LED & Solar recruiters serving Columbus.
BLS counts 238 business locations of nonresidential electrical contractors across the metro. Below: local pay for every role we staff, the state licensing rules that apply and the nearby markets competing for the same people.
Positions we recruit for in Columbus.
BLS counts about 7,590 people working in the occupations behind these roles across the Columbus metro, the largest group being electricians (about 7,210). Local headcount and pay for each role are below; role descriptions are on the LED & Solar hub.
Solar PV Installer
Columbus: BLS does not publish a local figure for this occupation.
NABCEP-Certified Solar Technician
Commercial LED Retrofit Electrician
Columbus: 7,210 employed · $64,700 median, 48th-highest of 112 metros
Solar Electrician
Solar Project Manager
O*NET 47-1011.03 - Solar Energy Installation Managers, a Bright Outlook occupation; wage data rolls up to the parent 47-1011 group
Solar Estimator/Designer
Columbus: 1,570 employed · $79,990 median, 38th-highest of 111 metros
Energy Auditor/Efficiency Consultant
O*NET 47-4011.01 - Energy Auditors; building energy assessments that often lead into LED retrofit and solar scoping
Solar O&M Technician
Electrical Foreman (LED/Solar specialty)
Columbus: 5,420 employed · $82,360 median, 36th-highest of 112 metros
Low-Voltage/Controls Technician
Columbus: 380 employed · $59,430 median, 97th-highest of 107 metros
What LED & Solar roles earn in Columbus.
BLS publishes no Columbus pay for solar photovoltaic installers; nationally the median is $53,140. Electricians in Columbus earn a median $64,700, level with the $63,190 national figure, and 48th of 112 metros. Pay runs $46,090 at the tenth percentile to $94,410 at the ninetieth. The best-paid role below is electrical and electronics repairers, commercial and industrial equipment, at $59,430 against $74,090 nationally. BLS withholds Columbus pay for one occupation in the table.
| Role | Columbus median | Typical range | National median | vs. national | Employed locally |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solar PV Installer · NABCEP-Certified Solar Technician · Energy Auditor/Efficiency Consultant O*NET 47-4011.01 - Energy Auditors; building energy assessments that often lead into LED retrofit and solar scoping Solar O&M TechnicianSolar Photovoltaic Installers (47-2231) | – | – | $53,140 | – | – |
| Commercial LED Retrofit Electrician · Solar ElectricianElectricians (47-2111) | $64,700 | $46,090–$94,410 | $63,190 | +2% | 7,210 |
| Solar Project Manager O*NET 47-1011.03 - Solar Energy Installation Managers, a Bright Outlook occupation; wage data rolls up to the parent 47-1011 group Solar Estimator/DesignerCost Estimators (13-1051) | $79,990 | $49,440–$128,020 | $78,740 | +2% | 1,570 |
| Electrical Foreman (LED/Solar specialty)First-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers (47-1011) | $82,360 | $61,010–$113,610 | $79,920 | +3% | 5,420 |
| Low-Voltage/Controls TechnicianElectrical and Electronics Repairers, Commercial and Industrial Equipment (49-2094) | $59,430 | $41,060–$91,260 | $74,090 | −20% | 380 |
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, Columbus metro. Range is 10th to 90th percentile; management and office roles are metro-wide. A metro ranking counts only the metros where BLS publishes that occupation.
How Columbus's LED & solar market has changed since 2018.
The number of nonresidential electrical contractors in Columbus rose from 218 in 2018 to 238 in 2023, up 9%, ahead of the 6% national rise. Headcount at those firms went up 37%, to about 6,393 people. Average annual pay there went from $67,308 to $81,347 (+21%), in step with the 21% national increase.
| Measure | 2018 | 2023 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nonresidential electrical contractors: business locations | 218 | 238 | +9% |
| Nonresidential electrical contractors: employment | 4,667 | 6,393 | +37% |
| Nonresidential electrical contractors: average annual pay | $67,308 | $81,347 | +21% |
BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, private employers, annual averages. A dash means BLS did not publish the figure.
Free LED & Solar hiring resources.
