What skilled trades pay in Maryland, where the jobs are and how work is changing, from 37 public government sources. The best-paying trade here is elevator installer at a $122,260 median. For every trade and metro, start from the Maryland pay page.
How Maryland compares
34 of the 40 trades we track in Maryland pay more than in a typical U.S. metro. The biggest premiums are for rigger (+51%), telecom line installer (+24%) and diesel mechanic (+24%), and the biggest gaps for solar installer (-22%) and flooring installer (-14%). Prices in Maryland's metros run about 2% below the U.S. average, and a typical 1-bedroom rents for $1,345 a month (U.S. metros: $1,097).
Best-paying trades in Maryland
Statewide median pay, BLS May 2025. The lowest-paying trade we track here is landscaper at $39,380.
Every trade in Maryland
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: 23,730 jobs
- Construction Laborer: 20,920 jobs
- Landscaper: 17,440 jobs
- Construction Supervisor: 15,400 jobs
- Auto Mechanic: 14,230 jobs
Maryland metros, best pay first
Ranked by how each metro's trade pay compares with all U.S. metros, averaged across trades.
Construction hiring
- Baltimore: +0.6% (69,005 workers)
Change in private construction jobs from a year earlier, 2026 Q1, metros with at least 5,000 construction workers (BLS QCEW).
Unions
12.7% of Maryland workers belong to a union (15.0% are covered by a union contract), compared with about 10% nationally (all jobs, 2025).
Apprenticeships
Registered apprentices in Maryland who finished or left a program in FY2020–2024 completed most often in elevator installer (66%), heavy equipment operator (62%) and electrician (60%).
Wages and safety
Unpaid wages recovered
Since 2018, the U.S. Labor Department has concluded 315 wage cases against construction employers in Maryland, recovering $10,889,863 in back wages for 2,841 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, Maryland's state-run safety program and federal OSHA opened 825 inspections of construction worksites in the state. About 8% were set off by a complaint, a referral or an accident (53 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 Maryland metros with the most federal major disasters are Baltimore (3), Hagerstown (3) and Lexington Park (2) (FEMA).
Veterans
Veterans: train on the job with the GI Bill
In Maryland, 223 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 Maryland?
Elevator Installer pays the most of the trades we track, with a $122,260 statewide median (BLS, May 2025), followed by electrical lineworker and rigger.
Which trade has the most jobs in Maryland?
maintenance technicians, with about 23,730 jobs statewide, followed by construction laborers and landscapers.
Which Maryland city pays the trades best?
Lexington Park, compared with other U.S. metros across the trades we track, followed by Baltimore.
Is construction hiring growing in Maryland?
In 2026 Q1, private construction jobs were up 0.6% from a year earlier in Baltimore, the fastest-changing large market in the state.
Part of the State of Trade Pay 2026 report. Cite as “PayByTrade, State of Trade Pay in Maryland 2026, payby.trade/report/md/.”