According to the American Welding Society (AWS), is over 55. That’s more than 157,000 experienced professionals approaching retirement, and only 9.4% of today’s welding workforce is under 25. The industry is losing far more welders than it’s gaining.
For anyone weighing a welding career right now, that gap is worth paying attention to. Employers across construction, manufacturing, shipbuilding, and energy aren’t waiting for the labor market to fix itself. They need trained welders, and the pool of people who qualify keeps shrinking.
The number that tends to trip people up is the 2% projected employment growth figure from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Slow growth reads like a bad sign, but it isn’t. The welding career outlook for 2025–2026 isn’t being driven by whether the industry is expanding. It’s being driven by who’s walking out the door.
What the Numbers Actually Say About the Welding Career Outlook
The BLS projects every year through 2034. Most of those aren’t new positions created by a booming economy. They exist because experienced welders are retiring, changing careers, or leaving the trade, and there aren’t enough trained replacements ready to step in.
The AWS puts the scale of that gap in sharper terms. will be needed by 2029, with 80,000 jobs to fill annually between 2025 and 2029. Those numbers reflect a field where demand is structural, not cyclical. Welding isn’t surging because of a single industry or government program. It’s in demand because it underpins nearly every sector of the U.S. economy, and the people who’ve been doing it longest are heading for retirement at the same time.
| Metric | Figure |
| Projected annual openings (BLS, 2024–2034) | 45,600 |
| Welding professionals needed by 2029 (AWS) | 320,500 |
| Annual jobs to fill 2025–2029 (AWS) | 80,000 |
| Current welding workforce over age 55 (AWS) | 21% |
| Current welding workforce under age 25 (AWS) | 9.4% |
The takeaway isn’t that welding is on fire. It’s that fewer people are training for it than the market needs, and that imbalance consistently favors the people who do train.
Why the Welding Workforce Gap Is Getting Wider
The shortage isn’t something the industry is bracing for. It’s already here. Two things are happening at once: experienced welders are exiting faster than they can be replaced, and the industries that depend on them aren’t slowing down.
An Aging Workforce Leaving Behind Real Openings
Retirement waves in skilled trades don’t work the way they do in office jobs. When an accountant retires, the institutional knowledge lives somewhere in a system. When a welder with 30 years on the floor walks out, that institutional knowledge leaves with them. Employers have to replace the person and the skill level, and that takes time.
With approaching retirement age and only 9.4% of the current workforce under 25, the replacement pipeline is thin. Young welders entering the trade right now aren’t just filling entry-level roles. In many shops and facilities, they’re moving into mid-level positions faster than they would have a decade ago simply because the people ahead of them aren’t there anymore.
Industries That Keep Generating Demand
Welding isn’t concentrated in one sector. The openings exist across a wide range of industries, which gives trained welders unusual flexibility compared to more specialized trades.
According to the, 61% of welders work in manufacturing, followed by specialty trade contractors at 8%. The industries generating the most consistent demand include:
- Construction and infrastructure — bridges, roads, water systems, and public transit projects funded by ongoing federal investment
- Manufacturing — automotive, heavy equipment, and fabricated metal production employs the largest share of welders nationally
- Shipbuilding and maritime — a particularly strong demand driver in the Hampton Roads region, where the naval and commercial shipbuilding industry maintains a steady need for qualified maritime welders
- Energy — both traditional oil and gas pipeline work and the growing renewable energy sector, including wind turbine fabrication and solar infrastructure
- Aerospace — high-precision welding for aircraft and spacecraft components, a segment where pay tends to run above the national median
Federal infrastructure investment has reinforced demand across construction and energy in particular. Projects tied to bridge repair, clean water systems, and rail improvements are generating consistent work for welders in regions across the country, including Virginia.
What Welders Earn in 2025–2026
Pay in welding varies significantly based on specialization, experience, and geography, but the floor is higher than most people assume for a career that doesn’t require a four-year degree.
The of $51,000 for welders, cutters, solderers, and brazers as of May 2024. That’s the midpoint. Half of welders earn more.
Here’s how pay tends to break down across experience levels and specializations, based on data from the,, and:
| Career Stage | Typical Annual Earnings |
| Entry-level | $40,000–$50,000 |
| Mid-career (with certifications) | $60,000–$75,000+ |
| Pipeline / nuclear / aerospace | $90,000–$103,000+ |
| Welding engineer | $103,592 avg. (Salary.com, 2025) |
| Certified Welding Inspector (CWI) | $86,000+ |
can add $10,000 or more to annual pay. Welders working in construction and energy also commonly log 50 to 60 hours per week, and that overtime adds $10,000 to $20,000 on top of base salary for many.
The comparison to a four-year degree is worth making plainly. A welding program at a trade school takes months, not years. 91Ƭ’s tuition and fees are a fraction of what a four-year university costs, with no general education requirements eating up time and money. Graduates enter the workforce without carrying six-figure student debt, and they start by entering the workfoce sooner.
Welding Specializations Worth Knowing About
Not all welding jobs are the same, and the specialization a welder pursues has a direct impact on both earning potential and job availability. Most programs start with the four foundational processes: MIG (Metal Inert Gas), TIG (Tungsten Inert Gas), Stick, and Flux Core. A combination welding program covers all of them, which gives graduates more flexibility when entering the job market.
From that foundation, welders can move into higher-paying specializations:
- Pipeline welding is one of the highest-compensating specializations in the field. Pipeline welders work in the oil, gas, and water infrastructure sectors and frequently earn well above the national median, especially with union membership or on federally funded projects.
- Maritime and underwater welding commands premium pay in shipbuilding regions. In Hampton Roads, where naval and commercial shipbuilding is a major economic driver, demand for welders trained in marine-specific processes is consistent. Combination Maritime Welding programs prepare students specifically for this environment.
- Certified Welding Inspector (CWI) is a career advancement path rather than a specialization in process. annually and oversee weld quality on high-stakes projects in construction, manufacturing, and energy. It’s a common next step for experienced welders looking to move into oversight roles.
Robotic welding systems handle repetitive, high-volume tasks on manufacturing lines. They don’t replace the need for welders who can handle complex joints, out-of-position welds, inspection, repair, and custom fabrication. Those roles require human judgment, and that demand isn’t going away.
How to Get Started Without Spending Years in a Classroom
A four-year degree isn’t a path into welding. The skills employers commonly look for, and that certification bodies test for, come from hands-on training in actual welding processes, not from general education requirements.
Trade school programs are designed around that reality. Students spend the bulk of their time working with equipment and materials under the guidance of instructors who’ve worked in the field. 91Ƭ’s Combination Welding program covers MIG, TIG, Stick, and Flux Core welding alongside blueprint reading, metal fabrication, and safety protocols. The Combination Maritime Welding program adds the specialized processes used in shipbuilding and offshore environments.
Both programs are built around hands-on training led by industry-experienced instructors, and both are designed to move students from the classroom into the workforce in months rather than years.
Financial aid options are available for students who qualify, and 91Ƭ offers a scholarship match tool to help identify additional funding. After graduation, career services supports students in connecting with employers and navigating the job market.
The Window Is Open Now
The welding career outlook for 2025–2026 isn’t a story about explosive growth. It’s a story about consistent, structural demand running into a shrinking labor supply. It’s about forty-five thousand openings per year, a workforce that’s aging out faster than it’s being replaced, and wages that are growing for welders who specialize and certify.
The people positioned to benefit most are the ones who get trained now, before the gap closes.
If you’re trying to figure out whether the trades are the right fit, to get a personalized breakdown of your strengths and where they align. Or get in touch to talk through programs, timing, and next steps.