Carpenter
Field & Trades
Builds the wood and metal framing that gives a structure its shape, and the finish work that makes it look done.
What is a Carpenter?
A Carpenter builds and installs wood, metal-stud, and composite structures on a project, from framing walls, floors, and roofs early in a project (rough carpentry) to installing trim, cabinetry, and doors near the end (finish carpentry). Commercial carpenters usually work for a framing or general carpentry subcontractor, and their work ranges from physically demanding structural framing to precise, detail-oriented finish work depending on the phase of the project.
What they do
- Frame walls, floors, and roof structures according to structural drawings
- Install metal stud framing for interior partitions on commercial projects
- Build and set concrete formwork that holds concrete in place until it cures
- Install doors, trim, cabinetry, and other finish carpentry near project closeout
- Read structural and architectural drawings to plan layouts before cutting material
- Coordinate with other trades so framing leaves the right openings for electrical, plumbing, and HVAC
A typical day
- 6:30 AMReview the day's framing layout and stage lumber or metal studs for the crew
- 7:00 AMFrame interior partition walls on the level currently under construction
- 10:30 AMCoordinate with the electrician on stud spacing near a panel location
- 1:00 PMBuild and set concrete formwork for an upcoming pour
- 3:30 PMCheck completed framing against the drawings before the next trade moves in
Skills
Software
Pay expectations
Pay by experience, nationally
as of May 2025
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), Carpenters (SOC 47-2031), national data
Reviewed May 2025. Pay reflects the national wage distribution for this occupation, not a promise for any one job: entry level is the lower part of that range, 5 years in sits around the national median, and 10 years in is the upper part, since pay isn't actually tracked by years on the job. Real pay varies a lot by state, metro area, union status, and employer — scale these up or down for your market. These figures are base pay only: overtime, shift differentials, and per-project bonuses are standard across most construction trades and routinely push real earnings above what's shown here.
What this chart doesn't capture
A framing or finish carpentry crew is one of the most common paths from trade to business owner — the pay ceiling moves with the work you can win, not a wage scale.
These figures are wage-and-salary pay only — the Bureau of Labor Statistics excludes the self-employed and business owners from its survey entirely. No government or trade-association source publishes a reliable owner-income figure for carpentry contractors specifically; what circulates online is either regular employee pay mislabeled "contractor," or too broad to mean much for one trade. Margins depend heavily on whether work is bid by the job or billed by the hour — worth researching your own market before trusting any number you find.
Education
- Required:
- High school diploma or equivalent, then a registered apprenticeship (typically 3-4 years of paid on-the-job training plus classroom hours); carpentry isn't separately state-licensed in most places the way electrical or plumbing work is
- Helpful:
- OSHA 10 or 30 certification (not a nationwide legal requirement, though several states, including New York, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Nevada, Missouri, and Rhode Island, legally require it for workers on public construction projects) and fall protection or scaffold certifications for framing at height
- Not necessary:
- A four-year college degree; the apprenticeship-to-journeyman route is the standard path, and many carpenters move up through the trade rather than through school
Career progression
- 1.Apprentice Carpenter
- 2.Journeyman Carpenter
- 3.Lead Carpenter or Carpentry Foreman
- 4.Carpentry Contractor (running your own crew/business) or Superintendent
Who hires for this role
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