Houston vs. New York
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
New York's median is 28.2% higher — but after local prices, New York still leads by 12.4%.
Houston's median $61,300 buys $62,200 at national prices (price parity 98.6); New York's $78,610 buys $69,800 (112.6).
Table 2 — The figures
Point by point
Published percentiles for both metros; the last column is New York against Houston.
| Houston | New York | Δ | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employment | 10,980 | 21,040 | +91.6% |
| 10th percentile | $39,920 | $47,870 | +19.9% |
| 25th percentile | $49,260 | $61,900 | +25.7% |
| Median | $61,300 | $78,610 | +28.2% |
| 75th percentile | $75,680 | $107,970 | +42.7% |
| 90th percentile | $85,680 | $145,480 | +69.8% |
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 New York
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.