A master plumber is the most qualified plumber at the company and may be the one whose license the company works under. They take the hardest repair and install jobs, train journeymen and apprentices, write the shop's procedures, and keep permits, inspections and code changes in hand.
By the HireBus team · Updated · Pay data: BLS, May 2025
Median pay, plumbing and HVAC contractors · BLS, May 2025
Serve as the technical authority in plumbing installations, repairs, and troubleshooting while ensuring compliance with the most current codes and industry standards. Provide expert solutions, mentor team members, and contribute to the overall service excellence and operational efficiency of the company. Enhance customer satisfaction through quality workmanship, timely project completions, and professional communication.
2. Essential Duties and Responsibilities
Oversee and perform complex plumbing tasks including installation, maintenance, and emergency repairs.
Train and mentor junior plumbers and team members to ensure alignment with industry best practices.
Ensure all works adhere to local, state, and national plumbing codes and regulations.
Provide expert troubleshooting and resolution of plumbing issues to maintain service continuity.
Develop and implement standard operating procedures to improve workflow and safety protocols.
3. Key Tasks / Daily Activities
Conduct daily inspections of plumbing systems to identify potential issues before they become critical.
Collaborate with team members and project managers to plan and execute plumbing projects.
Interact directly with customers to assess needs, provide cost estimates, and discuss project progress.
Document work performed, including repairs, installations, and compliance checks.
Coordinate with suppliers and vendors to ensure the availability of necessary materials and equipment.
4. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
Revenue per Job: $200.
Callback Percentage: <5%.
Customer Satisfaction Rating: >4.8 stars.
On-Time Project Completion Rate: 95%.
5. Required Qualifications and Skills
Associate’s degree or technical certification in plumbing or a related field.
Minimum of 5 years of hands-on plumbing experience with a proven track record in advanced troubleshooting.
Strong knowledge of current plumbing codes and industry standards.
Excellent communication and mentorship skills.
Proficient in using diagnostic tools, hand, and power tools.
6. Preferred Experience
Experience working in the home services or construction industry.
Prior role as a lead or senior plumber with team supervision responsibilities.
Familiarity with advanced plumbing systems including green or sustainable plumbing practices.
Demonstrated ability to manage multiple projects concurrently in a dynamic environment.
7. Physical Requirements
Ability to lift up to 50 lbs.
Frequent bending, crouching, and working in confined spaces.
Exposure to various weather conditions and job site environments including hot and cold temperatures.
Ability to stand for extended periods during installation and repair tasks.
8. Work Environment and Schedule
Standard business hours with the flexibility to work evenings or weekends in case of emergency repairs.
On-call duties as required for urgent customer service calls.
Collaborative team environment with opportunities for professional growth.
Occasional travel between job sites to ensure consistent quality and compliance.
9. Compensation and Benefits
Competitive salary ranging from $70,000 to $90,000 USD annually based on experience.
Performance-based bonuses and commission structure.
Comprehensive benefits package including Health, Dental, and Vision insurance.
401(k) plan with company matching.
Paid time off and opportunities for continuing education and professional development.
10. Company Culture and Overview
At [INSERT COMPANY NAME HERE], we foster an inclusive and growth-oriented environment where every team member is valued.
We are committed to excellence and innovation in the home services industry, empowering our employees to take on challenges that drive both personal and company success.
Our culture emphasizes collaboration, continuous improvement, and a dedication to customer satisfaction.
Join us if you are passionate about your craft and eager to contribute to a team that supports your long-term career growth.
11. How to Apply
If you meet the above criteria and want to be part of a growth-oriented company focused on customer satisfaction, please send your resume to [INSERT EMAIL HERE] or apply online at [INSERT WEBSITE LINK HERE].
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A master plumber still turns wrenches most weeks. The license behind the company, the jobs that call for a master, and the way they train everyone else set the role apart.
The company may work under their license
In Texas, a master plumber can become the company's responsible master plumber. The RMP supervises and manages the plumbing on every contract won under their license, whether the plumbers are employees or subs. They make sure everyone doing plumbing holds a license or registration, get the permits, request inspections and keep liability insurance. An RMP can serve one company at a time, and the company's trucks must show the RMP's license number. Outside Texas, look up your own state's version. Source: Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners: Responsible Master Plumber.
Master status comes after years as a journeyman
BLS says plumbers earn master status after several years of experience and another exam. In Texas, a journeyman can sit for the master exam after two years with the license. One year is enough with a training program approved by the Labor Department's Office of Apprenticeship. If you want a master in house later, the journeyman you keep today is where that starts. Source: Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners: Master Plumber.
Lead-safe rules for older homes
Cutting into walls for a repipe in a home built before 1978 can disturb lead paint. EPA's renovation rule names plumbers and plumbing work. Paid work that disturbs paint in those homes needs a certified firm and lead-safe practices. Minor jobs are exempt: six square feet or less of paint per room inside, or 20 square feet outside. Demolishing painted surfaces is covered at any size. The master writing your procedures should build this in. Source: U.S. EPA: Renovation, Repair and Painting Program for contractors.
