—May 2025 OEWS estimates put the DFW electrician employee pool at 20,930, with a $28.37 median hourly wage and $28.83 mean. Use that as a labor-market benchmark—not a bid rate, loaded labor cost, shortage measure, or compensation plan.
The official number is a baseline for one occupation, not the loaded cost of a crew.
BLS estimated 20,930 electrician jobs in the Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington metropolitan area in May 2025. The occupation’s median hourly wage was $28.37; its mean was $28.83, or $59,960 annually. The 75th-percentile estimate was $34.32 per hour.
Those figures describe employee wages for SOC 47-2111. They exclude self-employed workers and the employer’s payroll taxes, benefits, recruiting cost, overtime pattern, truck and tool costs, supervision, rework, and nonproductive travel. They do not isolate apprentice, journeyman, master, service, commercial, industrial, or owner roles.
The median is one point on a broad employee-wage distribution.
The May 2025 estimate places the 10th percentile at $38,740 annually, the 25th at $47,530, the median at $59,010, the 75th at $71,390, and the 90th at $81,660. BLS estimated 5.168 electrician jobs per 1,000 metro jobs and a location quotient of 1.06. The employment estimate carries a 5.1% relative standard error; the mean-wage estimate carries a 1.6% relative standard error.
A shop comparing an offer with this table still needs to match role, license, shift, overtime, benefits, geography, and the date of the offer. The distribution is not a recommended pay scale.
| Percentile | Annual wage | Approx. hourly |
|---|---|---|
| 10th | $38,740 | $18.63 |
| 25th | $47,530 | $22.85 |
| Median | $59,010 | $28.37 |
| 75th | $71,390 | $34.32 |
| 90th | $81,660 | $39.26 |
The latest annual comparison moved modestly, but small survey changes are not a shortage measure.
From May 2024 to May 2025, estimated employment moved from 20,770 to 20,930, mean hourly wage from $28.56 to $28.83, and median hourly wage from $27.77 to $28.37. Those arithmetic changes are 0.8%, 0.9%, and 2.2%, respectively.
OEWS values are survey estimates. Small year-to-year movements can reflect sampling and methodology, and they do not establish shortage, recruiting difficulty, or current pay for a specific license level. A 2026 decision still needs current offers, acceptance rates, overtime, retention, and vacancy duration.
Why evidence classes stay separate →The 2023-to-2025 estimate rose, but the series does not prove hiring growth.
Archived May 2023 OEWS data estimated 18,730 electrician jobs in DFW, 4.722 jobs per 1,000 metro jobs, and a $27.38 mean hourly wage. May 2025 estimated 20,930 jobs, 5.168 per 1,000, and a $28.83 mean.
The arithmetic change in estimated employment is 2,200 jobs, or 11.7%. OEWS sampling and methodological differences prevent treating that change as a measured flow of new hires or as statistically proven growth.
| Estimate | May 2023 | May 2025 | Arithmetic change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employment | 18,730 | 20,930 | +2,200 / +11.7% |
| Jobs per 1,000 | 4.722 | 5.168 | +0.446 |
| Mean hourly wage | $27.38 | $28.83 | +$1.45 / +5.3% |
Separate labor-pool scale, license progression, and shop economics.
QCEW counted 1,816 private DFW establishments in NAICS 23821 during 2024, but suppressed the corresponding employment and payroll fields. Texas licensing rules add a different constraint: journeyman licensure requires 8,000 supervised hours, while a master electrician requires 12,000 hours plus at least two years holding a journeyman license. A contractor must retain a Master Electrician of Record.
Define the role and license level before comparing pay.
Compare accepted offers, not advertised ranges alone.
Calculate loaded hourly cost and vacancy cost separately.
Model supervision and Master Electrician coverage explicitly.
Do not infer individual productivity from a metro wage estimate.
Entry is open; independent skill and supervision capacity take years.
Texas allows an apprentice license without prior experience or an exam. Journeyman licensure requires 8,000 supervised on-the-job hours, although testing can begin after 7,000. Master eligibility requires 12,000 supervised hours and at least two years holding a journeyman license.
IEC Dallas describes a four-year registered apprenticeship with 8,000 on-the-job hours and 576 classroom hours. Its public page states tuition of $0.53 per hour worked, a contractor fee of $25 per apprentice per week, and a $40 application fee. It gives no current enrollment, completion, placement, or graduate-wage counts.
| Stage | Published requirement | What remains unknown |
|---|---|---|
| Apprentice | No experience or exam; supervised work | Current DFW entrants and retention |
| Journeyman | 8,000 supervised hours; exam | DFW completions and availability |
| Master | 12,000 hours + 2 years as journeyman | DFW supervisory capacity |
| IEC Dallas program | 4 years; 8,000 OJT; 576 class hours | Enrollment, attrition, placements, graduates |
Use the public wage baseline to frame questions, then price from your own operating record.
The official data is strong enough to reject vague claims about “average electrician pay.” It is not strong enough to set a 2026 compensation package or customer price. The decision-grade answer must come from a role-specific, current, shop-level cost model.
Exam records show a conversion gate, not a local shortage count.
TDLR reported 26,303 listed electrician exam attempts in FY2025 and 6,181 passes, a 23.5% attempt-level pass rate. The combined journeyman exam recorded 1,390 passes from 5,050 attempts. Master Calculations recorded 753 passes from 3,946 attempts, while Master NEC recorded 771 from 3,472.
Attempts are not unique applicants, and the master path includes separate components. The figures show that progression is gated; they cannot reveal how many qualified workers were available to DFW employers.
| Exam group | Passes | Attempts | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| All listed electrician exams | 6,181 | 26,303 | 23.5% |
| Journeyman combined | 1,390 | 5,050 | 27.5% |
| Master Calculations | 753 | 3,946 | 19.1% |
| Master NEC | 771 | 3,472 | 22.2% |
Build a current role-specific loaded-cost model before changing pay, hiring spend, crew plans, or customer pricing.
Read the methodology →What supports this report
Employee occupation survey estimate; excludes self-employed workers and is not a loaded labor-cost model.
Source ↗Used only for like-for-like arithmetic comparison; small changes are not asserted as statistically significant.
Source ↗Industry establishment count; employment and payroll are nondisclosable and the industry includes other wiring installation contractors.
Source ↗Regulatory progression and contractor requirements, not evidence of current labor scarcity.
Source ↗Historical official estimate; arithmetic comparison does not establish statistically significant employment growth.
Source ↗Statewide exam attempts, not unique applicants, licenses issued, or DFW labor supply.
Source ↗Provider-published program design; no current enrollment, completion, placement, or graduate-wage figures.
Source ↗