Telecom Line Installers in the Altoona area earn a median of $62,760 a year, 5% below the typical U.S. metro. That ranks #144 of 235 metros for telecom line installer pay nationwide.
Within driving distance, the same work pays more in State College and Harrisburg.
It's one of 11 Pennsylvania metros with published pay for this trade; see telecom line installers across Pennsylvania.
Telecom Line Installer pay in Altoona at a glance
- Telecom line installers in the Altoona, PA metro earn a median $62,760 a year ($30.17 an hour), #144 of 235 U.S. metros (BLS, May 2025).
- The middle 80% earn between $36,390 and $100,190.
- After local prices, that median buys what $70,117 would in a typical U.S. place (BEA, 2024).
- A typical 1-bedroom rents for $959 a month, 18% of the median pay (HUD, FY2027).
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Enter a rate to see where it falls among telecom line installers in Altoona.
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What this means Our calculation
Pay for telecom line installers here is below average compared with other U.S. metros, and about average once local prices are factored in. For the wider job market, unemployment is about the same as in most metros (4.1%) and the population is shrinking (-2.5% since 2020).
Altoona scorecard for telecom line installers Our calculation
Grades compare Altoona with every other U.S. metro for this trade (A = top 20%).
Pay Government data
Pay range
Shaded: the middle half of workers. Grey line: typical U.S. metro ($66,250).
Pay over time
The median pay for telecom line installers in the Altoona area went from $37,520 in 2020 to $62,760 in 2025, up 67.3%. Prices rose 25% over the same period, so after inflation that's +33.4% — a real raise.
BLS OEWS, May 2020–May 2025; inflation: CPI-U (May to May). Year-to-year changes can include survey noise.
Compared with nearby metros
What the pay is really worth in Altoona Our calculation
Prices in the Altoona area run 10% below the U.S. average. Adjusted for that, a median paycheck here buys what $70,117 would in a typical place, ranking #129 of 233 on real pay.
Real pay or rent burden?
Real pay already accounts for housing, because the price index includes rent. Rent burden shows what share of pay a typical 1-bedroom takes. Use either one, not both together.
Want the full picture? Build a monthly budget for Altoona from this pay, local rent and prices.
What telecom line installers do
Install and repair telecommunications cable, including fiber optics.
Most important day-to-day tasks
- Splice cables, using hand tools, epoxy, or mechanical equipment.
- Inspect or test lines or cables, recording and analyzing test results, to assess transmission characteristics and locate faults or malfunctions.
- Clean or maintain tools or test equipment.
- Set up service for customers, installing, connecting, testing, or adjusting equipment, such as digital subscriber line modems.
- Access specific areas to string lines, or install terminal boxes, auxiliary equipment, or appliances, using bucket trucks, climbing poles or ladders, or entering tunnels, trenches, or crawl spaces.
Outlook & getting started
Nationally, telecom line installer jobs are projected to shrink 3.4% from 2025 to 2035 (all jobs: 3.5%), with about 8,000 openings a year. About 5% are self-employed.
What the work is like Government data
How often telecom line installers deal with each condition, from surveys of workers in the job.
Getting started usually takes some preparation (high school plus months of training).
O*NET 31.0 Work Context and Job Zones (U.S. Department of Labor), national.
Licensing in Pennsylvania Official source
The main state licensing office in Pennsylvania is the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General. Home improvement contractors register with the state; most trades are licensed locally. It can point you to the right license for telecom line installers.
Official Pennsylvania licensing site ↗
Requirements for telecom line installers vary by state and sometimes by city; always confirm with the official agency.
On-the-job safety Government data
Nationally, telecom line installers have 379 injuries or illnesses serious enough to miss work per 10,000 full-time workers, 4.4× the rate for all jobs (87). The most common cause is overexertion and repetitive strain.
BLS Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses, 2023–2024 (national, cases with days away from work).
