Construction and Building Inspectors
Inspect structures using engineering skills to determine structural soundness and compliance with specifications, building codes, and other regulations. Inspections may be general in nature or may be limited to a specific area, such as electrical systems or plumbing.
- O*NET-SOC code
47-4011.00 - Preparation Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed
Wages
Median annual wage, U.S.$74,690
Employment, U.S.146,720
Median hourly wage$35.91
| 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $47,140 | $58,860 | $74,690 | $94,710 | $114,200 |
By state (51)
| State | Employment | Median annual | Location quotient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 1,420 | $61,300 | 0.71 |
| Alaska | 270 | $102,410 | 0.89 |
| Arizona | 3,330 | $73,440 | 1.09 |
| Arkansas | 800 | $52,700 | 0.65 |
| California | 13,420 | $101,290 | 0.78 |
| Colorado | 3,700 | $79,950 | 1.36 |
| Connecticut | 1,430 | $98,670 | 0.90 |
| Delaware | 570 | $72,700 | 1.25 |
| District of Columbia | 370 | $86,200 | 0.56 |
| Florida | 13,860 | $68,170 | 1.48 |
| Georgia | 4,510 | $65,980 | 0.98 |
| Hawaii | 710 | $79,320 | 1.19 |
| Idaho | 1,000 | $63,570 | 1.23 |
| Illinois | 2,560 | $78,340 | 0.44 |
| Indiana | 2,110 | $62,850 | 0.70 |
| Iowa | 1,140 | $71,630 | 0.77 |
| Kansas | 840 | $63,150 | 0.62 |
| Kentucky | 1,380 | $60,200 | 0.73 |
| Louisiana | 1,440 | $68,260 | 0.79 |
| Maine | 710 | $74,670 | 1.17 |
| Maryland | 2,780 | $76,640 | 1.07 |
| Massachusetts | 4,290 | $83,200 | 1.25 |
| Michigan | 3,090 | $71,040 | 0.74 |
| Minnesota | 1,390 | $88,670 | 0.50 |
| Mississippi | 800 | $50,250 | 0.72 |
| Missouri | 1,640 | $62,970 | 0.59 |
| Montana | 290 | $75,700 | 0.60 |
| Nebraska | 570 | $65,000 | 0.59 |
| Nevada | 1,780 | $75,290 | 1.22 |
| New Hampshire | 420 | $65,640 | 0.65 |
| New Jersey | 5,950 | $81,760 | 1.47 |
| New Mexico | 800 | $65,420 | 0.97 |
| New York | 11,160 | $79,460 | 1.22 |
| North Carolina | 6,490 | $66,080 | 1.39 |
| North Dakota | 180 | $78,570 | 0.44 |
| Ohio | 3,490 | $74,490 | 0.67 |
| Oklahoma | 2,090 | $59,280 | 1.29 |
| Oregon | 1,780 | $84,510 | 0.96 |
| Pennsylvania | 5,320 | $65,870 | 0.93 |
| Rhode Island | 270 | $77,420 | 0.57 |
| South Carolina | 2,500 | $58,840 | 1.15 |
| South Dakota | 200 | $64,940 | 0.46 |
| Tennessee | 2,500 | $59,870 | 0.81 |
| Texas | 18,230 | $64,810 | 1.37 |
| Utah | 1,240 | $74,130 | 0.76 |
| Vermont | 120 | $66,580 | 0.41 |
| Virginia | 6,550 | $75,660 | 1.69 |
| Washington | 3,090 | $96,140 | 0.92 |
| West Virginia | 540 | $64,000 | 0.81 |
| Wisconsin | 1,270 | $75,610 | 0.46 |
| Wyoming | 370 | $61,870 | 1.38 |
Similar occupations
Similarity is our measure: the cosine of importance x level over all 120 O*NET skills, knowledge areas and abilities. It is not an O*NET finding. More.
