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Role hub · Commercial Divers

Commercial Diver: what the job is, what it pays, and how to get hired.

The work, the skills that matter, the tools in demand and the pay range, from U.S. government data, plus every TryHired page for the role.

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Updated Nov 2, 2026 · Data: BLS OEWS May 2025 · O*NET 31.0
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Median percentile pay

Half of commercial divers earn more than this and half earn less.

Annual
$72,990
Hourly
$35.09
Source
BLS May 2025
Quick answer

Commercial Divers work below surface of water, using surface-supplied air or scuba equipment to inspect, repair, remove, or install equipment and structures. The median pay is $72,990 a year ($35.09 an hour) (BLS, May 2025).

Median pay
$72,990
BLS May 2025
Employed in the U.S.
3,450
BLS May 2025
Preparation
Job Zone 3 of 5
medium preparation
Key facts

Commercial Divers at a glance

  • Commercial divers in the United States earned a median annual wage of $72,990 in May 2025, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

    Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025

  • In its 2025–35 employment projections, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics lists a postsecondary nondegree award as the typical entry-level education for commercial divers in the United States.

    Source: BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35

  • BLS projects employment of commercial divers in the United States to grow 4.8% from 2025 to 2035, with about 400 openings a year on average, including replacement openings.

    Source: BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35

  • BLS estimated that 3,450 people were employed as commercial divers in the United States in May 2025, not counting the self-employed.

    Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025

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The work

What commercial divers do day to day

Data Core tasks rated most important by workers in the role (O*NET).

  1. Check and maintain diving equipment, such as helmets, masks, air tanks, harnesses, or gauges.
  2. Take appropriate safety precautions, such as monitoring dive lengths and depths and registering with authorities before diving expeditions begin.
  3. Communicate with workers on the surface while underwater, using signal lines or telephones.
  4. Descend into water with the aid of diver helpers, using scuba gear or diving suits.
  5. Inspect and test docks, ships, buoyage systems, plant intakes or outflows, or underwater pipelines, cables, or sewers, using closed circuit television, still photography, and testing equipment.
  6. Obtain information about diving tasks and environmental conditions.
  7. Inspect the condition of underwater steel or wood structures.
  8. Operate underwater video, sonar, recording, or related equipment to investigate underwater structures or marine life.
Where this career works

Industries that employ it

Data Share of all commercial diver jobs in each industry, 2025 (BLS Employment Matrix).

  1. Administrative and support services38.2% of all jobs in this occupation · +4.3% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $90,460
  2. Heavy and civil engineering construction24.7% of all jobs in this occupation · +4.8% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $105,610
  3. Professional, scientific, and technical services6.0% of all jobs in this occupation · +8.7% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $79,540
  4. Amusement, gambling, and recreation industries4.4% of all jobs in this occupation · +6.8% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $39,870
  5. Museums, historical sites, and similar institutions2.5% of all jobs in this occupation · +8.2% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $47,750
  6. Support activities for transportation1.9% of all jobs in this occupation · +4.2% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $94,410

Sources: BLS 2025–35 National Employment Matrix (share of the occupation's jobs, projected change) and BLS OEWS May 2025 industry estimates (mean wage). Different industry estimates are not a pay forecast for any person.

Skills that matter

Ranked by importance to the job

Data O*NET importance ratings. The first three are core.

Active ListeningcoreCritical ThinkingcoreOperations MonitoringcoreSpeakingQuality Control AnalysisCoordinationComplex Problem SolvingOperation and ControlEquipment Maintenance

Knowledge areas: Mechanical, Building and Construction, Public Safety and Security, Physics, Design, Customer and Personal Service.

Tools and technology

Software commercial divers use

Data Examples reported for the role; employer demand flags from O*NET.

  • Dynamic positioning DP softwareAnalytical or scientific software
  • Diving logbook softwareData base user interface and query software
  • Diving table softwareData base user interface and query software
  • Remote operated vehicle ROV dive log softwareData base user interface and query software
  • Web browser softwareInternet browser software

Also called: Diver, Diver Tender, Diving Coordinator, Hard Hat Diver, NDT UW Welder (Non Destructive Testing Under Water Welder), Salvage Diver.

Method

How this page is built

Tasks, skills, tools, education and related roles come from O*NET 31.0. Pay and employment come from the BLS OEWS May 2025 national estimates. The skill-match score is our calculation: Skill match is the cosine similarity of the two occupations' skill profiles: for each of 35 O*NET skills (10 essential, 25 transferable) we multiply importance by level and subtract the average across all occupations, then compare the direction of the two profiles. 100 means identical shape; 0 means unrelated or opposite (negative values are shown as 0). Only occupations that O*NET itself lists as related are compared.

What this page can't tell you
  • How a specific employer defines the job.
  • Pay for self-employed workers (OEWS covers employees).
  • Your own chances: data describes the occupation, not you.
Sources
  1. O*NET 31.0 Database, U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. TryHired selected, ranked and combined the data; O*NET is not responsible for these pages.
  2. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 estimates (public domain).

How TryHired builds this data: sources, methods and downloads. Spotted an error? Report a correction.