Commercial painting recruiters serving Cleveland.
Healthcare-grade coatings - antimicrobial, low-VOC, infection-control-compliant - for the Clinic's active construction pipeline. Conventional commercial repaint demand is steady citywide.
One of the largest healthcare capital projects in Ohio.
Metro pay for every role we recruit is in the table below. What the hub does name: the Cleveland Clinic Neurological Institute as the driver of healthcare-grade coatings demand.
We recruit across the full org chart for commercial painting contractors in Cleveland against that documented context.
A hospital tower completing this year.
One named driver, at hospital-grade scale.
-
One of the largest single healthcare capital projects in Ohio - the named driver behind antimicrobial, low-VOC, infection-control-compliant coatings.
What commercial painting roles pay in Cleveland.
In the Cleveland metro, BLS puts the median for painters, construction and maintenance at $49,590 a year, in line with the $49,400 national median. Among the 112 metros BLS publishes for this occupation, Cleveland ranks 42nd on pay. The range runs from $37,460 at the 10th percentile to $75,700 at the 90th, so experience is priced well above the middle of the market. Of the other field roles, industrial coatings sprayer pays the most locally, at a $50,210 median. BLS does not publish Cleveland pay for painter helper, which it withholds where a metro's sample is too small to be reliable. National benchmarks by role are in the 2026 Commercial Painting Salary Guide.
| Role | Cleveland median | Typical range | National median | vs. national | Employed locally |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Commercial PainterPainters, Construction and Maintenance (47-2141) | $49,590 | $37,460–$75,700 | $49,400 | 0% | 1,110 |
| Painter HelperHelpers--Painters, Paperhangers, Plasterers, and Stucco Masons (47-3014) | – | – | $40,470 | – | – |
| Industrial Coatings SprayerCoating, Painting, and Spraying Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders (51-9124) | $50,210 | $37,380–$62,710 | $48,250 | +4% | 1,850 |
| Painting ForemanFirst-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers (47-1011) | $80,610 | $58,220–$106,340 | $79,920 | +1% | – |
| EstimatorCost Estimators (13-1051) | $78,120 | $50,350–$128,440 | $78,740 | −1% | – |
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, Cleveland metro. Range is 10th to 90th percentile. Headcount is shown for field occupations only; management, estimating and supervisory codes are counted across every industry in the metro.
What candidates expect. What credentials matter. What kills offers.
We don't tell prospective clients who their competitors are hiring - that's a discipline our clients value, and we'll honor it on a call. What we will share publicly: how Cleveland commercial painting hiring actually plays out in 2026.
Why we name the Neurological Institute specifically
The metro's own data ties healthcare-grade coatings directly to the Clinic's active construction pipeline, and the Neurological Institute is the largest single project in that pipeline.
Why antimicrobial and low-VOC systems are the credential that matters here
The hub is explicit: this is infection-control-compliant coatings work - a specific, verifiable product and application knowledge base most standard painters don't carry.
What this means for sourcing
We source against verified healthcare-grade, antimicrobial/low-VOC coatings experience for the Clinic-adjacent roles, and standard commercial experience for citywide repaint work.
Realistic timelines
Standard commercial painting roles: 4-6 weeks intake to signed offer. Healthcare-grade certified specialty roles run longer given the smaller qualified pool. First slate of vetted candidates within 48 hours regardless.
The commercial painting positions we fill, most often.
Across all Cleveland commercial painting clients, these are the highest-volume roles we've recruited for in the last 24 months.
- Healthcare-grade coatings applicator (antimicrobial/low-VOC)
- Infection-control-compliant coatings applicator
- Commercial painter
- Commercial painting project manager
For the broader picture across every commercial trade in Cleveland, see the Cleveland metro overview. To learn more about commercial painting generally (across all 100+ markets we serve), see our Commercial Painting industry page.
How we recruit commercial painting in Cleveland, plainly.
Same approach we use in every market - but tuned for what works in Cleveland's commercial painting segment specifically:
- Same-day intake call. We get the role, the project context, the budget, your dealbreakers. For Cleveland painting work, we also confirm whether healthcare-grade/infection-control experience is required.
- Candidate sourcing within 48 hours. We pull from our existing Cleveland commercial painting candidate network, filtered for verified antimicrobial/low-VOC coatings experience where relevant.
- Vetted short list (week one to several weeks). Three to five candidates. We verify real coatings history rather than a line on a resume.
- Offer and close. Standard roles close in 4-6 weeks; healthcare-grade certified specialty roles can run longer. We help with offer math against Cleveland's documented general context.
