- The middle half earn between $24.26 and $44.89 an hour.
- Oregon ranks 12th of the 50 states and DC for median pay in this trade.
- Oregon pays more than 2 of its 4 neighboring states.
- BLS counts about 15,110 carpenters on payrolls in Oregon.
- At the state median wage, a carpentry or remodeling business needs to bill about $123.68 an hour on the labor rate calculator's starting numbers.
Carpenter pay in Oregon, 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 | $21.06 | $43,800 | $19.43 |
| 25th percentile | $24.26 | $50,450 | $23.32 |
| Median | $30.23 | $62,870 | $29.12 |
| 75th percentile | $44.89 | $93,380 | $36.94 |
| 90th percentile | $51.13 | $106,360 | $48.03 |
| Average (mean) | $34.08 | $70,880 | $31.55 |
From the bottom tenth ($21.06) to the top tenth ($51.13), the top of the scale pays about 2.4 times the bottom in Oregon, close to the 2.5 times spread for carpenters nationwide.
Both ends of the scale beat the national figures: $21.06 against $19.43 at the bottom tenth, and $51.13 against $48.03 at the top.
The average wage, $34.08, sits 13% above the median. A smaller group of higher earners pulls the average up, so the median is the better guide to what a typical carpenter makes.
How Oregon compares with other states
Over a full year the gap to the national median is small: $62,870 in Oregon against $60,580 nationally, $2,290 more.
In the state ranking, Oregon sits 12th, between Maryland ($30.27) and Colorado ($30.21). Indiana has exactly the same median, $30.23, so the two share that place. The range runs from $22.55 in Oklahoma to $41.00 in Hawaii.
Against its neighboring states, Oregon is in the middle: California and Washington pay more, and Idaho and Nevada pay less.
| Neighboring state | Median hourly | Median yearly | Against Oregon |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oregon | $30.23 | $62,870 | |
| California | $36.50 | $75,920 | +$6.27 an hour |
| Idaho | $25.00 | $52,000 | −$5.23 an hour |
| Nevada | $29.99 | $62,380 | −$0.24 an hour |
| Washington | $35.67 | $74,190 | +$5.44 an hour |
How many carpenters work in Oregon
About 15,110 carpenters work on payrolls in Oregon, 2.3% of the 670,090 nationwide, the 15th largest count among the states.
The trade is a bigger part of the local job market than it is nationally: 7.7 of every 1,000 jobs in Oregon, 1.8 times the national share.
What a carpentry or remodeling business in Oregon should charge
Say you run a carpentry or remodeling business in Oregon and pay the state median of $30.23 an hour. Here is the labor rate calculator's math on its 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 | $30.23 × 2,080 × 1.0765 | $67,689 |
| Break-even rate | ($67,689 + $90,000) ÷ 1,500 | $105.13 |
| Rate with 15% profit | $105.13 ÷ 0.85 | $123.68 |
That is $123.68 per billable hour, 4.1 times the wage, and $1.95 more than the $121.73 the same math gives at the national median wage.
Paying the 75th percentile instead, $44.89 in Oregon, to hire and keep experienced people raises the rate to $149.42.
A cheaper crew saves less than it seems: at the 25th percentile wage of $24.26, the rate only drops to $113.19.
Overhead, at $60 of every billed hour, and the unbilled hours move this rate more than a raise does. A dollar more in wages adds about $1.76 to the rate.
Run it with your own numbers in the labor rate calculator. It is free and shows every step.
Working as a carpenter in Oregon
- 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.