--- title: "Trades You Can Train For: Pay, Training Time, How to Start | ShapeMyCareer" description: "Compare nine trades side by side: what each pays, how people learn it, how long it takes and what the work is really like. Free school matching." url: https://shapemycareer.com/trades/ updated: 2026-10-08 site: ShapeMyCareer --- All trades # Trades you can train for Nine trades, side by side. What each pays, how people get in, and what the work is really like. Compare · Pick · Then we match you Some trades pay you to learn. Some start with a few months of school. Some mean being home every night and some don't. There's no best one, only the one that fits your life. Start with how you'd like to learn, then read the pages for the trades that sound right. - Four trades are mostly learned through paid apprenticeships: electrician, plumbing, pipefitter and ironworker. - Others start with school: HVAC, welding, medical assistant, auto and diesel. Truck driving starts with school and a CDL. - Not sure? Pick "Not sure yet" on the form and talk to schools about a few. Pick a tag ## Nine trades. Read the tag before you buy. Each page says what the work is really like, how people get in, what it pays and what it costs to start. The pay is the middle for people already in the job, not a promise of a first-year paycheck. [ ### Electrician $63,190median pay a year, BLS OEWS May 2025 Learn**Paid apprenticeship** Time**4 to 5 years** See this trade ](https://shapemycareer.com/trades/electrician/)[ ### Plumbing $63,800median, plumbers, pipefitters, steamfitters Learn**Paid apprenticeship** Time**4 to 5 years** See this trade ](https://shapemycareer.com/trades/plumbing/)[ ### Pipefitter $63,800same BLS group as plumbers Learn**Paid apprenticeship** Time**About 5 years** See this trade ](https://shapemycareer.com/trades/pipefitter/)[ ### HVAC $61,010median pay a year, BLS OEWS May 2025 Learn**School, then on the job** Time**6 months to 2 years** See this trade ](https://shapemycareer.com/trades/hvac/)[ ### Ironworker $62,780median pay a year, BLS OEWS May 2025 Learn**Paid apprenticeship** Time**3 to 4 years** See this trade ](https://shapemycareer.com/trades/ironworker/)[ ### Welding $53,750median pay a year, BLS OEWS May 2025 Learn**Program, then on the job** Needs**Diploma or GED** See this trade ](https://shapemycareer.com/trades/welding/)[ ### Truck driving $58,640median pay a year, BLS OEWS May 2025 Learn**School, CDL, mentor** Needs**CDL** See this trade ](https://shapemycareer.com/trades/truck-driving/)[ ### Medical assistant $45,690median pay a year, BLS OEWS May 2025 Learn**Certificate or associate's** Time**About 1 to 2 years** See this trade ](https://shapemycareer.com/trades/medical-assistant/)[ ### Auto and diesel $50,620auto; diesel is $61,770 Learn**School or on the job** Hiring**Dealers, fleets, shops** See this trade ](https://shapemycareer.com/trades/auto-diesel/)[ ### Welding certifications Guidewhat the letters mean Covers**AWS, 6G pipe, D1.1** Read time**A few minutes** Read the guide ](https://shapemycareer.com/trades/welding/certifications/)[ ### What trades pay Side by sidenine trades, one table Includes**Raise calculator** Source**BLS OEWS, May 2025** See the numbers ](https://shapemycareer.com/pay/)[ ### Paying for it Start heregrants, aid, paid training Covers**Pell, GI Bill, WIOA** Read time**A few minutes** See how ](https://shapemycareer.com/paying-for-it/) Pay is the national median (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS, May 2025). Half the people in each job earn more and half earn less. Starting pay is lower, and your area may pay more or less. In short There are nine trades on this site, and they fall into three groups: trades you mostly learn through a paid apprenticeship (electrician, plumbing, pipefitter, ironworker), trades that start with school (HVAC, welding, medical assistant, auto and diesel), and truck driving, which starts with a short school program and a commercial driver's license. Middle pay ranges from about $45,690 to about $63,800 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025). [Fill out the form](#tr-form) and we'll match you with schools near you. **Sources checked October 8, 2026** Pay and job facts from the [U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/) (pay is the May 2025 median from the BLS OEWS program). Each trade page lists its own sources. **On this page** 1. [ Start with how you want to