What skilled trades pay in Tennessee, where the jobs are and how work is changing, from 39 public government sources. The best-paying trade here is elevator installer at a $100,490 median. For every trade and metro, start from the Tennessee pay page.
How Tennessee compares
6 of the 39 trades we track in Tennessee pay more than in a typical U.S. metro. The biggest premiums are for hazmat removal worker (+25%), auto mechanic (+3%) and rebar worker (+2%), and the biggest gaps for septic & sewer technician (-23%) and rigger (-22%). Prices in Tennessee's metros run about 10% below the U.S. average, and a typical 1-bedroom rents for $1,014 a month (U.S. metros: $1,097).
Best-paying trades in Tennessee
Statewide median pay, BLS May 2025. The lowest-paying trade we track here is landscaper at $37,020.
Every trade in Tennessee
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: 35,790 jobs
- Construction Laborer: 26,250 jobs
- Landscaper: 18,250 jobs
- Construction Supervisor: 17,770 jobs
- Electrician: 17,070 jobs
Tennessee metros, best pay first
Ranked by how each metro's trade pay compares with all U.S. metros, averaged across trades.
Construction hiring
- Memphis: +2.4% (23,569 workers)
- Nashville: +1.6% (63,285 workers)
- Knoxville: +1.5% (19,081 workers)
- Kingsport: -11.2% (6,523 workers)
Change in private construction jobs from a year earlier, 2026 Q1, metros with at least 5,000 construction workers (BLS QCEW).
Unions
4.8% of Tennessee workers belong to a union (5.7% are covered by a union contract), compared with about 10% nationally (all jobs, 2025).
Apprenticeships
Registered apprentices in Tennessee who finished or left a program in FY2020–2024 completed most often in electrical lineworker (80%), maintenance technician (72%) and telecom line installer (72%).
Wages and safety
Unpaid wages recovered
Since 2018, the U.S. Labor Department has concluded 227 wage cases against construction employers in Tennessee, recovering $3,709,739 in back wages for 2,889 workers.
DOL Wage and Hour Division enforcement data, cases concluded 2018–2026. Counts only; employers aren't named here.
Safety inspections
In 2025, Tennessee's state-run safety program and federal OSHA opened 474 inspections of construction worksites in the state. About 20% were set off by a complaint, a referral or an accident (15 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 Tennessee metros with the most federal major disasters are Memphis (18), Clarksville (17) and Nashville (15) (FEMA).
Veterans
Veterans: train on the job with the GI Bill
In Tennessee, 187 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 Tennessee?
Elevator Installer pays the most of the trades we track, with a $100,490 statewide median (BLS, May 2025), followed by electrical lineworker and construction supervisor.
Which trade has the most jobs in Tennessee?
maintenance technicians, with about 35,790 jobs statewide, followed by construction laborers and landscapers.
Which Tennessee city pays the trades best?
Nashville, compared with other U.S. metros across the trades we track, followed by Memphis.
Is construction hiring growing in Tennessee?
In 2026 Q1, private construction jobs were up 2.4% from a year earlier in Memphis, the fastest-changing large market in the state, and down 11.2% in Kingsport.
Part of the State of Trade Pay 2026 report. Cite as “PayByTrade, State of Trade Pay in Tennessee 2026, payby.trade/report/tn/.”