- The middle half earn between $18.74 and $27.02 an hour.
- Louisiana ranks 31st of the 50 states and DC for median pay in this trade.
- Louisiana pays more than all 3 neighboring states.
- BLS counts about 760 roofers on payrolls in Louisiana.
- At the state median wage, a roofing company needs to bill about $111.75 an hour on the labor rate calculator's starting numbers.
Roofer pay in Louisiana, bottom to top
The BLS group covers roofers on shingle, tile, metal and flat roofs, on new work and repairs.
| Pay level | Hourly | Yearly | National hourly |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $17.37 | $36,140 | $18.01 |
| 25th percentile | $18.74 | $38,970 | $22.24 |
| Median | $23.44 | $48,760 | $26.65 |
| 75th percentile | $27.02 | $56,190 | $31.44 |
| 90th percentile | $40.67 | $84,590 | $39.29 |
| Average (mean) | $25.38 | $52,790 | $27.95 |
From the bottom tenth ($17.37) to the top tenth ($40.67), the top of the scale pays about 2.3 times the bottom in Louisiana, close to the 2.2 times spread for roofers nationwide.
The bottom of the scale is lower than nationally ($17.37 against $18.01) while the top is higher ($40.67 against $39.29), so the climb from new hire to top earner is longer here.
The average wage, $25.38, sits 8% above the median. A smaller group of higher earners pulls the average up, so the median is the better guide to what a typical roofer makes.
How Louisiana compares with other states
Over a full year, the Louisiana median of $48,760 is $6,680 less than the national $55,440.
In the state ranking, Louisiana sits 31st, between North Carolina ($23.56) and Utah ($23.40). The range runs from $21.00 in Oklahoma to $37.45 in Illinois.
Louisiana pays roofers more than any of its neighboring states, Arkansas, Mississippi and Texas. Someone working near the border can earn more by taking work on this side of it.
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 Louisiana |
|---|---|---|---|
| Louisiana | $23.44 | $48,760 | |
| Arkansas | $22.82 | $47,470 | −$0.62 an hour |
| Mississippi | $21.61 | $44,940 | −$1.83 an hour |
| Texas | $22.13 | $46,030 | −$1.31 an hour |
How many roofers work in Louisiana
About 760 roofers work on payrolls in Louisiana, 0.6% of the 135,490 nationwide, the 38th largest count among the states.
It is a smaller part of local jobs than in most of the country, at 0.4 per 1,000 jobs, 0.45 times the national share.
What a roofing company in Louisiana should charge
A lower wage helps the price less than you might expect, because the overhead does not shrink with it. Here is a roofing company in Louisiana paying the state median of $23.44, 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 | $23.44 × 2,080 × 1.0765 | $52,485 |
| Break-even rate | ($52,485 + $90,000) ÷ 1,500 | $94.99 |
| Rate with 15% profit | $94.99 ÷ 0.85 | $111.75 |
That is $111.75 per billable hour, 4.8 times the wage, and $5.64 less than the $117.39 the same math gives at the national median wage.
Paying the 75th percentile instead, $27.02 in Louisiana, to hire and keep experienced people raises the rate to $118.04.
A cheaper crew saves less than it seems: at the 25th percentile wage of $18.74, the rate only drops to $103.50.
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 roofer in Louisiana
- Licensing. What Louisiana asks for before you can work on your own: Roofing license in Louisiana.
- Running the business. Quotes, invoices, booking and your website in one place: how roofing 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 47-2181, roofers, 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: roofer salary by state.