- The middle half earn between $27.68 and $45.40 an hour.
- Connecticut ranks 14th of the 50 states and DC for median pay in this trade.
- Connecticut pays more than 1 of its 3 neighboring states.
- BLS counts about 5,410 plumbers on payrolls in Connecticut.
- At the state median wage, a plumbing business needs to bill about $135.85 an hour on the labor rate calculator's starting numbers.
Plumber pay in Connecticut, bottom to top
BLS counts plumbers, pipefitters and steamfitters as one group, so the figures include industrial pipe work as well as service and new construction plumbing.
| Pay level | Hourly | Yearly | National hourly |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $21.96 | $45,670 | $21.22 |
| 25th percentile | $27.68 | $57,570 | $24.13 |
| Median | $37.16 | $77,280 | $30.67 |
| 75th percentile | $45.40 | $94,440 | $40.92 |
| 90th percentile | $49.52 | $102,990 | $52.13 |
| Average (mean) | $36.25 | $75,400 | $34.70 |
Pay is bunched up in Connecticut. The top tenth earn $49.52 an hour or more, about 2.3 times the $21.96 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.
The floor is higher than nationally ($21.96 against $21.22) but the ceiling is lower ($49.52 against $52.13), which squeezes pay toward the middle.
The average wage ($36.25) is a little under the median, so the low end of the range stretches further than the high end in Connecticut.
How Connecticut compares with other states
Over a full year, the Connecticut median of $77,280 is $13,480 more than the national $63,800.
In the state ranking, Connecticut sits 14th, between New York ($37.26) and Rhode Island ($36.77). The range runs from $23.39 in Arkansas to $48.57 in the District of Columbia.
Against its neighboring states, Connecticut is in the middle: Massachusetts and New York pay more, and Rhode Island pays less.
These are wages as paid, not adjusted for what it costs to live in Connecticut. Rent, home prices and taxes decide how far a higher wage goes.
| Neighboring state | Median hourly | Median yearly | Against Connecticut |
|---|---|---|---|
| Connecticut | $37.16 | $77,280 | |
| Massachusetts | $45.14 | $93,880 | +$7.98 an hour |
| New York | $37.26 | $77,490 | +$0.10 an hour |
| Rhode Island | $36.77 | $76,470 | −$0.39 an hour |
How many plumbers work in Connecticut
About 5,410 plumbers work on payrolls in Connecticut, 1.2% of the 465,840 nationwide, the 30th largest count among the states.
That is 3.2 of every 1,000 jobs in Connecticut, close to the trade's share of jobs nationally.
What a plumbing business in Connecticut should charge
Higher wages in Connecticut go straight into the price. Take a plumbing business in Connecticut paying the state median of $37.16 and run it through the labor rate calculator with 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 | $37.16 × 2,080 × 1.0765 | $83,206 |
| Break-even rate | ($83,206 + $90,000) ÷ 1,500 | $115.47 |
| Rate with 15% profit | $115.47 ÷ 0.85 | $135.85 |
That is $135.85 per billable hour, 3.7 times the wage, and $11.40 more than the $124.45 the same math gives at the national median wage.
Paying the 75th percentile instead, $45.40 in Connecticut, to hire and keep experienced people raises the rate to $150.32.
A cheaper crew saves less than it seems: at the 25th percentile wage of $27.68, the rate only drops to $119.20.
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 plumbing labor rate calculator. It is free and shows every step.
Working as a plumber in Connecticut
- Licensing. What Connecticut asks for before you can work on your own: Plumbing license in Connecticut.
- Running the business. Quotes, invoices, booking and your website in one place: how plumbing companies 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 47-2152, plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters, 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: plumber salary by state.