learn](#tr-how) 2. [Questions to ask yourself](#tr-ask) 3. [Who runs their own shop](#tr-own) 4. [Questions about picking a trade](#tr-faq) ## Start with how you want to learn Path 1 ### Paid apprenticeship: earn while you learn Electrician, plumbing, pipefitter and ironworker are mostly learned this way. You work for a contractor, get paid, and take classes. It takes three to five years to finish. [Apprenticeship Finder](https://www.apprenticeship.gov/apprenticeship-job-finder) lists openings. ElectricianPlumbingPipefitterIronworker Path 2 ### School first, then on the job HVAC, welding, medical assistant, and auto and diesel usually start with a certificate or associate's program, then more learning on the job. Programs run from months to about two years depending on the trade and the school. HVACWeldingMedical assistantAuto and diesel Path 3 ### Short course, then a license: truck driving Truck driving starts with entry-level driver training and a commercial driver's license (CDL), then several weeks with a mentor driver. It's the quickest road here, and long-haul work can mean long stretches away from home. Truck driving ### Don't see yours? Not sure yet? Pick "Not sure yet" on the clipboard. Schools that call can tell you about a few trades. [Find training near me](#tr-form) ## Questions to ask yourself Pay matters, but it won't tell you whether you'll like Tuesday. Try these. - **Inside or outside?** Medical assistants work in clinics. Ironworkers work outdoors, often in the weather. HVAC technicians do both, and often in cramped spaces. - **Home every night?** Plumbers and HVAC technicians go out on service calls and come home. Electricians travel to different job sites. Long-haul truck drivers can be gone for days or weeks. - **Heights?** Ironwork can mean working at great heights. Electricians sometimes do too. - **How fast do you need a paycheck?** An apprentice is paid from the start, but it's a long road to full pay. A school program costs money up front and gets you started sooner in some trades. - **People or machines?** Medical assistants work with patients, and HVAC technicians work with customers. Diesel technicians talk to customers too, but spend more time with engines. - **How do you feel about risk?** BLS says truck drivers, HVAC technicians and auto technicians have some of the highest rates of injury and illness of any jobs, and ironwork and electrical work carry serious hazards. Training and safety gear are built around that. ## Who runs their own shop Many people picture themselves working for themselves someday. Here's how common that is in each trade, from BLS. | Trade | Share who are self-employed | Note | |---|---|---| | **Reinforcing ironworkers (rebar)** | 28% | About 19,400 jobs in all | | **Auto technicians** | 14% | | | **Electricians** | 8% | Often in residential work | | **Plumbers, pipefitters, steamfitters** | 8% | | | **Truck drivers** | 7% | Owner-operators buy or lease their trucks | | **Welders** | 6% | | | **HVAC technicians** | 5% | | Share of workers who were self-employed, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2024 employment. Most people in every trade work for someone else. ## Questions about picking a trade ### Which trade pays the most? At the middle, plumbers, pipefitters and steamfitters ($63,800), electricians ($63,190), ironworkers ($62,780), diesel technicians ($61,770) and HVAC technicians ($61,010) are clustered together. The [pay page](https://shapemycareer.com/pay/) puts all nine side by side. The spread inside each trade matters as much as the middle. ### Which trade is the quickest to start? Truck driving, if you count only school and a CDL. BLS says school programs run 3 to 6 months. Apprenticeships take years but pay you the whole way. ### What if my trade isn't here? Pick "Not sure yet" on the form and tell the school what you're after. Not every trade has a page yet. ### Do I need a degree? No college degree for any trade on this page. Most want a high school diploma or equivalent. If you don't have one, [start here](https://shapemycareer.com/ged/). ## Keep looking - [What trades pay](https://shapemycareer.com/pay/) - [Paying for training](https://shapemycareer.com/paying-for-it/) - [How it works](https://shapemycareer.com/how-it-works/) - [Getting your GED](https://shapemycareer.com/ged/) - [Schools by city](https://shapemycareer.com/schools/) --- Canonical page: https://shapemycareer.com/trades/