Explore national salary, projected growth, education requirements, and career opportunities across the United States.
A concise view of this occupation’s national scale, compensation, and projected demand.
National median annual wage for this occupation.
Estimated jobs currently supported nationwide.
Projected employment change through 2034.
Estimated openings created each year.
The typical education, prior experience, and on-the-job training associated with entry into this career.
Postsecondary nondegree award
None
Short-term on-the-job training
These are the highest-rated capabilities associated with success in this occupation. Scores are derived from occupational skill analysis and are measured on a 100-point scale.
Based on skills, knowledge, and work activities, these occupations are the closest match to your current career.
Explore the states and metropolitan areas offering the strongest combination of salary, employment, demand, and long-term opportunity.
Discover metro markets where compensation, hiring demand, and long-term momentum align.
Understand the salary, outlook, education, and geographic opportunities shaping this career.
Lighting technicians work in a specialized technical role that blends physical abilities, mechanical know-how, and creative thinking. Nationally, there are about 12,000 jobs in this occupation, with a median annual salary of $60,560. The work relies heavily on physical strength and stamina, fine motor skills, and mechanical skills, supported by strong problem solving, project management, and attention to detail. Creativity and innovation, along with critical and analytical thinking and some mathematics, are also important to succeed. While overall projected employment growth is negative, there are still about 1,000 annual openings, which suggests ongoing turnover and replacement needs. Opportunities vary by state and metro, with some locations offering higher salaries and opportunity scores than others. For people who enjoy hands-on technical work, leading or contributing to projects, and applying both physical and mental skills, this career can provide a focused and specialized path with clear geographic hotspots for opportunity.
Lighting technicians earn a national median annual salary of $60,560, indicating solid earning potential in this technical field. Pay varies considerably by location. Among the top states, Washington shows a median salary of $126,100, and California offers $94,070, while New York reports $78,000. Virginia and Maryland present lower listed medians of $60,340 and $49,080 respectively. At the metro level, the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA area stands out with a median salary of $105,010, followed by New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ at $87,510. Other featured metros such as San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA and San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA list median salaries of $74,000 and $70,970. These differences highlight how choosing certain states or metros can significantly affect earning potential for lighting technicians.
Lighting technicians have national employment of about 12,000 positions and face a projected employment growth rate of -4.6%. Despite this projected decline, there are an estimated 1,000 annual openings, indicating ongoing job opportunities due to turnover, retirements, or other workforce changes. All listed states and metro areas share the same -4.6% projected growth rate, so the outlook is fairly consistent geographically in terms of growth direction. For individuals considering this field, the combination of a negative growth rate with steady annual openings suggests a more competitive environment where understanding location-specific opportunity scores and salaries becomes important. Candidates who align their skills with employer needs and pay close attention to where demand and compensation are strongest can still find viable opportunities, even in a shrinking overall job market.
Location plays a major role in opportunity for lighting technicians. Among states, California has the highest employment level at 2,950 jobs and a median salary of $94,070, with a CareerGPS opportunity score of 67.38. New York also offers a relatively high median salary of $78,000 and an opportunity score of 65.78. Washington stands out for its listed median salary of $126,100, though with only 80 jobs and an opportunity score of 56.29. Virginia and Maryland present more modest salaries and employment but still appear among the top states by opportunity score. At the metro level, San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA and New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ have the highest opportunity scores, at 77.42 and 77.27 respectively, combining notable salaries with measurable employment. Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA offers both very high median pay at $105,010 and the largest metro employment count at 2,040, making it a significant center for this occupation.
The typical education requirement for lighting technicians is a postsecondary nondegree award. This means most workers complete education beyond high school without necessarily earning a full college degree. Success in this field relies on a combination of physical and cognitive skills. Key strengths include physical strength and stamina and fine motor skills, reflecting the hands-on nature of the work. Mechanical skills are also central, supported by problem solving and decision making, critical and analytical thinking, and being detail oriented. Mathematics contributes to the technical side of the role, while project management and leadership skills help technicians organize work and coordinate with others. Creativity and innovation add a valuable dimension, enabling technicians to contribute to visual and technical aspects of projects. People who possess or are willing to build this mix of technical, physical, and thinking skills, combined with targeted postsecondary training, can be well prepared to enter and progress in this occupation.
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