Five trades to compare for pay, without a salary promise

Bottom line

Elevator work, power-line work and aircraft maintenance are worth investigating if pay is a major reason for changing careers. Heavy equipment and industrial machinery repair are two more options to compare. The figures below are verified national medians, not starting salaries or long-term earnings forecasts. Your actual offer and household costs matter more than this order.

How we chose and ordered the shortlist

We used the five highest recorded national medians in our current 14-trade catalog as candidates. We then checked each listed national annual median against the United States row on its official O*NET wage page. All five pages identify BLS 2025 data. The list below is ordered by those checked medians, not by career quality or ease of entry.

A median is the middle wage in the measured occupation. These are different occupations, not five versions of the same job. Some guide names are shorter than the official occupation names, so each section gives the exact scope. The linked pages also show Texas figures; this guide uses their separate United States annual rows, not their Texas rows.

1. Elevator mechanic: $109,910 national median

The source occupation is elevator and escalator installers and repairers. This is its United States annual median in BLS 2025 data shown by O*NET. It is not apprentice pay, a local offer or a prediction of your future earnings. Read the elevator mechanic guide for the work, entry route and downsides.

2. Electrical lineworker: $95,320 national median

The source occupation is electrical power-line installers and repairers. This is its United States annual median in BLS 2025 data shown by O*NET. It is not apprentice pay, a local offer or a prediction of your future earnings. Read the electrical lineworker guide for the work, entry route and downsides.

3. Aircraft maintenance technician: $79,870 national median

The source occupation is aircraft mechanics and service technicians. This is its United States annual median in BLS 2025 data shown by O*NET. It is not apprentice pay, a local offer or a prediction of your future earnings. Read the aircraft maintenance technician guide for the work, entry route and downsides.

4. Heavy equipment technician: $65,510 national median

The source occupation is mobile heavy equipment mechanics, except engines. This is its United States annual median in BLS 2025 data shown by O*NET. It is not apprentice pay, a local offer or a prediction of your future earnings. Read the heavy equipment technician guide for the work, entry route and downsides.

5. Industrial machinery mechanic: $64,520 national median

The source occupation is industrial machinery mechanics. This is its United States annual median in BLS 2025 data shown by O*NET. It is not apprentice pay, a local offer or a prediction of your future earnings. Read the industrial machinery mechanic guide for the work, entry route and downsides.

What the ranking leaves out

National median pay does not establish a beginner's rate, overtime, benefits, job availability or time spent waiting for training. It does not prove what workers in your city earn. These figures also do not show what your earnings will be after several years.

Do not choose a route solely because its median exceeds your current salary. Check its physical demands, qualification requirements and schedule. No career is AI-proof.

Compare an offer, not just an occupation

Ask an employer or sponsor for the starting rate, expected paid hours, benefits start date and training arrangements. Ask how progression works and what must happen before pay changes. Keep unconfirmed overtime and future raises out of your household budget.

This week

Choose two guides and find a current local posting for each. Ask for the terms that are missing. Use your own confirmed starting-pay assumptions in the calculator, not the national medians above. If you cannot confirm enough income to cover the change, keep your current job while you investigate.