Construction & Extraction

Solar Panel Installers

SOC 47-2231

Mount and wire solar panels on rooftops and utility-scale installations.

The job

Median pay

$53k

$47k to $63k typical range

Outlook, 2025 to 2035

Growing fast

+37% projected

Openings a year

4.2k

BLS projection

Typical education

High school

Our model

AI displacement risk

Moderate

How much of this job AI may do instead of the person

Works with AI

11/100

AI alongside the person rather than instead of them

AI exposure

32nd pct

More exposed than 32% of occupations · modeled estimate · 56th pct in Microsoft's data

Future-proof

68/100

At a glance

Looking to 2035, the projected change for Solar Panel Installers is +37%, well ahead of the typical occupation we cover. Works-with-AI scores 11/100 against moderate displacement risk, tilting toward AI replacing tasks, with modeled exposure at the 32nd percentile. The usual way in is a high school diploma. Pay for Solar Panel Installers centers on a $53,140 median, 21% below the typical occupation we cover (10% below the Construction & Extraction median). BLS projects about 4,200 openings a year. Where the projection for Paving & Surfacing Operators is -0.9%, the figure here is +37%.

Take the next step

Weigh it against Plumbers & PipefittersPay, outlook, entry and AI exposure side by side See where it pays mostNew Jersey leads at $79k; all states are listed below Find careers like itOpen the map at Solar Panel Installers and explore its neighbours See open jobsSolar Panel Installers roles hiring now Learn the skillsCourses for Solar Panel Installers, who lean most on critical thinking Real pay & reviewsSelf-reported pay and reviews on Glassdoor

Similar pay in Construction & Extraction

Key skills

Critical Thinking
Active Listening
Monitoring
Reading Comprehension
Active Learning
Speaking

Pay and jobs by state

BLS OEWS May 2025, 50 states and DC. 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
California	6,830	0.4	1.9×	$61k
Texas	5,270	0.4	1.9×	$48k
Florida	2,980	0.3	1.5×	$51k
New Jersey	1,880	0.4	2.2×	$79k
Arizona	1,280	0.4	2.0×	$51k
New York	1,230	0.1	0.6×	$56k
Pennsylvania	1,210	0.2	1.0×	$48k
Illinois	913 (estimated)	0.1 (estimated)	0.7× (estimated)	$60k
Virginia	864 (estimated)	0.2 (estimated)	1.0× (estimated)	$49k
Washington	819 (estimated)	0.2 (estimated)	1.1× (estimated)	$62k

All 50 states and DC

State	Jobs	Per 1,000	vs national	Median pay
Utah	770	0.4	2.2×	$50k
Georgia	759 (estimated)	0.2 (estimated)	0.8× (estimated)	$48k
North Carolina	710	0.1	0.7×	$44k
Maryland	670	0.2	1.2×	$45k
Colorado	620	0.2	1.1×	$50k
Massachusetts	620	0.2	0.8×	$59k
Tennessee	614 (estimated)	0.2 (estimated)	0.9× (estimated)	$45k (estimated)
Minnesota	597 (estimated)	0.2 (estimated)	1.0× (estimated)	$65k (estimated)
Missouri	565 (estimated)	0.2 (estimated)	0.9× (estimated)	$55k (estimated)
Louisiana	545 (estimated)	0.3 (estimated)	1.4× (estimated)	$45k (estimated)
Indiana	490	0.2	0.8×	$46k
Alabama	436 (estimated)	0.2 (estimated)	1.0× (estimated)	$43k (estimated)
Hawaii	420	0.7	3.3×	$70k
Oklahoma	419 (estimated)	0.2 (estimated)	1.2× (estimated)	$43k (estimated)
South Carolina	418 (estimated)	0.2 (estimated)	0.9× (estimated)	$50k
Kentucky	375 (estimated)	0.2 (estimated)	0.9× (estimated)	$47k (estimated)
Oregon	360	0.2	0.9×	$66k
New Mexico	340	0.4	1.9×	$48k
Michigan	310	0.1	0.3×	$47k
Kansas	299 (estimated)	0.2 (estimated)	1.0× (estimated)	$50k
Idaho	275 (estimated)	0.3 (estimated)	1.6× (estimated)	$50k (estimated)
Arkansas	259 (estimated)	0.2 (estimated)	1.0× (estimated)	$45k
Connecticut	250 (estimated)	0.1 (estimated)	0.7× (estimated)	$56k
Vermont	250	0.8	4.1×	$49k
Nebraska	248 (estimated)	0.2 (estimated)	1.2× (estimated)	$48k (estimated)
Mississippi	242 (estimated)	0.2 (estimated)	1.0× (estimated)	$42k (estimated)
West Virginia	208 (estimated)	0.3 (estimated)	1.5× (estimated)	$51k (estimated)
Iowa	180	0.1	0.6×	$57k
North Dakota	169 (estimated)	0.4 (estimated)	1.9× (estimated)	$55k (estimated)
Montana	156 (estimated)	0.3 (estimated)	1.5× (estimated)	$54k (estimated)
New Hampshire	126 (estimated)	0.2 (estimated)	0.9× (estimated)	$54k (estimated)
Wyoming	125 (estimated)	0.4 (estimated)	2.2× (estimated)	$53k (estimated)
Alaska	106 (estimated)	0.3 (estimated)	1.6× (estimated)	$67k (estimated)
Nevada	100	0.1	0.3×	$68k
Delaware	91 (estimated)	0.2 (estimated)	0.9× (estimated)	$53k (estimated)
Wisconsin	90	0.0	0.1×	$50k
Rhode Island	87 (estimated)	0.2 (estimated)	0.9× (estimated)	$56k (estimated)
Ohio	70	0.0	0.1×	$62k
Washington DC	62 (estimated)	0.1 (estimated)	0.4× (estimated)	$63k (estimated)
Maine	60	0.1	0.5×	$61k
South Dakota	50	0.1	0.5×	$42k

Top metro areas

New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ2,190 jobs · $70k median
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA1,930 jobs · $60k median
San Juan-Bayamon-Caguas, PR1,700 jobs · $27k median
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX1,620 jobs · $47k median
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX1,570 jobs · $48k median
Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ1,000 jobs · $51k median
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX830 jobs · $51k median
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA790 jobs · $60k median

Where this ranks

Explore Solar Panel Installers 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.