An estimator draws up an assessment of the overall expenses a project would require, taking every possible aspect into consideration. Material costs, labor hours, expenses of equipment, production venue, or transportation all go into the mix. After collecting information and analyzing metrics and customer specifications, the estimator will present findings and propose the final budget of the project to the management.
Estimators generally work for the construction business. They need to be able to read blueprints, plan ahead, and take notice of every foreseeable occurrence that might take money or take time during the implementation of the project. A good estimator is well aware that the devil is in the details, and is able to accurately communicate with everyone involved in the process.
Along with the growing construction business, the demand for estimators is expected to steadily grow over the coming years. Average annual salaries fall between $61,589 and $75,304, depending on your education, certificates, and years of experience on the job.
Estimator Overview
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There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being an estimator. For example, did you know that they make an average of $29.05 an hour? That's $60,432 a year!
Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 9% and produce 18,700 job opportunities across the U.S.
What Does an Estimator Do
There are certain skills that many estimators have in order to accomplish their responsibilities. By taking a look through resumes, we were able to narrow down the most common skills for a person in this position. We discovered that a lot of resumes listed analytical skills, communication skills and detail oriented.
When it comes to the most important skills required to be an estimator, we found that a lot of resumes listed 17.8% of estimators included customer service, while 7.5% of resumes included project management, and 6.1% of resumes included cost estimates. Hard skills like these are helpful to have when it comes to performing essential job responsibilities.
When it comes to searching for a job, many search for a key term or phrase. Instead, it might be more helpful to search by industry, as you might be missing jobs that you never thought about in industries that you didn't even think offered positions related to the estimator job title. But what industry to start with? Most estimators actually find jobs in the construction and manufacturing industries.
How To Become an Estimator
If you're interested in becoming an estimator, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We've determined that 44.8% of estimators have a bachelor's degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 8.1% of estimators have master's degrees. Even though most estimators have a college degree, it's possible to become one with only a high school degree or GED.
Choosing the right major is always an important step when researching how to become an estimator. When we researched the most common majors for an estimator, we found that they most commonly earn bachelor's degree degrees or associate degree degrees. Other degrees that we often see on estimator resumes include high school diploma degrees or master's degree degrees.
You may find that experience in other jobs will help you become an estimator. In fact, many estimator jobs require experience in a role such as estimator project manager. Meanwhile, many estimators also have previous career experience in roles such as project manager or owner.
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Estimator Career Paths
In addition to switching up your job search, it might prove helpful to look at a career path for your specific job. Now, what's a career path you ask? Well, it's practically a map that shows how you might advance from one job title to another. Our career paths are especially detailed with salary changes. So, for example, if you started out with the role of estimator project manager you might progress to a role such as project manager eventually. Later on in your career, you could end up with the title director of construction.
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Tell us your goals and we'll match you with the rights job to get there.
Average Salary for an Estimator
Best Paying Cities
Recently Added Salaries
Job TitleCompany  | Company | Start Date | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|
Randstad Civil Structural Architectural Estimator Civil Structural Architectural Estimator | Randstad Randstad | 01/30/2021 01/30/2021 | $85,00001/30/2021 $85,000 |
Randstad Estimator Estimator | Randstad Randstad | 01/28/2021 01/28/2021 | $40,00001/28/2021 $40,000 |
RK Mechanical Piping Estimator Piping Estimator | RK Mechanical RK Mechanical | 01/27/2021 01/27/2021 | $80,00001/27/2021 $80,000 |
Molly Maid, LLC Sales Estimator | Molly Maid of Temecula Valley Sales Estimator | Molly Maid of Temecula Valley | Molly Maid, LLC Molly Maid, LLC | 01/27/2021 01/27/2021 | $40,00001/27/2021 $40,000 |
Randstad Lead Estimator Lead Estimator | Randstad Randstad | 01/26/2021 01/26/2021 | $85,00001/26/2021 $85,000 |
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Estimator Resumes
Designing and figuring out what to include on your resume can be tough, not to mention time-consuming. That's why we put together a guide that is designed to help you craft the perfect resume for becoming an Estimator. If you're needing extra inspiration, take a look through our selection of templates that are specific to your job.
Learn How To Write an Estimator Resume
At Zippia, we went through countless Estimator resumes and compiled some information about how best to optimize them. Here are some suggestions based on what we found, divided by the individual sections of the resume itself.
View Detailed InformationTop Colleges for Estimators
1. California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo
San Luis Obispo, CA • Public
2. New York University
New York, NY • Private
3. University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA • Private
4. Northwestern University
Evanston, IL • Private
5. University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA • Private
6. University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor, MI • Public
7. Stanford University
Stanford, CA • Private
8. Lehigh University
Bethlehem, PA • Private
9. Pennsylvania State University
University Park, PA • Public
10. Worcester Polytechnic Institute
Worcester, MA • Private
Top Skills For an Estimator
The skills section on your resume can be almost as important as the experience section, so you want it to be an accurate portrayal of what you can do. Luckily, we've found all of the skills you'll need so even if you don't have these skills yet, you know what you need to work on. Out of all the resumes we looked through, 17.8% of estimators listed customer service on their resume, but soft skills such as analytical skills and communication skills are important as well.
- Customer Service, 17.8%
- Project Management, 7.5%
- Cost Estimates, 6.1%
- Construction Projects, 5.0%
- Repair Process, 4.3%
- Other Skills, 59.3% See All Estimator Skills
Best States For an Estimator
Some places are better than others when it comes to starting a career as an estimator. The best states for people in this position are Vermont, Mississippi, Washington, and Hawaii. Estimators make the most in Vermont with an average salary of $75,233. Whereas in Mississippi and Washington, they would average $72,934 and $71,813, respectively. While estimators would only make an average of $69,635 in Hawaii, you would still make more there than in the rest of the country. We determined these as the best states based on job availability and pay. By finding the median salary, cost of living, and using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Location Quotient, we narrowed down our list of states to these four.
1. District of Columbia
$74,581
Avg. Salary
2. Washington
$71,813
Avg. Salary
3. Colorado
$64,529
Avg. Salary
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