← All careers

Skilled Trades

Insulation Workers, Floor, Ceiling, and Wall

Line and cover structures with insulating materials. May work with batt, roll, or blown insulation materials.

Median salary (BLS)

$49,120

10th–90th percentile (BLS)

$37k – $78k

Job outlook

+4% (faster than average)

AI exposure

Plan a path to Insulation Workers, Floor, Ceiling, and Wall

Qualification costsStack incomeBest cities/statesSchool ROIJob-posting fitTailored resume

Education

Typical entry: No degree required

Plan my path to this →

How to qualify

EstimateLicense required

Cost to qualify

$100–$2,600

Time to qualify

3.1 yr

Renewal

$50/yr

  1. 1

    Registered apprenticeship (paid)

    Experience

    Earn-while-you-learn training — apprentices are paid during the program; fees are tools/books, not tuition.

    $0–$2,000 · 36 months · varies by state source

  2. 2

    Journeyman exam & state/local license

    License

    Most states and municipalities test and license journeyman-level trades workers.

    $100–$600 · 1 months · varies by state · renews every 2 yr source

Estimated typical U.S. route for "Insulation Workers, Floor, Ceiling, and Wall" — built from BLS education requirements and College Board 2024–25 average published prices (public, in-state tuition + fees + books). Not yet verified against a specific state's licensing rules — confirm with your state licensing board or program.

Typical progression

  1. Junior Insulation Workers, Floor, Ceiling, and Wall

    Entry / Junior

    $37,030

    ~2 yrs to advance

  2. Insulation Workers, Floor, Ceiling, and Wall

    Established

    $49,120

    ~3 yrs to advance

  3. Senior Insulation Workers, Floor, Ceiling, and Wall

    Senior

    $63,655

Key skills

A typical day

  • •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.

Fields of study

Any field

Top colleges for Skilled Trades

Explore all

Reputation-based selection; stats shown are outcome data per school.