Circles are the 20 most similar occupations, coloured by Job Zone. Lines join pairs where one is among the other's 10 most similar; darker lines are pairs O*NET also lists as related. Drag a circle to move it out of the way; select one to open it.
| # | Occupation | Job Zone | Similarity |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Government Property Inspectors and Investigators | 3 | 0.973 |
| 2 | Energy Auditors | 3 | 0.958 |
| 3 | Civil Engineering Technologists and Technicians | 3 | 0.956 |
| 4 | Construction Managers | 4 | 0.955 |
| 5 | Occupational Health and Safety Technicians | 3 | 0.950 |
| 6 | Traffic Technicians | 3 | 0.950 |
| 7 | Fire Inspectors and Investigators | 3 | 0.949 |
| 8 | Occupational Health and Safety Specialists | 4 | 0.946 |
| 9 | Fire-Prevention and Protection Engineers | 4 | 0.946 |
| 10 | Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors | 4 | 0.946 |
One skill away
Among the 50 occupations most similar to Construction and Building Inspectors, those at the same Job Zone or lower, where exactly one skill rated at least 3 in importance needs a level more than 0.75 points higher (on O*NET's 0-7 level scale). Our definition. Change the thresholds.
| Occupation | Skill to build | Level gap | Similarity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Energy Auditors | Writing | 0.76 | 0.958 |
| Occupational Health and Safety Technicians | Writing | 0.76 | 0.950 |
| Power Distributors and Dispatchers | Operation and Control | 1.37 | 0.941 |
| Solar Energy Installation Managers | Management of Personnel Resources | 0.88 | 0.940 |
| Facilities Managers | Monitoring | 0.88 | 0.940 |
Software to learn next
Software used by at least 3 of the 20 occupations most similar to Construction and Building Inspectors, excluding software Construction and Building Inspectors already lists and any you named. Ranked by how many of them use it, weighted by how much more common it is among them than across all occupations (lift). Our ranking.
| Software | Similar jobs using it | Lift |
|---|---|---|
| Autodesk Revit | 8 of 20 | 9.2x |
| Computer aided design and drafting software CADD | 6 of 20 | 12.6x |
| Autodesk AutoCAD Civil 3D | 6 of 20 | 9.2x |
| Bentley MicroStation | 6 of 20 | 5.8x |
| Procore software | 3 of 20 | 23.1x |
| Microsoft Access | 15 of 20 | 1.9x |
| Trimble SketchUp Pro | 5 of 20 | 6.2x |
| Sage 300 Construction and Real Estate | 3 of 20 | 17.3x |
| Esri ArcGIS | 3 of 20 | 15.4x |
| Google Workspace software | 4 of 20 | 7.1x |
Skills
From O*NET data. Importance is rated 1 to 5 and level 0 to 7.
| Skill | Type | Importance | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reading Comprehension | Essential skill | 4.00 | 4.00 |
| Critical Thinking | Essential skill | 3.88 | 3.88 |
| Active Listening | Essential skill | 3.75 | 3.88 |
| Speaking | Essential skill | 3.75 | 3.88 |
| Judgment and Decision Making | Transferable skill | 3.38 | 3.38 |
| Complex Problem Solving | Transferable skill | 3.38 | 3.00 |
| Time Management | Transferable skill | 3.25 | 3.25 |
| Systems Evaluation | Transferable skill | 3.25 | 3.00 |
| Active Learning | Essential skill | 3.12 | 3.12 |
| Writing | Essential skill | 3.12 | 3.12 |
| Persuasion | Transferable skill | 3.12 | 3.00 |
| Mathematics | Essential skill | 3.00 | 3.38 |
| Quality Control Analysis | Transferable skill | 3.00 | 3.12 |
| Instructing | Transferable skill | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Learning Strategies | Essential skill | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Monitoring | Essential skill | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Negotiation | Transferable skill | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Social Perceptiveness | Transferable skill | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Systems Analysis | Transferable skill | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Coordination | Transferable skill | 2.88 | 3.00 |
| Management of Personnel Resources | Transferable skill | 2.88 | 3.00 |
| Operations Monitoring | Transferable skill | 2.75 | 2.88 |