Cleveland runs 26% fewer commercial painting workers per job than the country as a whole — well below the national concentration. Fewer per job means the people you want are already working, and usually for someone who would rather keep them.
Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 , Painters, Construction and Maintenance. Metro-wide figures for the base occupation; the wage table above is role-specific and commercial.
How Cleveland's commercial painting market compares
In 2023 the Cleveland metro had 50 nonresidential painting contractors (counted by business location). BLS publishes that count but withholds headcount and pay here, which it does when a category is small enough that the figures could identify individual employers. The number of these employers rose 8.7%, more firms competing for the same crews. That works out to 2.4 per 100,000 residents against 2.0 nationally, a crowded field where experienced people get approached often.
Among the 100 metros we cover with published BLS figures, Cleveland ranks 38th for headcount, 39th for median pay and 68th for concentration for painters, construction and maintenance.
| Metro | Employed | Median pay | Concentration | Commercial employers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cleveland | 1,110 | $49,590 | 0.74 | 50 |
| Columbus | 980 | $51,810 | 0.61 | 36 |
| Cincinnati | 890 | $50,170 | 0.56 | 33 |
| Akron | 460 | $57,560 | 0.99 | 17 |
| Dayton | 300 | $47,310 | 0.56 | 9 |
BLS OEWS occupation figures and QCEW business-location counts; a dash means not published.
What this means for hiring:For commercial painting employers in Cleveland, the local pool is thinner than most, so plan on recruiting some roles in from outside the metro.
Sources: BLS QCEW 2023 annual averages and BLS OEWS May 2025, Cleveland metro. Employers are counted by business location.
How Cleveland's commercial painting market has changed since 2018.
Cleveland lost nonresidential painting contractors between 2018 and 2023, from 51 business locations to 50 (down 2%), close to the 4% national change. Headcount and pay for those firms are withheld in Cleveland, so the occupation figures above are the better guide to what hiring costs.
| Measure | 2018 | 2023 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nonresidential painting contractors: business locations | 51 | 50 | −2% |
| Nonresidential painting contractors: employment | 516 | – | – |
| Nonresidential painting contractors: average annual pay | $58,139 | – | – |
BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, private employers, annual averages. A dash means BLS did not publish the figure.
Frequently asked — commercial painting hiring in Cleveland.
What is Cleveland's named healthcare coatings demand center?
The Cleveland Clinic Neurological Institute - a $1.1B, 1M sq ft facility completing Q4 2026 - named directly in the metro's own data as the largest single healthcare capital project driving antimicrobial, low-VOC coatings demand.
Why does infection-control-compliant experience matter for painting roles in Cleveland?
The metro's own data names it directly: this is healthcare-grade coatings work - antimicrobial, low-VOC, infection-control-compliant systems tied to the Clinic's active construction pipeline.
What do painters, construction and maintenance earn in Cleveland?
BLS puts the Cleveland median for painters, construction and maintenance at $49,590 a year, about the same as the $49,400 national median. That ranks 42nd of 112 metros with published figures, in the middle of the pack. Most of the market sits between $37,460 and $75,700, a 2.0x gap and a moderate spread, so a few thousand dollars over the median buys real experience. Within Ohio, Akron pays more, at $57,560.
Is it hard to hire painters, construction and maintenance in Cleveland?
Yes. Cleveland has 26% fewer painters, construction and maintenance per job than the country as a whole, roughly 1,110 in the metro, so most of the people worth hiring are already employed.
Which commercial painting roles pay the most in Cleveland?
Of the roles we recruit for, Painting Foreman pays the most in Cleveland, a $80,610 median (BLS measures that occupation across all industries in the metro). Among field roles the top earner is Industrial Coatings Sprayer at $50,210, 38% below it. Commercial Painter is the lowest-paid field role at $49,590. Relative to national pay, Industrial Coatings Sprayer is the strongest-paying role here (4% above).
How many nonresidential painting contractors operate in Cleveland?
BLS counted 50 nonresidential painting contractors in Cleveland in 2023. That is roughly where the count stood in 2018 (51). BLS withholds their combined headcount and pay here, which it does when a category is small enough that the figures could identify individual employers.
Which nearby metros compete with Cleveland for painters, construction and maintenance?
The closest metros we cover with published figures are Akron (30 miles, about 460, $57,560 median), Detroit (90 miles, about 1,920, $56,330 median) and Pittsburgh (115 miles, about 1,260, $49,490 median). Detroit has the larger pool, so it is the first place to look for senior people willing to move. Akron pays 16% more, which is where Cleveland employers tend to lose people.
Hiring commercial painting talent in Cleveland?
Tell us the role. We'll tell you timeline and where we'd source the candidate - in under 30 minutes.