Houston vs. Los Angeles
Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters. Median, spread and buying power, side by side.
Data released May 2025
BLS OEWS · SOC 47-2152
Fig. 1 — Side by side
Both distributions, one scale
10th to 90th percentile, median struck in red
Table 1 — Adjusted
Los Angeles's median is 16.0% higher — but at national prices the two medians buy almost exactly the same.
Houston's median $61,300 buys $62,200 at national prices (price parity 98.6); Los Angeles's $71,110 buys $62,600 (113.6).
Table 2 — The figures
Point by point
Published percentiles for both metros; the last column is Los Angeles against Houston.
| Houston | Los Angeles | Δ | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employment | 10,980 | 15,690 | +42.9% |
| 10th percentile | $39,920 | $46,090 | +15.5% |
| 25th percentile | $49,260 | $58,560 | +18.9% |
| Median | $61,300 | $71,110 | +16.0% |
| 75th percentile | $75,680 | $101,300 | +33.9% |
| 90th percentile | $85,680 | $125,080 | +46.0% |
Sources
How this page was made
- Wage data
- Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 release. Public domain.
- Price parity
- Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.
- Full pages
- Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters in Houston · Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters in Los Angeles
Percentiles are reported exactly as released. Derived (price-adjusted) figures round to the nearest hundred. We take no payment for how any figure is presented.