How To Become A Residential Carpenter: What It Is and Career Path

What is a residential carpenter and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

The average residential carpenter salary is $46,259. The most common degree is a high school diploma degree with an construction management major. It usually takes 6-12 months of experience to become a residential carpenter. Residential carpenters with a OSHA Safety Certificate certification earn more money. Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 2% and produce 20,500 job opportunities across the U.S.

ScoreResidential CarpenterUS Average

Salary

3.6

Avg. Salary $46,259

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

7.6

Growth rate 2%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

8.3

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 1.10%

Asian 1.59%

Black or African American 6.96%

Hispanic or Latino 22.25%

Unknown 4.64%

White 63.44%

Gender

female 2.24%

male 97.76%

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

7.6

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.8

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

5.3

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a residential carpenter

Explore residential carpenter education requirements

Most common residential carpenter degrees

High School Diploma

32.0 %

Bachelor's

28.0 %

Associate

28.0 %

Start to develop specific residential carpenter skills

Skills	Percentages
Roofing	15.55%
Plumbing	13.90%
Drywall Installation	7.49%
Power Saws	5.96%
Hand Tools	5.48%

Complete relevant residential carpenter training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New residential carpenters 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 residential carpenter based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real residential carpenter resumes.

Research residential carpenter duties and responsibilities

Manage complete renovations and new construction of banks for commercial construction company.
Concrete formwork in building parking structures condominiums and commercial apartment complexes.
Manage complete renovations and new construction of banks for commercial construction company.

Prepare your residential carpenter resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your residential carpenter 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 residential carpenter resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable residential carpenter resume templates

Build a professional residential carpenter 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 residential carpenter resume.