Solar Photovoltaic Installers
SOC 47-2231 · 2024-2034
Assemble, install, or maintain solar photovoltaic (PV) systems on roofs or other structures in compliance with site assessment and schematics. May include measuring, cutting, assembling, and bolting structural framing and solar modules. May perform minor electrical work such as current checks.
How the U.S. Department of Labor describes this work. Published in English only.
The job this trains for
- Typical pay in California
- $62,242per year
- Projected openings
- 9,860
- Projected change
- +42%
- Usually needs
- High school diploma or equivalent
Bright Outlook — a U.S. Department of Labor designation
Rapid Growth
The Department's own designation, made from its national projections. It is not this project's assessment and it is not California's: every other figure on this page comes from California's projection, which can point the other way and for some occupations does.
Skills this work uses most
O*NET, the U.S. Department of Labor's occupation database, rates how important each of these is to this work, and they are listed in that order, most important first. The ratings themselves are not shown, because the data carries the number without the scale it was measured on. The names are as published, in English.
- Installation
- Critical Thinking
- Monitoring
- Active Listening
- Operations Monitoring
- Quality Control Analysis
Pay by region
| Region | Typical pay in California | Projected openings |
|---|---|---|
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara MSA (San Benito and Santa Clara Counties) | $75,043 | 650 |
| San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City MD (San Francisco and San Mateo Counties) | $72,408 | 810 |
| Oakland-Fremont-Berkeley MD (Alameda and Contra Costa Counties) | $72,251 | 990 |
| Santa Cruz-Watsonville MSA (Santa Cruz County) | $69,422 | 80 |
| Modesto MSA (Stanislaus County) | $65,912 | 130 |
| Santa Rosa-Petaluma MSA (Sonoma County) | $64,018 | 250 |
| Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom MSA (El Dorado, Placer, Sacramento, and Yolo Counties) | $63,977 | 1,290 |
| Vallejo MSA (Solano County) | $63,390 | 190 |
| San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles MSA (San Luis Obispo County) | $62,721 | 150 |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario MSA (Riverside and San Bernardino Counties) | $61,897 | 1,860 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale MD (Los Angeles County) | $61,433 | 1,770 |
| San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad MSA (San Diego County) | $60,878 | 1,620 |
| Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura MSA (Ventura County) | $59,396 | 200 |
| Fresno MSA (Fresno and Madera Counties) | $58,408 | 460 |
| Chico MSA (Butte County) | $57,883 | 80 |
| Bakersfield-Delano MSA (Kern County) | $57,800 | 810 |
| San Rafael MD (Marin County) | Not reported | 70 |
Similar work
O*NET, the U.S. Department of Labor's occupation database, names these as occupations involving work similar to this one — its own reading of the job, not a grouping by code. They keep O*NET's order, and only those California publishes a projection for are shown.
| The job this trains for | Typical pay in California | Projected openings | Projected change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters | $74,803 | 48,620 | +8.6% |
| First-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers | $100,326 | 68,670 | +8% |
| Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers, All Other | $52,679 | 27,340 | +2.1% |
| Lighting Technicians | $96,703 | 2,490 | 0% |
| Power Plant Operators | $107,611 | 1,900 | -15.4% |
| Electricians | $78,223 | 86,460 | +14.9% |
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