What is the job outlook for electricians? In one line: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects electrician employment to grow 9 percent from 2025 to 2035, much faster than the average for all occupations, with about 72,700 openings a year over the decade. The BLS figures here use the 2025-2035 projections and May 2025 wages, checked September 29, 2026.
Where These Numbers Come From
The Occupational Outlook Handbook is the federal government’s employment forecast, occupation by occupation. Its Quick Facts table for electricians lists 821,000 jobs in 2025, a projected employment change of 75,900 jobs by 2035, and May 2025 median pay of $63,190 per year, or $30.38 an hour. Our data center pay guide covers industry pay reports, and data center work in particular is quoted well above the national median.
What “9 Percent, Much Faster Than Average” Means
The BLS puts electricians at 9 percent for the decade and files that under its “much faster than average” label, its own comparison against all occupations. In plain terms: the country expects to need tens of thousands more electricians in 2035 than in 2025, on top of replacing everyone who leaves.
Why 72,700 Openings a Year When Growth Adds Only 75,900 Total
This is the part most summaries skip. Growth adds 75,900 jobs across the whole decade, yet the BLS projects about 72,700 openings every single year. The difference is replacement: in the BLS’s own words, many openings result from the need to replace workers who transfer to different occupations or exit the labor force, such as to retire. Our shortage breakdown covers the retirement wave behind that line: roughly 20,000 electricians retiring each year.
If You Hire Electricians, Read the Forecast This Way
A trade growing much faster than average, while replacing a fifth of a million retirees over a decade, is a seller’s market for labor. Hiring cycles stretch, and the projects that plan crews earliest keep their schedules. That planning problem is what electrical staffing exists to solve, and our staffing guide walks the whole play.
If You Are an Electrician, the Decade Favors You
Strong growth plus heavy replacement means options: local work, travel work, and the data center build-out paying premiums for the same license. The way in is the standard apprenticeship, and our apprenticeship guide lays out that path step by step. When you are ready, the open roles board lists real postings with pay shown.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook,Electricians, Quick Facts and Job Outlook tabs, 2025-2035 projections and May 2025 wages, page last modified August 27, 2026, checked September 29, 2026. Photo: Western Area Power Administration (CC BY 2.0 (opens in new tab)).