Hawaii Pays More for Construction Labour Than Any Other State, and It Is Not Close
This is a wage analysis, not a cost guide.
Five first places out of ten
We compared ten trades that appear in a typical renovation. Hawaii is the top-paying state in half of them — which is a pattern, not a coincidence.
| Trade | Hawaii median | National median | Hawaii premium |
|---|---|---|---|
| Drywall installers | $104,830 | $59,168 | +77% |
| Cement masons | $95,890 | $57,122 | +68% |
| Construction laborers | $77,110 | $49,118 | +57% |
| Electricians | $96,460 | $68,765 | +40% |
| Carpenters | $85,280 | $62,569 | +36% |
| Painters | $68,220 | $52,502 | +30% |
| Roofers | $59,580 | $55,610 | +7% |
The reason is freight and isolation
Hawaii imports nearly all of its construction material, and the price index there is the highest in the dataset. Labour has to be paid enough to live at those prices, so the wage floor is higher for every trade at once.
That is the opposite of the usual story, where one trade is scarce and gets bid up. In Hawaii the whole market moves together.
What this means for a quote
Any contractor quoting Hawaii work from a mainland rate card is guessing. The labor line should be at or above the top of the national range, and the material line should carry a freight premium we do not model.
It also means the usual advice — get three quotes and take the middle — matters more there, because the spread between a good and a bad estimate is wider when every input is expensive.
Frequently asked
Is Hawaii always the most expensive for materials too?
The price index covers goods and services broadly and Hawaii is highest on it, but we do not have state-level material pricing, so we do not put a number on the freight premium.
Does this apply to other island or remote markets?
The pattern — high prices pulling every wage up together — should apply to any isolated market. We only have data for the 51 states.
Updated October 2026