What skilled trades pay in Colorado, where the jobs are and how work is changing, from 37 public government sources. The best-paying trade here is elevator installer at a $123,360 median. For every trade and metro, start from the Colorado pay page.
How Colorado compares
33 of the 42 trades we track in Colorado pay more than in a typical U.S. metro. The biggest premiums are for auto mechanic (+25%), hazmat removal worker (+24%) and telecom equipment installer (+23%), and the biggest gaps for plasterer (-19%) and flooring installer (-18%). Prices in Colorado's metros run about 1% above the U.S. average, and a typical 1-bedroom rents for $1,379 a month (U.S. metros: $1,097).
Best-paying trades in Colorado
Statewide median pay, BLS May 2025. The lowest-paying trade we track here is landscaper at $45,760.
Every trade in Colorado
Statewide medians and jobs, BLS OEWS May 2025. “vs. U.S.” compares with the typical U.S. metro median for the trade.
Where the jobs are
- Maintenance Technician: 22,960 jobs
- Landscaper: 21,990 jobs
- Construction Supervisor: 21,380 jobs
- Construction Laborer: 18,680 jobs
- Electrician: 17,010 jobs
Colorado metros, best pay first
Ranked by how each metro's trade pay compares with all U.S. metros, averaged across trades.
Construction hiring
- Grand Junction: +3.9% (5,126 workers)
- Greeley: +1.8% (14,006 workers)
- Denver: -1.3% (101,116 workers)
- Fort Collins: -3.3% (10,461 workers)
- Colorado Springs: -8.7% (15,964 workers)
Change in private construction jobs from a year earlier, 2026 Q1, metros with at least 5,000 construction workers (BLS QCEW).
Unions
5.9% of Colorado workers belong to a union (6.7% are covered by a union contract), compared with about 10% nationally (all jobs, 2025).
Apprenticeships
Registered apprentices in Colorado who finished or left a program in FY2020–2024 completed most often in industrial machinery mechanic (66%), electrical lineworker (66%) and elevator installer (58%).
Wages and safety
Unpaid wages recovered
Since 2018, the U.S. Labor Department has concluded 212 wage cases against construction employers in Colorado, recovering $3,579,409 in back wages for 1,812 workers.offer check and keep your own record of hours.
DOL Wage and Hour Division enforcement data, cases concluded 2018–2026. Counts only; employers aren't named here.
Safety inspections
In 2025, federal OSHA opened 348 inspections of construction worksites in the state. About 28% were set off by a complaint, a referral or an accident (9 after an accident or fatality); the rest were planned spot checks.
OSHA inspection data via the U.S. Department of Labor, construction (NAICS 23), inspections opened in 2025. Counts only.
Storm and disaster rebuild work
Since 2016, the Colorado metros with the most federal major disasters are Boulder (1), Colorado Springs (1) and Denver (1) (FEMA).
Veterans
Veterans: train on the job with the GI Bill
In Colorado, 291 employers and programs are approved for GI Bill on-the-job training and apprenticeships, across all fields. Veterans in an approved trade apprenticeship can get a monthly housing allowance on top of apprentice pay. Search approved employers with the VA's GI Bill Comparison Tool.
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, GI Bill Comparison Tool data, October 2026.
Common questions
What is the highest-paying skilled trade in Colorado?
Elevator Installer pays the most of the trades we track, with a $123,360 statewide median (BLS, May 2025), followed by electrical lineworker and construction supervisor.
Which trade has the most jobs in Colorado?
maintenance technicians, with about 22,960 jobs statewide, followed by landscapers and construction supervisors.
Which Colorado city pays the trades best?
Boulder, compared with other U.S. metros across the trades we track, followed by Denver.
Is construction hiring growing in Colorado?
In 2026 Q1, private construction jobs were up 3.9% from a year earlier in Grand Junction, the fastest-changing large market in the state, and down 8.7% in Colorado Springs.
Part of the State of Trade Pay 2026 report. Cite as “PayByTrade, State of Trade Pay in Colorado 2026, payby.trade/report/co/.”