 80% earn between $24,530 and $49,580.
- A typical 1-bedroom rents for $581 a month, 22% of the median pay (HUD, FY2027).
- About 800 plumbers work in the metro.
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What this means Our calculation
Pay for plumbers here is in the bottom 20% of U.S. metros.
San Juan scorecard for plumbers Our calculation
Grades compare San Juan with every other U.S. metro for this trade (A = top 20%).
Pay Government data
Pay range
Shaded: the middle half of workers.
Pay over time
The median pay for plumbers in the San Juan area went from $20,120 in 2020 to $32,300 in 2025, up 60.5%. Prices rose 25% over the same period, so after inflation that's +28.0% — a real raise.
BLS OEWS, May 2020–May 2025; inflation: CPI-U (May to May). Year-to-year changes can include survey noise.
Compared with nearby metros
Rent in San Juan
Typical rent is $581 a month for a 1-bedroom and $683 for a 2-bedroom.
What plumbers do
Assemble, install, alter, and repair pipelines or pipe systems that carry water, steam, air, or other liquids or gases. May install heating and cooling equipment and mechanical control systems. Includes sprinkler fitters.
Most important day-to-day tasks
- Shut off steam, water, or other gases or liquids from pipe sections, using valve keys or wrenches.
- Install underground storm, sanitary, or water piping systems, extending piping as needed to connect fixtures and plumbing.
- Assemble pipe sections, tubing, or fittings, using couplings, clamps, screws, bolts, cement, plastic solvent, caulking, or soldering, brazing, or welding equipment.
- Locate and mark the position of pipe installations, connections, passage holes, or fixtures in structures, using measuring instruments such as rulers or levels.
- Cut, thread, or hammer pipes to specifications, using tools such as saws, cutting torches, pipe threaders, or pipe benders.
Outlook & getting started
Nationally, plumber jobs are projected to grow 6.8% from 2025 to 2035 (all jobs: 3.5%), with about 42,000 openings a year. About 8% are self-employed.
What the work is like Government data
How often plumbers deal with each condition, from surveys of workers in the job.
Getting started usually takes medium preparation (vocational training or an apprenticeship, often 1–2+ years).
O*NET 31.0 Work Context and Job Zones (U.S. Department of Labor), national.
Getting started: registered apprenticeship Government data
Most plumbers train through a paid apprenticeship: you work and earn under experienced pros while taking classes, and pay usually rises as you progress. 727,586 people were active registered apprentices nationwide in FY2026, up 87% since FY2016, and construction is the largest field with 290,043 of them (40%), according to the U.S. Department of Labor.
Search apprenticeship openings near San Juan ↗Find training programs & sponsors ↗
Official U.S. Department of Labor tools at Apprenticeship.gov. Counts: DOL Apprentices by State dashboard, FY2026 (all occupations).
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 plumbers vary by state and sometimes by city; always confirm with the official agency.
On-the-job safety Government data
Nationally, plumbers have 144 injuries or illnesses serious enough to miss work per 10,000 full-time workers, 1.7× the rate for all jobs (87). The most common cause is being struck by or caught in objects and equipment.
BLS Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses, 2023–2024 (national, cases with days away from work).
Highest-paying PR metros for plumbers
| Metro | Median | Real pay | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| San JuanPUERTO RICO · PR | $32,300 | — | 800 |
| AguadillaPUERTO RICO · PR | $31,660 | — | 40 |
| MayaguezPUERTO RICO · PR | $30,120 | — | 30 |
| PoncePUERTO RICO · PR | $29,690 | — | 40 |
See every metro in Puerto Rico.
How much work is there? Government data
Getting to work
The average commute in the San Juan area is 30 minutes each way, longer than the typical metro (24 min). 22% of commuters spend 45 minutes or more. 82% drive alone, 1% take transit and 6% work from home (all workers, not just trades).
Census American Community Survey, 2024 1-year estimates (table S0801).
Homes in San Juan
The San Juan area has about 1,021,466 homes. 53% 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. 69% of households own their home, and the median home value is $152,300.
Census American Community Survey, 2024 1-year estimates (table DP04).
New construction
In 2025 the San Juan area approved permits for 1,546 new homes (1,459 single-family), or 0.8 per 1,000 residents, ranking #371 of 393 metros, a slower building market than most.
Where to train near San Juan Government data
2 schools in or near San Juan offer plumbing programs below the bachelor's level. Many people in this trade learn through an apprenticeship instead; a program can shorten it or get you hired as a helper.
| School | Credential | Yearly cost | Recent grads | First-year pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NUC University Bayamon, PR · Private for-profit | Certificate | $19,031 | 160 | $25,760 |
| Professional Technical Institution Bayamon, PR · Private for-profit | Certificate | $10,944 | 18 | — |
U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (data updated October 2026). Cost is the school's average yearly cost of attendance before financial aid; earnings are the median for graduates one year after finishing, shown only where the school has enough graduates to publish. “—” means not published.
Employee vs. working for yourself Your scenario
A model, not a market rate. It shows the break-even rate to match a $32,300 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 plumber pricing & estimate templates →Compare San Juan with another city →
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ToolCheck an offer in San JuanSee where it falls among local plumbers, after the commute.Could you afford to live here?
ToolSan Juan budgetMonthly take-home, HUD rent and local prices on this pay.About this data
Local to the San Juan 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 San Juan against every other metro for plumbers. Every source, year and formula is on our data page.
Report a data issue on this page
BEA doesn't publish price levels for San Juan, so real pay isn't shown. The Census doesn't publish one-person business or competition figures for plumbers as a separate industry, so that section is left out.