Highest-paying PA metros for telecom line installers
| Metro | Median | Real pay | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| PhiladelphiaPENNSYLVANIA · PA | $96,540 | $94,136 | 1,760 |
| State CollegePENNSYLVANIA · PA | $92,440 | $95,533 | 30 |
| PittsburghPENNSYLVANIA · PA | $91,500 | $96,651 | 710 |
| HarrisburgPENNSYLVANIA · PA | $82,340 | $83,467 | 120 |
| ReadingPENNSYLVANIA · PA | $82,190 | $84,680 | 90 |
| AllentownPENNSYLVANIA · PA | $80,390 | $80,416 | 250 |
| WilliamsportPENNSYLVANIA · PA | $79,030 | $85,577 | 40 |
| ScrantonPENNSYLVANIA · PA | $78,690 | $84,110 | 220 |
| LebanonPENNSYLVANIA · PA | $77,390 | $83,024 | 40 |
| AltoonaPENNSYLVANIA · PA | $62,760 | $70,117 | 80 |
See every metro in Pennsylvania.
How much work is there? Government data
Local job market
The Altoona area's unemployment rate was 4.1% in 2025 (all workers, not just telecom line installers), equal to the typical U.S. metro's 4.1%. It was 5.8% in 2021.
BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics, annual averages 2021–2025 (2025 preliminary).
Getting to work
The average commute in the Altoona area is 20 minutes each way, shorter than the typical metro (24 min). 7% of commuters spend 45 minutes or more. 78% drive alone, 0% take transit and 9% work from home (all workers, not just trades).
Census American Community Survey, 2024 1-year estimates (table S0801).
Population
The Altoona area's population shrank 2.5% from 2020 to 2025 (122,667 → 119,541), ranking #371 of 387 metros for growth (typical metro +2.5%). More people moved out than in (net -112).
Census Bureau population estimates, July 1 of each year, 2020–2025.
New construction
New-home permits in Altoona are down 9% from 2021 to 2025 (94 → 86).
In 2025 the Altoona area approved permits for 86 new homes (66 single-family), or 0.7 per 1,000 residents, ranking #375 of 393 metros.
Working outdoors in Altoona Government data
In an average year, Altoona has 10 days at 90°F or hotter (fewer than most metros; typical metro 33), 127 nights below freezing (typical 90) and 86 days with a tenth of an inch of rain or more, and 38 inches of snow. Summer afternoons average 81°F and winter nights 22°F. That matters for telecom line installers: heat and freezes shape the working season and the hours.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020 averages, Altoona 7 Sw, PA station. Compare cities on outdoor work weather.
Employee vs. working for yourself Your scenario
A model, not a market rate. It shows the break-even rate to match a $62,760 employee salary once you cover what an employer normally pays for (including the employer half of Social Security and Medicare, 7.65%), then adds your profit margin. Change any number.
Break-even rate
With your profit margin
How this calculator works. Weighing a contractor job against a W-2 one? Try the 1099 vs. W-2 comparison. Billable hours are hours you can charge a customer. Driving, quoting, paperwork and slow weeks aren't billable, which is why 1,400 is a common starting point versus 2,080 paid hours as an employee.
Get telecom line installer pricing & estimate templates →Compare Altoona with another city →
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ToolCheck an offer in AltoonaSee where it falls among local telecom line installers, after the commute.Could you afford to live here?
ToolAltoona budgetMonthly take-home, HUD rent and local prices on this pay.About this data
Local to the Altoona metro: pay (BLS, May 2025) and pay over time (2020–2025, CPI-adjusted), prices (BEA, 2024), rent (HUD, FY2027), new construction, housing, population and commuting (Census), unemployment (BLS) and business counts (Census, by industry). National: job outlook and training (BLS projections), injury rates (BLS) and duties (O*NET). Jobs are employment estimates, not open positions; grades rank Altoona against every other metro for telecom line installers. Every source, year and formula is on our data page.
Report a data issue on this page
The Census doesn't publish one-person business or competition figures for telecom line installers as a separate industry, so that section is left out.