How to Become a Pipe Welder

What Does a Pipe Welder Do?

Pipe welders join pipe and fittings, often in fixed positions where the welder moves around the joint. BLS counts them with welders, cutters, solderers, and brazers. Pipe welding is tested to codes such as API 1104 for pipelines and ASME Section IX for pressure piping, both AWS inspector endorsements. The AWS Certified Welder program tests procedures for petroleum pipelines and chemical refinery work among others.

Pipe welders do welding work on piping systems, and much of that work sits alongside the pipefitting trade. BLS describes pipefitters and steamfitters, often simply called fitters, as installing and maintaining pipes that may carry chemicals, acids and gases, mostly in manufacturing, commercial and industrial settings. Work on a pipe crew typically includes:

• Reading blueprints and following state and local codes
• Working out the materials and equipment a job needs
• Cutting, fitting and joining pipe and fittings, often with welding torches
• Inspecting and testing installed pipe systems and pipelines
• Testing pressure so a system is airtight and watertight
• Troubleshooting and repairing systems that aren't working

Industrial plant water systems are built from large steel pipe that usually takes a crew of fitters to install, BLS explains. Fitters install and repair pipe systems in power plants and the heating and cooling systems of large office buildings. Steamfitters specialize in systems that move liquids or gases at high pressure.

The welding side of the job is qualified by code. AWS lists Pipeline (API 1104) and ASME Section IX among its inspector endorsements, the codes pipe welds are commonly qualified to. Pipe is often fixed in place, so the welder moves around the joint rather than turning the work.

Where Pipe Welders Work and What the Job Is Like

BLS counts pipefitters with plumbers and steamfitters, a group in which plumbing, heating and air-conditioning contractors employed 65% of workers in 2025. Pipe work happens in factories, plants and commercial buildings wherever there are piping systems, and outdoor work in any weather may be part of it.

Fitters lift heavy materials, climb ladders and work in tight spaces. BLS lists cuts from sharp tools, burns from hot pipe and soldering equipment, and falls from ladders as common injuries. Most work full time, including nights and weekends, and many are on call for emergencies.

How to Become a Pipe Welder: Step by Step

1. 1
   Build welding fundamentals

   Complete a welding certificate or associate degree that includes pipe courses. Many college programs list pipe welding as an advanced course after plate work.

2. 2
   Qualify in pipe positions

   Employers test pipe welders on their procedures and codes, typically in fixed positions. AWS Certified Welder tests cover petroleum pipeline and refinery procedures.

3. 3
   Consider a pipefitter apprenticeship

   BLS reports most pipefitters and steamfitters learn through a 4- or 5-year apprenticeship, and that vocational schools offer the welding courses some of those apprenticeships require.

How to Become a Pipe Welder: Training and Education

There are two common routes. The first is welding school: a certificate or associate degree that includes pipe courses, followed by employer or AWS pipe procedure tests. Many college programs teach pipe welding as an advanced course after plate work.

The second is the pipefitting apprenticeship. BLS says most pipefitters and steamfitters learn through a 4- or 5-year apprenticeship with about 2,000 hours of paid on-the-job training a year plus technical instruction in safety, codes and blueprint reading, along with math, applied physics and chemistry. Unions, trade associations and businesses sponsor these programs, and vocational schools teach the welding courses some pipefitter apprenticeships require.

A high school diploma or equivalent is typically required either way. Some people start as helpers or finish a pre-apprenticeship before entering a program.

Welding school is widely available: 892 U.S. colleges and schools conferred 50,572 welding certificates and degrees in 2022–23 (IPEDS). Find welding schools by state and city or compare verified programs.

Licenses and Credentials

Some states license pipefitters and steamfitters, and some require a special license for gas lines. Licensing usually means an exam, documented work experience or both. Contact your state's licensing board for the rules where you'll work.

Pipe Welder Certification

AWS Certified Welder tests include procedures for petroleum pipelines and chemical refinery work, which makes the program a portable way to document pipe skills. You test at an AWS Accredited Test Facility, weld to the procedure, and an AWS Certified Welding Inspector inspects the result. There are no prerequisite courses.

Employers still qualify pipe welders on their own procedures and codes before putting them on a job, so treat the AWS credential as proof you can pass a pipe test, not as a substitute for the employer's.

Skills That Matter in This Job

Mechanical skill

Choosing among many tools to assemble, maintain and repair pipe systems.

Dexterity

Moving parts and tools precisely, often in tight spaces.

Physical strength

Lifting and moving heavy pipe and equipment.

Communication

Journey-level fitters frequently direct apprentices and helpers.

Where the Career Leads

BLS notes journey-level fitters who finish an apprenticeship and become licensed can advance to supervisor or project manager, and some start their own contracting business. Pipe welders with code experience can also move toward inspection.

Pipe Welder Salary and Job Outlook

Half of welders, cutters, solderers, and brazers earned more than $53,750 in May 2025, about $25.84 an hour. The middle half earned between $46,790 and $63,010, across 416,210 jobs in the wage survey. BLS projects employment to change +2.4% from 2025 to 2035, slower than the 3.5% projected for all occupations, with about 40,300 openings a year as workers retire or change jobs.

National annual wages for welders, cutters, solderers, and brazers (SOC 51-4121). Sources: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025; BLS Employment Projections 2025–35.

Pipe Welder Salary by State

District of Columbia pays plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters the most, a median of $101,020, and Puerto Rico the least, $31,620. The top 10% earn the most in Oregon (more than $147,100).

Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters, SOC 47-2152, May 2025. Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, state estimates. States where BLS suppressed the median are omitted; blank cells were suppressed.

Best-Paying Metro Areas: San Jose–Sunnyvale–Santa Clara Leads

Among metro areas with at least 100 plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters jobs, San Jose–Sunnyvale–Santa Clara (CA) has the highest median pay, $107,560 a year.

Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters, SOC 47-2152. Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, metropolitan area estimates, May 2025.

Is Pipe Welder a Good Career?

Pipe Welder vs. Related Welding Careers

Related Welding Careers

Pipe Welder FAQ

Explore Welding Schools and Careers