BuildTotals

Installation prices: planning estimates. Official BLS worker wage data is identified separately below.

Contractor costs in Florida

Regional labor cost ranges for common DIY projects in Florida. These are estimates for planning purposes - always get multiple quotes from licensed local contractors.

Construction labor wages in Florida

Official BLS data · OEWS 2025

The actual pay range for 20 building trades in Florida — 10th percentile, median, and 90th percentile hourly wages from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. These describe worker pay; they do not verify or calculate the installation prices below.

Scroll the table horizontally to compare all wage columns. Keyboard: focus the table, then use the arrow keys.

Trade 10th %ile Median /hr 90th %ile Employed in FL
Construction supervisors $24.00 $36.44 $56.87 69,830
Carpenters $17.75 $23.98 $33.63 39,300
Cement masons & concrete finishers $18.38 $23.40 $30.44 15,240
Drywall & ceiling-tile installers $16.09 $23.54 $29.58 6,000
Tapers $18.76 $23.75 $26.00 —
Tile & stone setters $13.49 $22.73 $34.80 4,070
Floor layers (non-carpet) $14.54 $27.41 $42.89 1,660
Floor sanders & finishers $15.69 $25.03 $26.95 270
Carpet installers $17.31 $23.36 $31.32 550
Painters $17.65 $22.85 $29.47 22,450
Glaziers $13.12 $22.61 $30.39 6,370
Insulation workers $17.38 $22.65 $31.21 2,690
Plasterers & stucco masons $16.06 $22.80 $30.18 1,970
Brickmasons & blockmasons $17.99 $25.37 $33.78 2,610
Roofers $15.98 $22.88 $30.68 23,550
Electricians $18.36 $27.52 $37.10 49,700
Plumbers & pipefitters $18.72 $25.44 $35.39 29,260
HVAC technicians $18.45 $27.24 $37.60 39,160
Equipment operators $18.66 $23.75 $30.78 27,510
Construction laborers $16.00 $21.17 $28.32 87,040

How building-trade pay has moved since 2019

Median hourly wage by year for Florida's headline trades — a 7-year OEWS series (2019–2025) that deepens with each annual BLS release.

Carpenters +25% since 2019
$23.98/hr

$19.19 in 2019 → $23.98 in 2025

Electricians +31% since 2019
$27.52/hr

$21.00 in 2019 → $27.52 in 2025

Plumbers & pipefitters +22% since 2019
$25.44/hr

$20.78 in 2019 → $25.44 in 2025

Construction laborers +40% since 2019
$21.17/hr

$15.13 in 2019 → $21.17 in 2025

State-specific BLS wage signals

These comparisons are calculated from the same official OEWS 2025 rows above, so they vary by Florida's actual trade mix instead of repeating a national average. These are worker wages, not contractor billing rates - a contractor's quote adds overhead, insurance, equipment, and margin.

Highest median wage in state

Construction supervisors

$36.44/hr

Source: BLS OEWS 2025

Largest reported construction trade

Construction laborers

87,040 employed

Source: BLS OEWS 2025

Biggest premium vs trade median

Floor layers (non-carpet)

+$3.09/hr vs $24.32

Median across states with this BLS trade row, OEWS 2025

Fastest median-wage growth

Floor layers (non-carpet)

+ 75% since 2019

Source: BLS OEWS 2019-2025

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS 2019–2025. These are worker wages, not contractor billing rates — a contractor's quote adds overhead, insurance, equipment, and margin. These additions vary by contractor and project.

Installation labor estimates

Labor only; materials excluded. These ranges have no published job sample or calculation on this page. Use them as a starting point for local quotes.

Concrete labor (per cu yd installed) $80 - $140
Interior painting (per sq ft) $1.80 - $3.20
6ft privacy fence (per linear ft) $20 - $42
LVP/laminate flooring install (per sq ft) $2.20 - $4.80
Drywall hang+tape+mud (per sq ft) $1.80 - $3.20

Notes for Florida

Florida requires state contractor licensing (CBC/CGC). Hurricane-impact requirements may affect fence and exterior project costs.

State background reference: https://www.myfloridalicense.com/intentions2.asp?chBoard=true&boardid=21. This reference does not substantiate the installation price ranges above.

Find a contractor in Florida

When a project is beyond DIY scale, get quotes from licensed local contractors. Always verify contractor license status with Florida's contractor licensing board.