Insulation recruiters serving Tampa.
BLS counts 41 business locations of nonresidential drywall and insulation 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 Tampa.
BLS counts about 2,440 people working in the occupations behind these roles across the Tampa metro, the largest group being construction and building inspectors (about 1,820). Local headcount and pay for each role are below; role descriptions are on the Insulation hub.
Mechanical Insulator (Pipe/Duct/Boiler)
Tampa: BLS does not publish a local figure for this occupation.
Building Envelope Insulation Installer
Tampa: BLS does not publish a local figure for this occupation.
Spray Foam Technician
Fireproofing / Firestop Technician
Insulation Foreman / Crew Lead
Tampa: 9,840 employed · $74,980 median, 89th-highest of 112 metros
Insulation Estimator
Tampa: 2,330 employed · $78,740 median, 48th-highest of 111 metros
Insulation Project Manager
Tampa: 4,760 employed · $120,800 median, 33rd-highest of 111 metros
Abatement-Certified Insulator
Tampa: 620 employed · $38,440 median, 88th-highest of 90 metros
Blower / Loose-Fill Insulation Technician
Insulation Inspector / QC Technician
Tampa: 1,820 employed · $66,220 median, 66th-highest of 112 metros
What Insulation roles earn in Tampa.
BLS publishes no Tampa pay for insulation workers, mechanical; nationally the median is $58,340. First-line supervisors of construction trades and extraction workers in Tampa earn a median $74,980, 6% under the $79,920 national figure, and 89th of 112 metros. Pay runs $49,450 at the tenth percentile to $116,550 at the ninetieth. The best-paid role below is construction and building inspectors, at $66,220 against $74,690 nationally. BLS withholds Tampa pay for 2 occupations in the table.
| Role | Tampa median | Typical range | National median | vs. national | Employed locally |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mechanical Insulator (Pipe/Duct/Boiler)Insulation Workers, Mechanical (47-2132) | – | – | $58,340 | – | – |
| Building Envelope Insulation Installer · Spray Foam Technician · Fireproofing / Firestop TechnicianInsulation Workers, Floor, Ceiling, and Wall (47-2131) | – | – | $49,120 | – | – |
| Insulation Foreman / Crew LeadFirst-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers (47-1011) | $74,980 | $49,450–$116,550 | $79,920 | −6% | 9,840 |
| Insulation EstimatorCost Estimators (13-1051) | $78,740 | $45,280–$128,780 | $78,740 | 0% | 2,330 |
| Insulation Project ManagerConstruction Managers (11-9021) | $120,800 | $63,200–$212,960 | $114,990 | +5% | 4,760 |
| Abatement-Certified InsulatorHazardous Materials Removal Workers (47-4041) | $38,440 | $37,850–$52,630 | $49,450 | −22% | 620 |
| Insulation Inspector / QC TechnicianConstruction and Building Inspectors (47-4011) | $66,220 | $45,400–$98,450 | $74,690 | −11% | 1,820 |
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, Tampa 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 Tampa's insulation market has changed since 2018.
Tampa lost nonresidential drywall and insulation contractors between 2018 and 2023, from 44 business locations to 41 (down 7%), behind the 3% national decline. Headcount at those firms went down 15%, to about 1,084 people. Average annual pay there went from $54,878 to $80,237 (+46%), faster than the 21% national increase, a sign employers here have had to bid up.
| Measure | 2018 | 2023 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nonresidential drywall and insulation contractors: business locations | 44 | 41 | −7% |
| Nonresidential drywall and insulation contractors: employment | 1,271 | 1,084 | −15% |
| Nonresidential drywall and insulation contractors: average annual pay | $54,878 | $80,237 | +46% |
BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, private employers, annual averages. A dash means BLS did not publish the figure.
Free Insulation hiring resources.
Definitive Guide to Insulation · 2026 Insulation Salary Guide · 3-Step Interview Guide for Insulation
How Tampa's insulation market compares
| Metro | Employed | Median pay | Concentration | Commercial employers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Miami | 650 | $48,470 | 0.81 | 95 |
| Orlando | 440 | $47,100 | 1.08 | 52 |
| Jacksonville | 210 | $46,740 | 0.97 | 29 |
| Pensacola | 80 | $45,680 | 1.49 | 7 |
| Tampa | – | – | – | 41 |
| North Port-Sarasota | – | – | – | 15 |
| Cape Coral-Fort Myers | – | – | – | 20 |
| Lakeland | – | – | – | 8 |
| Deltona-Daytona | – | – | – | 13 |
| Palm Bay-Melbourne | – | – | – | 10 |
| Port St. Lucie | – | – | – | 13 |
BLS OEWS occupation figures and QCEW business-location counts; a dash means not published.
