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Salary Guides / Virginia
Painter Salary in Virginia
Virginia painter employee pay ranges help you assess preparation duties, coating assignments, paid hours, benefits and the full employment offer.
What Painters Earn in Virginia
Virginia construction and maintenance painter wages span $17.50–$30.44/hr, or $36,400–$63,310 a year. These employee figures cover building painting and maintenance work. They exclude premium pay and benefits. When reviewing an offer, connect the rate to your surface preparation, application and cleanup duties. Ask how the employer pays travel between jobs and handles weather interruptions on exterior assignments. Keep the written duties with the offer for later discussions.
Hourly rates by level in Virginia
What each rung of the trade is paid, before overtime and per diem.
Where do you stand?
Enter your hourly rate to see how it compares to other painters in Virginia.
What are you making?
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Use your base rate, not what you take home after overtime.
You're right around the middle
$28.00 is above roughly 46% of this market. The top quarter starts at $36.00, and the median sits at $29.00.
Calculate pay with extra credentials
Pick your level, add certifications, select shift — the estimate updates live.
1Your level
2Certifications you hold
3Shift & work type
4Overtime & per diem
An estimate, not an offer. Overtime is paid at time and a half past forty hours.
Who pays the most in Virginia
These national industry figures describe three settings for painter employment. Ask Virginia employers about the preparation, access and coating duties behind each offer.
Building Finishing Contractors
Specialist painting firms concentrate on preparation and finishes. For Virginia crew offers, discuss site changes, equipment responsibilities and paid cleanup time. Clarify whether the crew handles wallcoverings as well as painted finishes.
Residential Building Construction
Homebuilding employers coordinate painting with other trades. When reviewing Virginia offers, ask about touchups, completion deadlines and protection of finished rooms. Separate new construction duties from assignments that disturb existing painted surfaces in older housing.
Nonresidential Building Construction
Commercial building crews fit painting around access and other contractors. Ask Virginia employers whether assigned shifts include masking, equipment setup and cleanup. Discuss who supplies access equipment and how crews move it between work areas.
Which states pay painters the most
Median hourly across every state with a published guide for this trade. Cost of living is not netted out — compare take-home, not just the rate.
What each certification is worth
Sorted by payback speed.
| Certification | Rate bump | Extra / year | Cost | Payback |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| IUPAT DC 51 / FTI Painter Apprenticeship (journeyperson) | +$2.92 | $6,074 | $0 | 0 weeks |
| OSHA 30-Hour Construction | +$0.82 | $1,706 | $159 | 5 weeks |
| OSHA 10-Hour Construction | +$0.27 | $562 | $59 | 6 weeks |
| Supported Scaffold User | +$0.11 | $229 | $35 | 8 weeks |
| Virginia DPOR Lead Abatement Worker License | +$0.44 | $915 | $380 | 22 weeks |
| Aerial/Scissor Lift (MEWP) Operator | +$0.07 | $146 | $59 | 22 weeks |
What overtime actually adds
Past forty hours the rate is time and a half. Built from the rate above. At $22.82/hr.
Questions workers ask
Do I pay for the respirator my painting job requires?▾
Will I keep my pay if lead exposure takes me off the job?▾
Can I file a Virginia claim if a painting job leaves me unpaid?▾
See Open Painter Jobs in Virginia
Verified positions matching this trade and location.
Current BLS Virginia employee wages for Painters, Construction and Maintenance, SOC 47-2141; May 2025 wages exclude premium pay and benefits, contractor charges and self-employment income.
Last updated October 26, 2026. Rates are market estimates, not guarantees.