- The middle half earn between $22.55 and $35.78 an hour.
- West Virginia ranks 14th of the 50 states with published figures for median pay in this trade.
- West Virginia pays more than 4 of its 5 neighboring states.
- BLS counts about 540 sheet metal workers on payrolls in West Virginia.
- At the state median wage, a sheet metal or HVAC business needs to bill about $131.72 an hour on the labor rate calculator's starting numbers.
Sheet Metal Worker pay in West Virginia, bottom to top
Sheet metal workers fabricate and install ductwork, flashing, gutters and metal roofing parts, in a shop and on site.
| Pay level | Hourly | Yearly | National hourly |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $18.35 | $38,170 | $18.57 |
| 25th percentile | $22.55 | $46,910 | $22.99 |
| Median | $34.81 | $72,390 | $29.71 |
| 75th percentile | $35.78 | $74,410 | $39.24 |
| 90th percentile | $36.55 | $76,020 | $50.79 |
| Average (mean) | $29.45 | $61,250 | $32.62 |
Pay is bunched up in West Virginia. The top tenth earn $36.55 an hour or more, about 2 times the $18.35 at the bottom tenth. Nationally that gap is 2.7 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 $0.22 an hour less than the bottom tenth nationally, and the top tenth $14.24 less than the national top tenth.
The average wage ($29.45) is a little under the median, so the low end of the range stretches further than the high end in West Virginia.
How West Virginia compares with other states
Over a full year, the West Virginia median of $72,390 is $10,590 more than the national $61,800.
In the state ranking, West Virginia sits 14th, between Minnesota ($35.08) and Iowa ($31.95). The range runs from $22.03 in Arkansas to $47.38 in Washington.
Against its neighboring states, West Virginia is in the middle: Ohio pays more, and Kentucky, Maryland, Pennsylvania and Virginia pay less.
These are wages as paid, not adjusted for what it costs to live in West Virginia. Rent, home prices and taxes decide how far a higher wage goes.
| Neighboring state | Median hourly | Median yearly | Against West Virginia |
|---|---|---|---|
| West Virginia | $34.81 | $72,390 | |
| Kentucky | $29.17 | $60,680 | −$5.64 an hour |
| Maryland | $30.08 | $62,560 | −$4.73 an hour |
| Ohio | $35.96 | $74,790 | +$1.15 an hour |
| Pennsylvania | $29.52 | $61,400 | −$5.29 an hour |
| Virginia | $25.10 | $52,220 | −$9.71 an hour |
How many sheet metal workers work in West Virginia
About 540 sheet metal workers work on payrolls in West Virginia, 0.5% of the 119,770 nationwide, the 40th largest count among the states.
That is 0.8 of every 1,000 jobs in West Virginia, close to the trade's share of jobs nationally.
What a sheet metal or HVAC business in West Virginia should charge
Higher wages in West Virginia go straight into the price. Take a sheet metal or HVAC business in West Virginia paying the state median of $34.81 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 | $34.81 × 2,080 × 1.0765 | $77,944 |
| Break-even rate | ($77,944 + $90,000) ÷ 1,500 | $111.96 |
| Rate with 15% profit | $111.96 ÷ 0.85 | $131.72 |
That is $131.72 per billable hour, 3.8 times the wage, and $8.96 more than the $122.76 the same math gives at the national median wage.
Paying the 75th percentile instead, $35.78 in West Virginia, to hire and keep experienced people raises the rate to $133.42.
A cheaper crew saves less than it seems: at the 25th percentile wage of $22.55, the rate only drops to $110.19.
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.
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 47-2211, sheet metal workers, 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: sheet metal worker salary by state.