What skilled trades pay in Oklahoma, where the jobs are and how work is changing, from 39 public government sources. The best-paying trade here is elevator installer at a $105,430 median. For every trade and metro, start from the Oklahoma pay page.
How Oklahoma compares
1 of the 41 trades we track in Oklahoma pay more than in a typical U.S. metro. The biggest premiums are for sheet metal worker (+7%), electrician (-2%) and elevator installer (-3%), and the biggest gaps for flooring installer (-32%) and telecom line installer (-26%). Prices in Oklahoma's metros run about 12% below the U.S. average, and a typical 1-bedroom rents for $906 a month (U.S. metros: $1,097).
Best-paying trades in Oklahoma
Statewide median pay, BLS May 2025. The lowest-paying trade we track here is landscaper at $35,770.
Every trade in Oklahoma
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: 18,670 jobs
- Construction Laborer: 13,710 jobs
- Construction Supervisor: 11,520 jobs
- Welder: 9,960 jobs
- Landscaper: 9,280 jobs
Oklahoma metros, best pay first
Ranked by how each metro's trade pay compares with all U.S. metros, averaged across trades.
Construction hiring
- Tulsa: +6.4% (29,574 workers)
- Oklahoma City: +2.4% (35,638 workers)
Change in private construction jobs from a year earlier, 2026 Q1, metros with at least 5,000 construction workers (BLS QCEW).
Unions
6.1% of Oklahoma 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 Oklahoma who finished or left a program in FY2020–2024 completed most often in elevator installer (77%), welder (70%) and electrical lineworker (68%).
Wages and safety
Unpaid wages recovered
Since 2018, the U.S. Labor Department has concluded 295 wage cases against construction employers in Oklahoma, recovering $2,286,465 in back wages for 2,156 workers.
DOL Wage and Hour Division enforcement data, cases concluded 2018–2025. Counts only; employers aren't named here.
Safety inspections
In 2025, federal OSHA opened 278 inspections of construction worksites in the state. About 10% were set off by a complaint, a referral or an accident (6 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 Oklahoma metros with the most federal major disasters are Tulsa (13), Oklahoma City (13) and Lawton (7) (FEMA).
Veterans
Veterans: train on the job with the GI Bill
In Oklahoma, 341 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 Oklahoma?
Elevator Installer pays the most of the trades we track, with a $105,430 statewide median (BLS, May 2025), followed by electrical lineworker and construction supervisor.
Which trade has the most jobs in Oklahoma?
maintenance technicians, with about 18,670 jobs statewide, followed by construction laborers and construction supervisors.
Which Oklahoma city pays the trades best?
Tulsa, compared with other U.S. metros across the trades we track, followed by Oklahoma City.
Is construction hiring growing in Oklahoma?
In 2026 Q1, private construction jobs were up 6.4% from a year earlier in Tulsa, the fastest-changing large market in the state, and up 2.4% in Oklahoma City.
Part of the State of Trade Pay 2026 report. Cite as “PayByTrade, State of Trade Pay in Oklahoma 2026, payby.trade/report/ok/.”