Top 11 Highest Paying Trade Jobs in 2023

In this content, we compiled some of the highest paying trade jobs in 2023. You can use this as a bearing when looking for a career to venture into.

1. Power Plant operator

Power plant operations include overseeing and maintaining electricity generating equipment. Primary duties entail cabling, calibrating equipment, installing circuit breakers, and anything else that ensures the smooth operation of the machines.

The requirements for venturing into this career are pretty simple, and an extensive understanding of the job and a high school diploma is practically all you’ll need. You can learn the rest on the job without any fuss. As long as you have a good work ethic and discipline, this career is for you.

The average salary you can earn ranges at around $99,500 per year. It seems like a lucrative venture, right?

2. Electric lineman

The famous name for the guys responsible for repairing, installing, and maintaining electric power lines and other electrical distribution equipment is power line technicians. When sourcing a career in the electric lineman field, one of the most important traits is having the guts to stand heights above the ground, you cannot fear heights in this job.

The nature of the work is kind of hazardous because you’ll be working outside in all weather conditions and at risk of either falling or electrocution from high voltage equipment. If you’re into electrical stuff, this should be amongst the top career ventures on your list.

Who wouldn’t want to earn an $85,000 salary? The beauty of this job is that you only need high-school qualifications and three years of apprenticeship in the same field.

3. Elevator mechanic

Just like other installation careers, the elevator mechanic job is easy to learn and master, it’s one of the best high paying jobs in 2023. The profession has been on the rise since the beginning of nonresidential building setups that have incorporated elevators. Certification isn’t a must, but after concluding their mandatory four-year apprenticeship, most people decide to do a short certification course.

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Even if this doesn’t work out for you, you’ll be set up pretty well. The job entails installing, repairing, maintaining, and fixing any hiccups that might turn up in the elevator system. Elevator mechanics earn about $ 79,800 or more.

Like any other career venture, it has its fair share of limitations and challenges, and for people thinking of venturing into this field, it’s important you know that though, although you might secure a full-time position, the job is quite demanding and might have you working odd hours since you are on call at all time.

In addition, the work environment is hazardous, and you’ll be at risk of sustaining burn or fall-related injuries. Also, if you have claustrophobia, this isn’t the job for you since you’ll be spending most of your time squeezed in tight places. All in all, it’s a lucrative career you should consider.

4. Construction manager

Qualifying as a construction manager is a bit more demanding and requires you to have a bachelor’s degree, a state license, and a minimum of one year of training. The job description entails primarily overseeing and supervising construction projects. For this job, you’ll need to have excellent leadership and communication skills since you’ll be delegating duties and addressing the contractors you’ll be managing.

However, the career is less hazardous, and you’ll rarely handle high-risk operations. This lucrative career venture offers appealing rewards with a salary ranging around $73000 yearly.

5. Aircraft technician

The second best thing to being a pilot might be being an aircraft technician. Especially if you’re scared of flying but love planes. You’ll need to have some formal knowledge of aeroplanes and flying manoeuvres.

In this job, you will be in charge of maintaining the plane’s good condition by servicing, fixing, and reporting any issues you find. As expected, you’ll earn a big paycheck with a salary ranging from $35,000 to $110,000 a year, which doesn’t sound like a bad trade-off for all those oil stains your uniform will be covered in.

6. Nuclear medicine technician

You might be wondering who exactly is a nuclear medicine technician. They’re people who assist caregivers and doctors by using radioactive drugs. So you can expect to find them in hospitals and clinics working hand in hand with general doctors.

It’s a highly specialized science where you must have a good educational background to be trusted since the drugs used can be highly toxic if given in the wrong doses. Besides administering drugs, a nuclear medicine technician also helps patients stay calm as they go through screening. This means that you will also be required to have good people skills in this career path.

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The working hours are hefty and can include even weekends and holidays, meaning that you must have no social life outside of work (pun intended). However, the continuous reading and insane working hours are paid off well, with a fat salary at the end of the month. So you can expect to be one of the highest-paid employees within your organization.

7. Carpenter

If you’re a fan of Do-It-Yourself projects, and somehow you can make simple pieces look stylish while still serving their purpose, maybe you should be rethinking your career path into woodworks. Especially because over time, carpenters have become high-value people in society as everyone is looking for pieces that stand out and are aesthetically pleasing. Also, you don’t need to go to a vocational school to learn the trade, even though some form of knowledge might become an added advantage.

You’ll need to be crafty with your pieces to stand out. Also, it would help if you leaned towards aesthetics, tasty and trendy pieces to have a good number of clients. Use social media platforms to market yourself and create a brand that speaks to the clientele you wish to have.

Finally, have a pleasant personality expecting that everyone one of your clientele will come in with a different attitude, and you need to know how to handle the ones who are difficult and rude.

8. Medical sonographer

With the trend in baby gender revealing where everyone wants to make a bang, I can assure you that medical photographers are swimming in money. This is because, unlike in the olden day, everyone is queueing to take a sonogram to keep up with the latest trends.

Some people even go for the maximum number one can take while pregnant, hoping to have those little moments as memories they would cherish before their baby comes into the world. So what do you need to become a medical photographer?

Firstly, you need to have great people relations skills. Cause you might need to calm a nervous patient ever so often.

Secondly, you need to have a poker face because sometimes the sonogram’s news isn’t always good.

Thirdly, you’ll need to have undergone educational training to understand how to work with the machines and interpret the information given off by the device.

9. Architectural drafters

Just as the name suggests, architectural drafters draw building features that will be used as a reference when building the real thing. You have to go to school and get at least a degree before anyone can hire you as an architectural drafter. There, you’ll specialize in the types of buildings you’ll be focusing on.

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You could be a residential or commercial architectural drafter, depending on which of the two you fancy more. You could also specialize in whichever building material you want your buildings to have. There’s a lot of glory in being an architectural drafter that you didn’t even know possible

In addition to that, the pay is as handsome and glorious as the title itself. If you can also master a few other traits like calmness, good people relations, and timelines. In the case of working hours, it’s flexible, and you also get to work in the comfort of your home if you’re a freelancer.

10. Industrial machinery mechanics

With machines taking over the world, there has been a rise in demand for machine doctors or, more formal purposes, industrial machinery mechanics. They are engineers who have specialized in repairing one or more industrial machines.

One thing you’ll notice about these people is that they have brains the size of rocks due to all the reading they had to do in school. Also, they’re keen on detail, and are problem solvers. Their duties are conducting machine maintenance on a scheduled basis, oiling and greasing machine parts mostly weekly, and attending to machines when they break down.

Most of what they do is get their hands dirty to get machines running, so you have to be willing to get dirty before you even think about considering this job. Because of the nature of their work, they are full-time workers who work onsite with other employees. So they must be able to get along with other people well. On the good side, you can easily get an annual salary of up to $65,000.

11. Electricians

Electricians usually specialize in anything wired, and they’re the people you call when you want your new house lighting installed. They’re not only capable of installing new wires but also replacing old ones just in case you bought an older house or any other infrastructure with lighting issues. Because they deal with such dangerous things, they’re required to be extra attentive to detail.

You’ll need at least a degree to learn your way around wires, and it would be in your best interest to have a fire safety certificate or at least training. At the end of the year, you can expect to be paid up to $70,000, which is neat.

So there you have it, what do you think? Will you be pursuing any of these soon? As always, I highly recommend you do further reading and research before making up your mind. With that said, have a great day and see you in the next one.