Compared with the local labor market
Welder pay vs. Minnesota
Across all employers in Minnesota, the median wage for Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers — about 9,270 people — is $60,280. Minnesota Zoological Garden pays a median base salary of $66,073 for this role, 10% above that figure — about the 76th percentile of local pay for the occupation.
Where Minnesota Zoological Garden sits in the local pay range
$45,690
$50,960
$60,280
$65,410
$75,710
Minnesota Zoological Garden median · $66,073
The bar is the range of annual wages for Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers across every employer in Minnesota, from the 10th to the 90th percentile, with the middle 50% highlighted. The marker shows Minnesota Zoological Garden’s median base salary for this role. Both figures are base pay only.
And across the country
Nationwide, the median wage for Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers — about 416,210 people — is $53,750. Minnesota Zoological Garden’s median base salary is 23% above that national figure, about the 78th percentile of pay for the occupation nationally.
$39,240
$46,790
$53,750
$63,010
$77,530
Minnesota Zoological Garden median · $66,073
Local and national wages differ for reasons beyond how well a job pays — cost of living, the mix of employers, and local demand for the occupation all move the Minnesota range relative to the national one.
Median total compensation for this role at Minnesota Zoological Garden is $66,359, which includes overtime and employer-paid benefits. The benchmark above excludes both, so total compensation is deliberately not compared against it.
Benchmark: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2025). BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) covers all employers in the area — private, non-profit, and government alike — so this is a comparison against the whole local labor market for the occupation, not against private-sector pay. OEWS wages are straight-time pay and exclude overtime, shift differentials, and employer-paid benefits, so the government figure shown here is base pay on the same basis. Total compensation is not comparable to it. Job titles are matched to the closest standard occupation, so the comparison is between similar work rather than an identical job classification.