Endorsements for specialty work
Texas adds endorsements on top of a master or journeyman license for medical gas piping, rainwater systems and multipurpose residential fire sprinkler systems. Most are earned with a 24-hour board-approved course and an exam. A plumber does endorsed work under a responsible master plumber who holds the same endorsement. If you plan to sell any of it, the master whose license you work under needs it too. Source: Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners: Endorsements.
One way of working on every truck
The template asks the master to write standard procedures and train the team. With several service trucks and install crews, that means one right way to do a water heater swap, a pressure test or a camera report. Ride-alongs check that crews follow it. When your state or city adopts a new plumbing code edition, the master reads the changes and retrains the crews.
How much master plumbers make
The closest BLS group for master plumbers is plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters. Plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters who work for plumbing, heating, and air-conditioning contractors earned a median of $30.30 an hour ($63,010 a year) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That’s about the same as the $63,800 median for plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters in all industries. About 330,570 of the 465,840 plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters in that survey work for plumbing and HVAC contractors.
BLS counts licensed and unlicensed plumbers doing the same work together, so the figures here cover all plumbers, not masters alone. The template's pay is a salary with bonus and commission. Federal overtime rules say plumbers who aren't managers are owed overtime however much they earn, so a salary alone doesn't end overtime for a hands-on master. If the company works under their license, put how that's handled in writing.
Plumbing and HVAC contractors
$63,010$63,010 median Middle half $49,650–$83,730 10th–90th $43,720–$107,780
All industries
$63,800$63,800 median Middle half $50,190–$85,110 10th–90th $44,150–$108,420
$25k$50k$75k$100k$125k
10th–90th percentileMiddle halfMedianAnnual pay, May 2025. Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics.
Annual pay by percentile
Group
10th
25th
Median
75th
90th
Plumbing and HVAC contractors
$43,720
$49,650
$63,010
$83,730
$107,780
All industries
$44,150
$50,190
$63,800
$85,110
$108,420
BLS reports plumbing and HVAC contractors together. Post a real range for your market in the ad.
The pay line in the template above is an example from our Role Blueprint. Set yours from these figures and what local companies pay.
Skills to hire for, and what you can teach
Hire for these
A master license where your state or city issues one
Solves the problems journeymen couldn't, from hidden slab leaks to sewer lines that keep backing up
Knows the code well enough to talk through a failed inspection with the inspector
Teaches on the job without taking over
Writes clear estimates and procedures
Teach these on the job
Your price book and estimating steps
Your permit and inspection routine with each city you serve
Leading people, if they haven't managed before
Reports in your job software
Your supplier accounts and ordering
Masters carry the same truck stock as your other plumbers, plus gear for the calls others couldn't solve, such as acoustic or thermal leak detection tools. Tell candidates in the ad whether the company will work under their license and how much of the week is in the field versus the office.
Master plumber interview questions
They have their own page: 6 questions that test this job, what strong and weak answers sound like, and a work exercise to run with your finalists.
Pick targets that fit your own job mix. Judge a master on their own jobs and on how the plumbers they train perform.
Revenue per Job
Total invoiced on the master's jobs divided by the number of jobs, each month. Split service calls from installs, since a faucet repair and a sewer replacement can't be compared.
Callback Percentage
Second visits for an issue already worked, counted on the master's jobs and on jobs done by the plumbers they coach, against completed jobs each month.
Customer Satisfaction Rating
Ratings and reviews from the master's jobs, including jobs handed to them after another visit failed. Go over them monthly, remarks included.
On-Time Project Completion Rate
Installs and repairs finished on the promised day with the inspection passed and no second trip. Track jobs held up by permits or inspectors apart from crew delays.
Career path
Journeyman plumberWorks alone on calls and installs and logs years on the license.
Master plumberHolds the top license, takes the hardest jobs and sets standards.
The template asks for an associate's degree or technical certificate and five years of hands-on work, but it doesn't list a license. Where your state or city licenses master plumbers, add that line, and say whether this person will be the company's license holder. Where no master license exists, master is a company rank, so define what it means in the ad.
How much does a master plumber make?
Plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters who work for plumbing, heating, and air-conditioning contractors earned a median of $30.30 an hour ($63,010 a year) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The middle half earned between $49,650 and $83,730 a year. Pay also depends on your local market, experience and overtime.
What is the difference between a master and a journeyman plumber?
Both install and repair, and BLS says a journeyman is qualified to work alone. The master license adds more years and a second exam. On a home service team, the master takes the jobs others couldn't solve, trains the team and settles code questions. In Texas, only a licensed master can become a company's responsible master plumber.
What does a master plumber do day to day?
A typical week splits between hard jobs in the field and the work behind them: estimates, supplier orders, inspection paperwork and coaching. BLS notes that plumbers need to direct workers, bid on jobs and plan work schedules. For a master, test those skills as closely as the technical ones.
What should a master plumber job ad include?
Whether the company will work under their license, and how that's handled. The split between field work, estimating and training. The on-call share, the truck and tools, and any endorsements you need, such as residential fire sprinklers. The pay structure, including bonus and commission, since the template uses both.
