How To Become A Commercial Plumber: What It Is and Career Path

What is a commercial plumber and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Commercial Plumbers specialize in installing, maintaining, and repairing the water supply infrastructure of commercial properties. They are in charge of welding pipes, looking over boilers, and all proper maintenance of any plumbing system.

You don't need to hold a college degree to be qualified for Commercial Plumber positions. However, many states require Commercial Plumbers operating insider their jurisdiction to be certified. Certification and licensing vary from state to state, but many of them involve passing an exam and completing a set number of hours of on-the-job training.

Commercial Plumbers in the United States earn roughly about $43,000 a year on average. That's more or less $20 an hour. However, top earners can bring in $66,000 on average a year in the right company. Employers such as Countywide Mechanical Sys, HB McClure, Cushman and Wakefield, CB Richard Ellis Real Estate Services, and Tradesmen International offer competitive, above-average salaries of $52,000, or more, to their Commercial Plumbers.

ScoreCommercial PlumberUS Average

Salary

4.3

Avg. Salary $54,423

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

7.8

Growth rate 2%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

8.3

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 1.05%

Asian 1.87%

Black or African American 9.31%

Hispanic or Latino 20.42%

Unknown 4.22%

White 63.14%

Gender

female 2.36%

male 97.64%

Age - 41

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 41

Stress level

7.8

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

7.9

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

6.6

Work life balance is good

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a commercial plumber

Explore commercial plumber education requirements

Most common commercial plumber degrees

High School Diploma

41.5 %

Associate

21.9 %

Bachelor's

15.3 %

Start to develop specific commercial plumber skills

Skills	Percentages
Plumbing	26.82%
PVC	22.31%
Cast Iron	20.74%
Building Codes	2.89%
Drainage Systems	2.64%

Complete relevant commercial plumber training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 2-4 years on post-employment, on-the-job training. New commercial plumbers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a commercial plumber based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real commercial plumber resumes.

Obtain the necessary licensing

Becoming a licensed commercial plumber usually doesn't require a college degree. However, you need to pass an exam to become a licensed commercial plumber in most of states. 33 states require commercial plumbers to have license for their work. You can see the list of states below.

State	Education	Exam	License url
Alabama	-	-	Certified Master Plumber
Maryland	Specific course required	State exam required	PLUMBER
Arkansas	-	State exam required	Journeyman Plumber
Colorado	-	State exam required	Journeyman Plumber
Connecticut	-	State exam required	Plumbing & Piping Unlimited Journeyperson

Research commercial plumber duties and responsibilities

Train and manage less experience plumbers and achieve significant improvements in their productivity.
Pipe fitting, soldering, brazing
Install copper and PVC piping and setting fixtures.
Purchase materials, work with HVAC and carpenters.

Prepare your commercial plumber resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your commercial plumber resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a commercial plumber resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable commercial plumber resume templates

Build a professional commercial plumber resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your commercial plumber resume.