§ 03 Trade wages
Painters in St. Louis, MO-IL
Painters in the St. Louis, MO-IL metro earned a median of $28.75 an hour in May 2025 (BLS OEWS), 21% higher than the national median of $23.75. The middle half earned $23.19 to $37.07. About 2,350 people work in this occupation here. That ranks 26 of 225 metros with a reliable estimate for this trade. These are employee wages, not what a contractor bills you per hour.
BLS OEWS May 2025 · SOC 47-2141
Painters, St. Louis, MO-IL
25th pct$23.19per hour
Median$28.75per hour
75th pct$37.07per hour
10th pct$19.44
90th pct$40.09
Mean$30.15
Workers2,350
Your multiplier: ×2.0Median wage × multiplier: $58/hr
OEWS reports what employers pay these workers per hour. A contractor’s bill also covers the business: insurance, licensing, vehicles, tools, office staff, warranty callbacks, unbilled travel time and profit. The wage is a floor for understanding a quote, never a price. You set the multiplier; we publish no typical markup because we have no citable source for one.What else is in a bill for this trade
- Prep time (scraping, patching, priming) often exceeds painting time
- EPA lead-safe certification and containment for pre-1978 homes
- Paint and supplies, sometimes billed separately
BLS OEWS May 2025 · St. Louis, MO-IL · mean RSE 3.8%Employee wages from the BLS employer survey. Not what a contractor bills.