Steel welder vs ship fitter

The differences between steel welders and ship fitters can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a steel welder and a ship fitter. Additionally, a ship fitter has an average salary of $45,247, which is higher than the $36,139 average annual salary of a steel welder.

The top three skills for a steel welder include MIG, arc welding and aluminum. The most important skills for a ship fitter are hand tools, tack-weld, and tack welding.

Steel welder vs ship fitter overview

	Steel Welder	Ship Fitter
Yearly salary	$36,139	$45,247
Hourly rate	$17.37	$21.75
Growth rate	2%	2%
Number of jobs	7,242	9,742
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 45%	High School Diploma, 40%
Average age	40	40
Years of experience	4	4

Steel welder vs ship fitter salary

Steel welders and ship fitters have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Steel Welder	Ship Fitter
Average salary	$36,139	$45,247
Salary range	Between $28,000 And $46,000	Between $31,000 And $64,000
Highest paying City	Bremerton, WA	Mount Laurel, NJ
Highest paying state	Wyoming	New Jersey
Best paying company	GPAC	BWX Technologies
Best paying industry	Automotive	Technology

Differences between steel welder and ship fitter education

There are a few differences between a steel welder and a ship fitter in terms of educational background:

	Steel Welder	Ship Fitter
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 45%	High School Diploma, 40%
Most common major	Precision Metal Working	Business
Most common college	-	-

Steel welder vs ship fitter demographics

Here are the differences between steel welders' and ship fitters' demographics:

	Steel Welder	Ship Fitter
Average age	40	40
Gender ratio	Male, 96.0% Female, 4.0%	Male, 87.7% Female, 12.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.3% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 17.9% Asian, 2.9% White, 64.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.7%	Black or African American, 10.4% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 17.7% Asian, 2.7% White, 63.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.6%
LGBT Percentage	3%	3%

Differences between steel welder and ship fitter duties and responsibilities

Steel welder example responsibilities.

Manage and run production parts through the brake.
Gas cutting, brazing, layout work, blueprint reading.
Operate brake press, drill press, and punch press in order to efficiently bend steel & aluminum.
Perform MIG and stick welds and erecting structural steel utilize for building skeletons including specific/ detail measurements for accuracy.
Blue print reading for all WPS orders.

Ship fitter example responsibilities.

Achieve x-ray certification on aluminum using MIG process.
Lead and assist in executing pipefitting/welding of steel, copper, PVC, and flange piping.
Cut materials with various tools including torches, reciprocating saws, grinders and plasma cutters to ensure exact measurements.
Work includes using torches, grinders and other power tools to cut material to size and prep to weld and paint.
Assemble hoisting and rigging equipment.
Repair and re-fit oil rig platforms.

Steel welder vs ship fitter skills

Common steel welder skills

MIG, 15%
Arc Welding, 10%
Aluminum, 9%
GMAW, 6%
FCAW, 6%
Hand Tools, 6%

Common ship fitter skills

Hand Tools, 14%
Tack-Weld, 10%
Tack Welding, 7%
Tape Measure, 6%
Cranes, 6%
Safety Rules, 5%