Occupations · Construction and Extraction
Insulation Workers, Floor, Ceiling, and Wall
Line and cover structures with insulating materials. May work with batt, roll, or blown insulation materials.
O*NET 30.3 Database (USDOL/ETA) · occupation code 47-2131.00
What it pays
A single “average salary” hides the spread. This is the whole distribution — the gap between the bottom and top bar is usually the number that matters.
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2024 · national, cross-industry · annual wage
Pay over time
Median up 61% between 2004 and 2024, before inflation. The band shows the 10th to 90th percentile.
BLS OEWS, one release per year. Before May 2011 only national estimates were published, so geography detail starts there.
Where the jobs are
| Metro area | Median wage | Employed |
|---|---|---|
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX | $47,860 | 2,130 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA | $64,510 | 1,950 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | $48,910 | 1,820 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI | $56,590 | 880 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI | $53,350 | 830 |
| Baton Rouge, LA | $58,260 | 730 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | $50,660 | 670 |
| Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TN | $47,210 | 640 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | $42,990 | 620 |
| Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO | $48,610 | 590 |
| St. Louis, MO-IL | $52,410 | 540 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | $49,470 | 530 |
BLS OEWS May 2024, metropolitan estimates · the 12 areas with the most people in this occupation
Typical education to enter: No formal educational credential · BLS Employment Projections 2024–34
What people in this job actually do
Ordered by how important the work is rated.
- Measure and cut insulation for covering surfaces, using tape measures, handsaws, power saws, knives, or scissors.
- Fit, wrap, staple, or glue insulating materials to structures or surfaces, using hand tools or wires.
- Cover and line structures with blown or rolled forms of materials to insulate against cold, heat, or moisture, using saws, knives, rasps, trowels, blowers, or other tools and implements.
- Distribute insulating materials evenly into small spaces within floors, ceilings, or walls, using blowers and hose attachments, or cement mortars.
- Move controls, buttons, or levers to start blowers and regulate flow of materials through nozzles.
- Fill blower hoppers with insulating materials.
- Cover, seal, or finish insulated surfaces or access holes with plastic covers, canvas strips, sealants, tape, cement or asphalt mastic.
- Read blueprints, and select appropriate insulation, based on space characteristics and the heat retaining or excluding characteristics of the material.
- Remove old insulation, such as asbestos, following safety procedures.
- Prepare surfaces for insulation application by brushing or spreading on adhesives, cement, or asphalt, or by attaching metal pins to surfaces.
O*NET 30.3 task ratings, importance scale
Skills that matter most
Importance, rated 1 to 5.
O*NET 30.3 skills, importance scale
Software and tools
A dot marks what O*NET flags as in demand.
O*NET 30.3 software skills · hot-technology flag
What this work is actually like
Conditions rated against the average across all occupations — only what makes this job different is listed.
O*NET 30.3 Job Zones
Working conditions that stand out
O*NET 30.3 work context, frequency scale · observed 2015-07
How people actually get in
Share of workers by the education they hold.
O*NET 30.2 education, training and experience · observed 2015-07
What kind of person the work suits
Occupational interest profile, rated 1 to 7.
O*NET 30.2 occupational interests (RIASEC)
What you take with you
Skills rated for how well they transfer into other occupations.
O*NET 30.3 transferable skills, importance scale
Knowledge the work draws on
Abilities it leans on
O*NET 30.3 abilities and knowledge, importance scale
How this job is advertised
The same work is posted under many titles — this is what to search for.
O*NET 30.3 job titles reported for this occupation
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What changed since 2015
Comparing O*NET release 20.1 (2015-10-01) with 30.3 (2026-05-01). Signs, not colour alone, carry the meaning.
Now listed 2
Diff across the O*NET releases held here in full since October 2015, following occupations through merges and retirements. O*NET re-surveys occupations on a rolling cycle, so “no change” can also mean “not re-surveyed”.
Related jobs
O*NET 30.3 related occupations
Also called
O*NET 30.3 alternative titles
The same work in Europe
| ESCO occupation | ISCO | Match |
|---|---|---|
| insulation worker | 7124.1 | broader |
Official ESCO ↔ O*NET crosswalk (ESCO Secretariat with USDOL/ETA)
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