What this means for hiring:Local insulation employers in Tampa are adding headcount, which means more employers competing for the same people.
Sources: BLS QCEW 2023 annual averages and BLS OEWS May 2025, Tampa metro. Employers are counted by business location.
Insulation licensing in Florida.
Florida's Construction Industry Licensing Board issues statewide certified licenses and jurisdiction-specific registered licenses for categories such as general, building, roofing and a range of specialty contractors. Registered licenses are tied to local competency requirements. The same state rules apply in Miami, Orlando, Jacksonville, North Port-Sarasota, Cape Coral-Fort Myers, Lakeland, Deltona-Daytona, Palm Bay-Melbourne, Port St. Lucie and Pensacola, so candidates licensed there can work in Tampa without re-qualifying.
Licensing authority: Construction Industry Licensing Board (Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation). Confirm current rules with the agency.
We have not closed an insulation search in Tampa yet. Here is what we have closed.
These are other trades in the same market. We would rather show you the searches we have actually run in Tampa than imply a record in this trade that we do not have yet.
- HVAC Copper PipefitterA fifteen-year experience floor on a single trade specialty took sixteen weeks to clear - and we cleared it twice.
- HVAC Copper PipefitterThe second of two pipefitter seats on the same project, filled from the same extended search.
- HVAC Copper PipefitterA journeyman pipefitter and foreman off large industrial projects, onto a major commercial job in four weeks.
Nearby markets competing for Tampa talent.
The closest metro we cover is Lakeland, about 30 miles away.
| Metro | Distance | Employed | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tampa | – | – | – |
| Lakeland | 32 mi | – | – |
| North Port-Sarasota | 64 mi | – | – |
| Orlando | 77 mi | – | – |
| Deltona-Daytona | 98 mi | – | – |
| Cape Coral-Fort Myers | 101 mi | – | – |
BLS OEWS, May 2025; straight-line miles.
What else is competing for Tampa crews.
Not insulation work. These are the capital projects big enough to pull the same crews into Tampa in the months you are trying to fill a seat, each with the status its own market page reports.
- Moffitt Cancer Center - Speros FL life-sciences campus (Pasco County)Long-horizon research campusEarly phases underway, decades-long build-out
A new research and clinical campus north of the metro. Life-sciences construction drives premium demand for lab MEP, cleanroom-adjacent mechanical, and high-spec controls work.
- Tampa International Airport - Airside D expansionMulti-billion-dollar programUnder construction, phased through the late 2020s
A new international airside plus concourse and roadway work. Heavy mechanical, electrical, and specialty finish demand over a multi-year phased schedule - rolling crew needs, not a single spike.
- Water Street Tampa (Strategic Property Partners)$3B+ districtPhased build-out, ongoing
Downtown mixed-use district - office towers, residential, hotels, and USF Health. Class-A commercial finish, custom MEP, and high-rise trade demand concentrated in the urban core.
Showing 3 of 6 projects tracked in this metro. The Tampa market page lists them all.
What credentials matter for insulation, and what kills offers in Tampa.
The 4 credentials that gate the work and the 3 things that most often end an insulation offer are the same in every market, kept in one place: Insulation 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 - Insulation hiring in Tampa.
Which insulation roles pay the most in Tampa?
Of the roles we recruit for, Insulation Project Manager pays the most in Tampa, a $120,800 median (BLS measures that occupation across all industries in the metro). Among field roles the top earner is Insulation Inspector / QC Technician at $66,220, 45% below it. Abatement-Certified Insulator is the lowest-paid field role at $38,440. Relative to national pay, Insulation Project Manager is the strongest-paying role here (5% above). Abatement-Certified Insulator trails national pay the most (22% below).
How many nonresidential drywall and insulation contractors operate in Tampa?
BLS counted 41 nonresidential drywall and insulation contractors in Tampa in 2023, employing about 1,084 people between them. Down from 44 in 2018, a 7% decline against 3% decline nationally. That averages 26 people per location. They pay an average of $80,237, 4% above the $77,107 national average for the same kind of employer.
Which nearby metros compete with Tampa for insulation workers, mechanical?
The closest metros we cover with published figures are Miami (205 miles, about 210, $49,660 median).
Every hire from zero is a tax on your team.
41 nonresidential drywall and insulation contractors in Tampa are hiring from the same local pool. Let's get your next hire lined up first.
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