How to read this: BLS publishes no occupation for window and doors. The closest comparable work it does track is "Carpenters" (SOC 47-2031), so treat these figures as a reference point rather than a measurement of this trade.
The average window and door installer in the United States earns $65,630 a year, and the median, which is the figure that describes a typical worker rather than one dragged around by the top end, is $60,580. That works out at about $31.55 an hour. Where you work moves that a long way: Hawaii averages $87,480 and Mississippi $49,280. Everything below is from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025 release, not from job ads or self-reported surveys.
What a window and door installer actually does for that money
Window and door installers are counted as carpenters, alongside framers and finish carpenters, so the number spans a lot of different work. Most installers work for replacement companies where the sale is worth more than the installation, which is where the earnings gap in this trade sits.
What window and door installers earn, from bottom to top
An average hides the spread, and the spread is what matters when you are deciding whether to enter the trade or what to pay someone. Here is the full range BLS publishes.
| Percentile | Annual | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Bottom 10% | $40,410 | Starting out, or an apprentice rate |
| 25th | $48,510 | Still building speed and a customer base |
| Median | $60,580 | The middle of the trade |
| 75th | $76,830 | Experienced, licensed, in demand |
| Top 10% | $99,910 | Specialists, supervisors and owners |
Window and Doors salary by state
Hawaii pays the most at $87,480 a year, and Mississippi the least at $49,280. Cost of living explains part of that gap and licensing rules explain a good deal of the rest.
| # | State | Average annual | Median annual | Hourly | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hawaii | $87,480 | $85,280 | $42.06 | 4,810 |
| 2 | Alaska | $80,460 | $73,860 | $38.68 | 2,560 |
| 3 | Illinois | $80,320 | $79,000 | $38.62 | 19,570 |
| 4 | Massachusetts | $79,680 | $75,200 | $38.31 | 18,540 |
| 5 | Washington | $79,170 | $74,190 | $38.06 | 26,960 |
| 6 | California | $78,810 | $75,920 | $37.89 | 100,750 |
| 7 | New York | $75,970 | $72,330 | $36.52 | 40,630 |
| 8 | New Jersey | $71,990 | $64,010 | $34.61 | 14,230 |
| 9 | Oregon | $70,880 | $62,870 | $34.08 | 15,110 |
| 10 | Minnesota | $70,320 | $64,930 | $33.81 | 14,930 |
| 11 | Nevada | $69,250 | $62,380 | $33.29 | 12,700 |
| 12 | Maryland | $69,040 | $62,960 | $33.19 | 9,770 |
| 13 | Connecticut | $68,680 | $64,060 | $33.02 | 5,160 |
| 14 | Colorado | $66,190 | $62,830 | $31.82 | 12,740 |
| 15 | District of Columbia | $65,990 | $61,710 | $31.73 | 1,540 |
| 16 | Wisconsin | $65,300 | $61,660 | $31.39 | 13,880 |
| 17 | Missouri | $65,000 | $60,840 | $31.25 | 14,410 |
| 18 | Indiana | $64,950 | $62,870 | $31.22 | 15,240 |
| 19 | Rhode Island | $64,320 | $60,840 | $30.92 | 2,580 |
| 20 | New Hampshire | $64,100 | $61,200 | $30.82 | 3,760 |
| 21 | Maine | $63,300 | $62,160 | $30.44 | 5,170 |
| 22 | Pennsylvania | $63,220 | $59,370 | $30.39 | 30,630 |
| 23 | Delaware | $62,690 | $59,200 | $30.14 | 2,250 |
| 24 | Ohio | $62,590 | $60,810 | $30.09 | 18,450 |
| 25 | Michigan | $62,140 | $61,680 | $29.88 | 18,590 |
| 26 | Vermont | $62,000 | $62,400 | $29.81 | 3,080 |
| 27 | Montana | $59,640 | $58,820 | $28.68 | 4,030 |
| 28 | Kansas | $59,460 | $56,960 | $28.59 | 5,210 |
| 29 | Wyoming | $59,350 | $56,850 | $28.53 | 2,260 |
| 30 | Arizona | $58,980 | $58,580 | $28.36 | 16,230 |
| 31 | North Dakota | $57,980 | $57,890 | $27.88 | 2,360 |
| 32 | Iowa | $57,640 | $57,710 | $27.71 | 5,770 |
| 33 | New Mexico | $57,430 | $59,720 | $27.61 | 3,630 |
| 34 | Idaho | $56,080 | $52,000 | $26.96 | 8,380 |
| 35 | Virginia | $55,390 | $55,690 | $26.63 | 20,460 |
| 36 | Utah | $55,360 | $52,360 | $26.62 | 15,220 |
| 37 | South Carolina | $55,350 | $50,670 | $26.61 | 6,950 |
| 38 | Nebraska | $54,960 | $50,320 | $26.43 | 5,710 |
| 39 | Kentucky | $54,820 | $52,680 | $26.36 | 8,540 |
| 40 | Tennessee | $53,990 | $50,830 | $25.96 | 8,200 |
| 41 | Florida | $52,560 | $49,870 | $25.27 | 39,300 |
| 42 | Louisiana | $51,600 | $49,920 | $24.81 | 8,990 |
| 43 | Arkansas | $51,350 | $47,760 | $24.69 | 4,030 |
| 44 | South Dakota | $51,330 | $48,140 | $24.68 | 4,560 |
| 45 | Texas | $50,990 | $48,900 | $24.51 | 33,540 |
| 46 | West Virginia | $50,540 | $48,710 | $24.30 | 3,670 |
| 47 | North Carolina | $50,510 | $49,100 | $24.28 | 13,480 |
| 48 | Georgia | $50,290 | $49,350 | $24.18 | 9,190 |
| 49 | Oklahoma | $49,610 | $46,910 | $23.85 | 3,820 |