Definitive Guide to LED & Solar · 2026 LED & Solar Salary Guide · 3-Step Interview Guide for LED & Solar
How Columbus's LED and solar market compares
| Metro | Commercial employers |
|---|---|
| Cincinnati | 261 |
| Columbus | 238 |
| Cleveland | 242 |
| Dayton | 77 |
| Akron | 77 |
BLS OEWS occupation figures and QCEW business-location counts; a dash means not published.
What this means for hiring:Local LED and solar employers in Columbus are adding headcount, which means more employers competing for the same people.
Sources: BLS QCEW 2023 annual averages and BLS OEWS May 2025, Columbus metro. Employers are counted by business location.
LED & Solar licensing in Ohio.
The board licenses commercial contractors in electrical, HVAC, hydronics, plumbing and refrigeration, so commercial electrical contracting needs a state license. Local building departments may also require it for residential work. The same state rules apply in Cincinnati, Cleveland, Dayton and Akron, so candidates licensed there can work in Columbus without re-qualifying.
Licensing authority: Ohio Construction Industry Licensing Board (Ohio Department of Commerce). Confirm current rules with the agency.
Nearby markets competing for Columbus talent.
The closest metro we cover is Dayton, about 65 miles away.
| Metro | Distance | Employed | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|
| Columbus | – | – | – |
| Dayton | 65 mi | – | – |
| Cincinnati | 99 mi | – | – |
| Akron | 110 mi | – | – |
| Cleveland | 126 mi | – | – |
| Pittsburgh | 162 mi | – | – |
BLS OEWS, May 2025; straight-line miles.
What else is competing for Columbus crews.
Not LED & solar work. These are the capital projects big enough to pull the same crews into Columbus in the months you are trying to fill a seat, each with the status its own market page reports.
- Meta "Prometheus" data centerMulti-billion, undisclosedCompleting construction in 2026
New Albany campus that will be the world's first data center requiring over 1 gigawatt of power. Massive electrical distribution and mechanical cooling scope, concentrated in a single build.
- Intel Ohio One semiconductor fab$28BUnder construction, multi-year buildout
New Albany chip fab campus - crews have logged 6.4M+ work hours, poured 200,000+ cubic yards of concrete, and installed sub-utility trenches. The single largest private capital project in Ohio history and the anchor of the region's industrial-trades demand.
- Google Central Ohio data center campuses$1.7BOngoing
Three campuses across New Albany, Columbus, and Lancaster. Sustained demand for industrial electricians and mechanical crews with data-center commissioning experience.
Showing 3 of 6 projects tracked in this metro. The Columbus market page lists them all.
What credentials matter for LED & solar, and what kills offers in Columbus.
The 4 credentials that gate the work and the 4 things that most often end an LED & solar offer are the same in every market, kept in one place: LED & Solar credentials and offer risks, each linked to the body that issues it. What is local is the licensing rule above and the pay further up this page.
Frequently asked - LED & Solar hiring in Columbus.
Which LED & solar roles pay the most in Columbus?
Of the roles we recruit for, Electrical Foreman (LED/Solar specialty) pays the most in Columbus, an $82,360 median (BLS measures that occupation across all industries in the metro). Among field roles the top earner is Commercial LED Retrofit Electrician at $64,700, 21% below it. Low-Voltage/Controls Technician is the lowest-paid field role at $59,430. Relative to national pay, Electrical Foreman (LED/Solar specialty) is the strongest-paying role here (3% above). Low-Voltage/Controls Technician trails national pay the most (20% below).
How many nonresidential electrical contractors operate in Columbus?
BLS counted 238 nonresidential electrical contractors in Columbus in 2023, employing about 6,393 people between them. Up from 218 in 2018, a 9% increase against 6% growth nationally. That averages 27 people per location. They pay an average of $81,347, 4% below the $84,633 national average for the same kind of employer. BLS counts commercial solar and LED retrofit firms under nonresidential electrical contractors.
Which nearby metros compete with Columbus for solar photovoltaic installers?
The closest metros we cover with published figures are Detroit (164 miles, about 140, $48,020 median) and Indianapolis (168 miles, about 240, $39,690 median).
Every hire from zero is a tax on your team.
238 nonresidential electrical contractors in Columbus are hiring from the same local pool. Let's get your next hire lined up first.
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