Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters build judgment and decision making, repairing and troubleshooting skills that carry over to other work. Below are 25 careers ranked by how closely their skills match, with pay from BLS May 2025. The closest match is Heating, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Mechanics and Installers (88%).
Updated October 2026 · Data: O*NET 31.0 and BLS OEWS May 2025 · How we match careers
Sorted by skill match.
| # | Career | Skill match | Median pay | Pay change | Extra education |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Heating, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Mechanics and Installers | 88% | $61,010 | −4% | None |
| 2 | Control and Valve Installers and Repairers, Except Mechanical Door | 85% | $74,340 | +17% | None |
| 3 | Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators | 82% | $78,620 | +23% | None |
| 4 | Millwrights | 80% | $65,700 | +3% | None |
| 5 | Commercial Divers | 79% | $72,990 | +14% | None |
| 6 | Maintenance and Repair Workers, General | 79% | $49,590 | −22% | None |
| 7 | Elevator and Escalator Installers and Repairers | 78% | $109,910 | +72% | None |
| 8 | Rail Car Repairers | 78% | $67,530 | +6% | None |
| 9 | Electrical Power-Line Installers and Repairers | 77% | $95,320 | +49% | None |
| 10 | Aircraft Structure, Surfaces, Rigging, and Systems Assemblers | 77% | $65,380 | +2% | None |
Compared with Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters, median $63,800. Skill match is our estimate (0–99) from O*NET 31.0 skills, knowledge, work activities and interests, adjusted for preparation and big pay drops. Pay: BLS OEWS May 2025, national median.
How important each skill is in work as plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters (O*NET importance, scale 1–5).
The gaps that show up most often across your top 10 matches.
Free and low-cost training: use the CareerOneStop training finder below.
A concrete first step, the skills to add, and the hard parts of each job, from O*NET 31.0 education, training and work context data.
88% skill match · $61,010 · −4% pay
Operations Monitoring · Equipment Maintenance · Installation
85% skill match · $74,340 · +17% pay
Equipment Maintenance · Quality Control Analysis
82% skill match · $78,620 · +23% pay
Operations Monitoring · Equipment Maintenance · Negotiation
If you want to stay close to what you do now, these roles are the nearest.
The closest matches are Heating, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Mechanics and Installers (88% skill match, median $61,010), Control and Valve Installers and Repairers, Except Mechanical Door (85% skill match, median $74,340) and Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators (82% skill match, median $78,620), based on O*NET 31.0 data and BLS May 2025 pay.
Among the 25 matches, 12 pay more than plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters at the median. The biggest increases: Elevator and Escalator Installers and Repairers (+72%, $109,910), Ship Engineers (+72%, $109,530) and Electrical Power-Line Installers and Repairers (+49%, $95,320).
25 of the 25 matches usually need no more education than you have now, based on O*NET Job Zones.
We compare the importance of skills, knowledge, work activities and interests in O*NET 31.0 for your job and every other career, then adjust for extra preparation and big pay drops. The full method is on our Methodology page.