Construction & Extraction
Pile Drivers
SOC 47-2171
Drive the deep foundation piles that support bridges and large structures.
The job
Median pay
$59k
$48k to $77k typical range
Outlook, 2025 to 2035
Declining
-5.3% projected
Openings a year
1k
BLS projection
Typical education
Apprenticeship
Our model
AI displacement risk
Low
How much of this job AI may do instead of the person
Works with AI
9/100
AI alongside the person rather than instead of them
AI exposure
10th pct
More exposed than 10% of occupations · modeled estimate · 14th pct in Microsoft's data
Future-proof
46/100
Key skills
- Critical Thinking
- Monitoring
- Reading Comprehension
- Active Listening
- Speaking
- Mathematics
Pay and jobs by state
BLS OEWS May 2025, 51 states. Sorted by jobs; per 1,000 is jobs per thousand workers in the state; vs national compares that rate with the country's. A tilde marks a figure estimated from the parent occupation group where BLS publishes none.
| State | Jobs | Per 1,000 | vs national | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Texas | 3,640 | 0.3 | 2.9× | $51k |
| California | 2,390 | 0.1 | 1.5× | $63k |
| Florida | 1,150 | 0.1 | 1.3× | $51k |
| New York | 1,110 | 0.1 | 1.3× | $98k |
| Tennessee | 500 | 0.2 | 1.7× | $58k |
| Pennsylvania | 470 | 0.1 | 0.9× | $75k~ |
| Nevada | 460 | 0.3 | 3.3× | $102k |
| Ohio | 423 | 0.1 | 0.9× | $62k~ |
| Illinois | 402 | 0.1 | 0.7× | $106k~ |
| Alabama | 390 | 0.2 | 2.1× | $44k |
All 51 states
| State | Jobs | Per 1,000 | vs national | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Virginia | 380 | 0.1 | 1.0× | $55k~ |
| Michigan | 346 | 0.1 | 0.9× | $91k~ |
| Missouri | 320 | 0.1 | 1.2× | $59k |
| Massachusetts | 286 | 0.1 | 0.9× | $77k~ |
| New Jersey | 271 | 0.1 | 0.7× | $116k~ |
| Minnesota | 263 | 0.1 | 1.0× | $72k~ |
| Colorado | 260 | 0.1 | 1.0× | $56k |
| New Mexico | 260 | 0.3 | 3.4× | $54k |
| Maryland | 240 | 0.1 | 1.0× | $62k~ |
| Oregon | 240 | 0.1 | 1.4× | $93k |
| Nebraska | 230 | 0.2 | 2.5× | $63k |
| Iowa | 152 | 0.1 | 1.1× | $59k~ |
| Kansas | 132 | 0.1 | 1.0× | $54k~ |
| Louisiana | 130 | 0.1 | 0.8× | $71k |
| Oklahoma | 130 | 0.1 | 0.9× | $50k |
| Washington | 130 | 0.0 | 0.4× | $109k |
| Idaho | 121 | 0.1 | 1.6× | $56k~ |
| Arkansas | 114 | 0.1 | 1.0× | $46k~ |
| Connecticut | 110 | 0.1 | 0.7× | $71k~ |
| Utah | 100 | 0.1 | 0.7× | $49k |
| West Virginia | 92 | 0.1 | 1.5× | $57k~ |
| North Carolina | 90 | 0.0 | 0.2× | $52k |
| Georgia | 80 | 0.0 | 0.2× | $47k |
| South Carolina | 80 | 0.0 | 0.4× | $41k |
| North Dakota | 75 | 0.2 | 2.0× | $61k~ |
| Indiana | 70 | 0.0 | 0.3× | $65k |
| Maine | 69 | 0.1 | 1.2× | $60k~ |
| Montana | 68 | 0.1 | 1.5× | $60k~ |
| Hawaii | 64 | 0.1 | 1.1× | $82k~ |
| Arizona | 60 | 0.0 | 0.2× | $58k |
| South Dakota | 56 | 0.1 | 1.4× | $50k~ |
| New Hampshire | 55 | 0.1 | 0.9× | $60k~ |
| Wyoming | 55 | 0.2 | 2.2× | $59k~ |
| Wisconsin | 50 | 0.0 | 0.2× | $122k |
| Alaska | 47 | 0.1 | 1.6× | $61k~ |
| Delaware | 40 | 0.1 | 0.9× | $59k~ |
| Kentucky | 40 | 0.0 | 0.2× | $67k |
| Mississippi | 40 | 0.0 | 0.4× | $40k |
| Rhode Island | 38 | 0.1 | 0.8× | $62k~ |
| Vermont | 31 | 0.1 | 1.1× | $59k~ |
| Washington DC | 27 | 0.0 | 0.4× | $69k~ |
Top metro areas
- Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX1,500 jobs · $52k median
- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ960 jobs · $102k median
- Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX760 jobs · $51k median
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA640 jobs · $63k median
- Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA520 jobs · $60k median
- Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX330 jobs · $50k median
- Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL300 jobs · $49k median
- San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA280 jobs · $61k median
Explore the rankings
Explore Pile Drivers interactively →Pay and outlook from BLS (OEWS 2025, Employment Projections 2025-2035). Skills and work activities from O*NET 30.3. AI exposure and future-proof scores are modeled estimates. How these numbers are made.