- The middle half earn between $22.09 and $29.45 an hour.
- Kentucky ranks 35th of the 50 states and DC for median pay in this trade.
- Kentucky pays more than 2 of its 7 neighboring states.
- BLS counts about 8,540 carpenters on payrolls in Kentucky.
- At the state median wage, a carpentry or remodeling business needs to bill about $115.07 an hour on the labor rate calculator's starting numbers.
Carpenter pay in Kentucky, bottom to top
The BLS carpenter group covers framing, finish and remodel carpenters, on homes and on commercial jobs.
| Pay level | Hourly | Yearly | National hourly |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $17.67 | $36,760 | $19.43 |
| 25th percentile | $22.09 | $45,940 | $23.32 |
| Median | $25.33 | $52,680 | $29.12 |
| 75th percentile | $29.45 | $61,260 | $36.94 |
| 90th percentile | $35.08 | $72,960 | $48.03 |
| Average (mean) | $26.36 | $54,820 | $31.55 |
Pay is bunched up in Kentucky. The top tenth earn $35.08 an hour or more, about 2 times the $17.67 at the bottom tenth. Nationally that gap is 2.5 times, so the step from the bottom of the scale to the top is shorter here than in most places.
Both ends trail the national figures. The bottom tenth earn $1.76 an hour less than the bottom tenth nationally, and the top tenth $12.95 less than the national top tenth.
The average, $26.36, is close to the median, so pay sits fairly evenly around the middle.
How Kentucky compares with other states
Over a full year, the Kentucky median of $52,680 is $7,900 less than the national $60,580.
In the state ranking, Kentucky sits 35th, between Virginia ($26.77) and Utah ($25.17). The range runs from $22.55 in Oklahoma to $41.00 in Hawaii.
Against its neighboring states, Kentucky is in the middle: Illinois, Indiana, Missouri, Ohio and Virginia pay more, and Tennessee and West Virginia pay less.
BLS wages are not adjusted for living costs. Lower pay often comes with lower housing costs, so the gap in take-home value can be smaller than the gap in wages.
| Neighboring state | Median hourly | Median yearly | Against Kentucky |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kentucky | $25.33 | $52,680 | |
| Illinois | $37.98 | $79,000 | +$12.65 an hour |
| Indiana | $30.23 | $62,870 | +$4.90 an hour |
| Missouri | $29.25 | $60,840 | +$3.92 an hour |
| Ohio | $29.24 | $60,810 | +$3.91 an hour |
| Tennessee | $24.44 | $50,830 | −$0.89 an hour |
| Virginia | $26.77 | $55,690 | +$1.44 an hour |
| West Virginia | $23.42 | $48,710 | −$1.91 an hour |
How many carpenters work in Kentucky
About 8,540 carpenters work on payrolls in Kentucky, 1.3% of the 670,090 nationwide, the 26th largest count among the states.
That is 4.3 of every 1,000 jobs in Kentucky, close to the trade's share of jobs nationally.
What a carpentry or remodeling business in Kentucky should charge
A lower wage helps the price less than you might expect, because the overhead does not shrink with it. Here is a carpentry or remodeling business in Kentucky paying the state median of $25.33, on the labor rate calculator's starting numbers: 40-hour weeks, 10 paid days off, 2 unbilled hours a day, 7.65% payroll taxes, $90,000 a year of overhead and 15% profit.
| Step | Math | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Paid hours | 40 × 52 | 2,080 |
| Hours at work | 2,080 − 10 days × 8 | 2,000 |
| Billable hours | 2,000 × 6 ÷ 8 | 1,500 |
| Labor cost | $25.33 × 2,080 × 1.0765 | $56,717 |
| Break-even rate | ($56,717 + $90,000) ÷ 1,500 | $97.81 |
| Rate with 15% profit | $97.81 ÷ 0.85 | $115.07 |
That is $115.07 per billable hour, 4.5 times the wage, and $6.66 less than the $121.73 the same math gives at the national median wage.
Paying the 75th percentile instead, $29.45 in Kentucky, to hire and keep experienced people raises the rate to $122.31.
A cheaper crew saves less than it seems: at the 25th percentile wage of $22.09, the rate only drops to $109.38.
At this wage, overhead is most of the price: $60 of every billed hour goes to it before anyone is paid. Spreading the same overhead over more billable hours, with a second person or less drive time, brings the rate down fastest.
Run it with your own numbers in the labor rate calculator. It is free and shows every step.
Working as a carpenter in Kentucky
- Running the business. Quotes, invoices, booking and your website in one place: how remodelers run on Koira.
- Getting found. The free Koira report checks how your business shows up in search and on maps against shops near you.
Where these numbers come from
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025.
The figures are the BLS state estimates for SOC 47-2031, carpenters, across all industries, read straight from the May 2025 state data file. They cover wage and salary workers, not the self-employed. Where BLS did not publish a figure, this page leaves it out.
All states in one table: carpenter salary by state.