| 50 | Alabama | $49,490 | $48,220 | $23.79 | 5,560 |
| 51 | Mississippi | $49,280 | $48,650 | $23.69 | 2,950 |
Where the money is: highest paying metros
State averages flatten out the difference between a city and the rural county next to it. These are the metro areas paying window and door installers the most.
| # | Metro area | Average annual | Hourly |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fairbanks-College, AK | $90,730 | $43.62 |
| 2 | San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | $89,630 | $43.09 |
| 3 | Urban Honolulu, HI | $89,400 | $42.98 |
| 4 | Decatur, IL | $88,510 | $42.56 |
| 5 | San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | $87,930 | $42.28 |
| 6 | Napa, CA | $86,890 | $41.78 |
| 7 | Kahului-Wailuku, HI | $85,220 | $40.97 |
| 8 | Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | $84,060 | $40.42 |
| 9 | Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA | $83,430 | $40.11 |
| 10 | Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN | $83,110 | $39.96 |
What moves the number
- Usually falls under a general contractor or specialty replacement license, and manufacturer certification is what protects the warranty.
- Replacement demand is steady but sales-led, which means the earnings gap between installers and the people selling the job is unusually wide.
- Full-frame replacement, historic and custom units, and commercial storefront work all pay above insert installations.
- The bottom ten percent of window and door installers earn under $40,410 and the top ten percent clear $99,910. That gap is the trade telling you where the money is.
- Working for somebody else and working for yourself are different questions. These figures cover employed window and door installers on a payroll, so they exclude the self-employed, and in this trade a large share of the best operators are exactly that.
What you can earn running the business instead
The number above is a wage. Running the business is a different calculation: you take the full ticket rather than an hourly rate, and what you keep depends on how many jobs you fit in a week, how quickly you get paid and how much of your day goes on scheduling, estimates and chasing invoices instead of on the work. That is the part software actually changes. Owners who put scheduling, estimating, invoicing and automated follow-up in one place tend to run more jobs with the same crew, which is where the gap between a window and door installer wage and an owner income opens up.
Window and Doors salary FAQs
- How much do window and door installers make a year?
- The median window and door installer in the United States earns $60,580 a year and the average is $65,630, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics May 2025 release. Half the trade earns more than the median and half less.
- How much do window and door installers make an hour?
- The mean hourly wage is $31.55. Annual earnings are usually higher than that rate multiplied by a standard year, because overtime, call-outs and premium work are not in the base rate.
- Which state pays window and door installers the most?
- Hawaii pays the most at an average of $87,480 a year, followed by Alaska at $80,460 and Illinois at $80,320. Cost of living accounts for some of that and licensing rules for much of the rest.
- Which cities pay window and door installers the most?
- Fairbanks-College, AK tops the list at an average of $90,730 a year, with San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA at $89,630. Metro figures move a lot more than state averages, so the city matters more than the state.
- Can window and door installers earn six figures?
- As an employee it is uncommon: the top ten percent earn $99,910. Owners are a different question, because they are paid on the job rather than on the hour, and owner income is not in these figures.
- Do these figures include self-employed window and door installers?
- No. The Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program covers wage and salary workers, so sole proprietors and business owners are excluded. In a trade with as many owner-operators as this one, that matters when you read the number.
- Where does this window and doors salary data come from?
- The US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program, May 2025 release, for "Carpenters" (SOC 47-2031). It is a survey of employers rather than of workers, which is why it is more reliable than self-reported salary sites.
All wage figures on this page are from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 release. BLS suppresses figures in areas with too few employers to publish safely; those appear as n/a rather than an estimate.
