What skilled trades pay in Mississippi, where the jobs are and how work is changing, from 37 public government sources. The best-paying trade here is electrical lineworker at a $75,890 median. For every trade and metro, start from the Mississippi pay page.
How Mississippi compares
2 of the 39 trades we track in Mississippi pay more than in a typical U.S. metro. The biggest premiums are for insulation installer (+30%), rigger (+5%) and telecom equipment installer (-2%), and the biggest gaps for glazier (-33%) and drywall installer (-31%). Prices in Mississippi's metros run about 11% below the U.S. average, and a typical 1-bedroom rents for $1,061 a month (U.S. metros: $1,097).
Best-paying trades in Mississippi
Statewide median pay, BLS May 2025. The lowest-paying trade we track here is landscaper at $31,630.
Every trade in Mississippi
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: 14,550 jobs
- Construction Laborer: 8,800 jobs
- Auto Mechanic: 7,410 jobs
- Construction Supervisor: 7,040 jobs
- Electrician: 6,610 jobs
Mississippi metros, best pay first
Ranked by how each metro's trade pay compares with all U.S. metros, averaged across trades.
Construction hiring
Change in private construction jobs from a year earlier, 2026 Q1, metros with at least 5,000 construction workers (BLS QCEW).
Unions
4.2% of Mississippi workers belong to a union (7.3% are covered by a union contract), compared with about 10% nationally (all jobs, 2025).
Apprenticeships
Registered apprentices in Mississippi who finished or left a program in FY2020–2024 completed most often in electrical lineworker (65%), telecom line installer (61%) and machinist (50%).
Wages and safety
Unpaid wages recovered
Since 2018, the U.S. Labor Department has concluded 128 wage cases against construction employers in Mississippi, recovering $1,152,632 in back wages for 766 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 53 inspections of construction worksites in the state. About 32% were set off by a complaint, a referral or an accident (7 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 Mississippi metros with the most federal major disasters are Jackson (13), Hattiesburg (9) and Gulfport (7) (FEMA).
Veterans
Veterans: train on the job with the GI Bill
In Mississippi, 77 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 Mississippi?
Electrical Lineworker pays the most of the trades we track, with a $75,890 statewide median (BLS, May 2025), followed by construction supervisor and rigger.
Which trade has the most jobs in Mississippi?
maintenance technicians, with about 14,550 jobs statewide, followed by construction laborers and auto mechanics.
Which Mississippi city pays the trades best?
Gulfport, compared with other U.S. metros across the trades we track, followed by Jackson.
Is construction hiring growing in Mississippi?
In 2026 Q1, private construction jobs were up 0.8% from a year earlier in Gulfport, the fastest-changing large market in the state, and down 0.7% in Jackson.
Part of the State of Trade Pay 2026 report. Cite as “PayByTrade, State of Trade Pay in Mississippi 2026, payby.trade/report/ms/.”