| Service Orientation | Transferable skill | 2.62 | 2.75 |
| Science | Essential skill | 2.50 | 2.25 |
| Operations Analysis | Transferable skill | 2.00 | 1.88 |
| Operation and Control | Transferable skill | 1.88 | 1.75 |
| Troubleshooting | Transferable skill | 1.88 | 1.75 |
| Management of Material Resources | Transferable skill | 1.88 | 1.00 |
| Technology Design | Transferable skill | 1.75 | 0.75 |
| Programming | Transferable skill | 1.62 | 0.62 |
| Management of Financial Resources | Transferable skill | 1.50 | 0.62 |
| Equipment Maintenance | Transferable skill | 1.00 | not rated |
| Equipment Selection | Transferable skill | 1.00 | not rated |
| Installation | Transferable skill | 1.00 | not rated |
| Repairing | Transferable skill | 1.00 | not rated |
Knowledge (33) and abilities (52)
| Name | Importance | Level |
|---|---|---|
| Building and Construction | 4.68 | 5.76 |
| Public Safety and Security | 4.04 | 4.48 |
| English Language | 3.96 | 4.08 |
| Customer and Personal Service | 3.62 | 5.08 |
| Design | 3.48 | 4.56 |
| Law and Government | 3.48 | 3.84 |
| Mathematics | 3.44 | 4.00 |
| Administration and Management | 3.40 | 3.76 |
| Mechanical | 3.32 | 4.24 |
| Administrative | 3.28 | 4.20 |
| Computers and Electronics | 3.28 | 4.00 |
| Engineering and Technology | 3.20 | 3.54 |
| Education and Training | 3.12 | 4.20 |
| Personnel and Human Resources | 2.68 | 3.16 |
| Physics | 2.56 | 3.08 |
| Communications and Media | 2.48 | 2.64 |
| Telecommunications | 2.48 | 1.88 |
| Economics and Accounting | 2.38 | 2.32 |
| Geography | 2.32 | 2.52 |
| Psychology | 2.16 | 2.28 |
| Transportation | 2.16 | 1.80 |
| Chemistry | 2.08 | 2.36 |
| Production and Processing | 2.04 | 1.80 |
| Sales and Marketing | 1.96 | 1.76 |
| Foreign Language | 1.88 | 1.52 |
| History and Archeology | 1.80 | 1.68 |
| Sociology and Anthropology | 1.64 | 1.24 |
| Biology | 1.54 | 1.04 |
| Food Production | 1.44 | not rated |
| Therapy and Counseling | 1.36 | not rated |
| Medicine and Dentistry | 1.28 | not rated |
| Philosophy and Theology | 1.28 | not rated |
| Fine Arts | 1.04 | not rated |
| Name | Importance | Level |
|---|---|---|
| Problem Sensitivity | 4.12 | 4.00 |
| Inductive Reasoning | 4.00 | 4.00 |
| Oral Expression | 4.00 | 4.00 |
| Written Comprehension | 4.00 | 4.00 |
| Deductive Reasoning | 3.88 | 4.00 |
| Oral Comprehension | 3.88 | 4.00 |
| Written Expression | 3.88 | 4.00 |
| Near Vision | 3.88 | 3.88 |
| Speech Recognition | 3.25 | 3.12 |
| Speech Clarity | 3.25 | 3.00 |
| Far Vision | 3.12 | 3.75 |
| Information Ordering | 3.12 | 3.25 |
| Category Flexibility | 3.12 | 3.12 |
| Flexibility of Closure | 3.12 | 3.12 |
| Selective Attention | 3.12 | 3.12 |
| Fluency of Ideas | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Perceptual Speed | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Visual Color Discrimination | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Visualization | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Mathematical Reasoning | 2.88 | 2.88 |
| Number Facility | 2.88 | 2.88 |
| Speed of Closure | 2.88 | 2.88 |
| Time Sharing | 2.88 | 2.88 |
| Originality | 2.75 | 3.00 |
| Memorization | 2.62 | 2.25 |
| Depth Perception | 2.50 | 2.00 |
| Gross Body Equilibrium | 2.25 | 2.00 |
| Auditory Attention | 2.12 | 2.12 |
| Trunk Strength | 2.12 | 2.12 |
| Spatial Orientation | 2.12 | 2.00 |
| Arm-Hand Steadiness | 2.00 | 2.00 |
| Extent Flexibility | 2.00 | 2.00 |
| Gross Body Coordination | 2.00 | 2.00 |
| Hearing Sensitivity | 2.00 | 2.00 |
| Multilimb Coordination | 2.00 | 2.00 |
| Glare Sensitivity | 2.00 | 1.88 |
| Stamina | 2.00 | 1.88 |
| Control Precision | 2.00 | 1.75 |
| Reaction Time | 2.00 | 1.38 |
| Sound Localization | 2.00 | 1.25 |
| Night Vision | 2.00 | 1.12 |
| Peripheral Vision | 2.00 | 1.12 |
| Static Strength | 2.00 | 1.12 |
| Dynamic Strength | 2.00 | 1.00 |
| Rate Control | 2.00 | 1.00 |
| Response Orientation | 1.88 | 0.88 |
| Finger Dexterity | 1.75 | 1.25 |
| Manual Dexterity | 1.75 | 0.88 |
| Wrist-Finger Speed | 1.50 | 0.50 |
| Speed of Limb Movement | 1.38 | 0.38 |
| Explosive Strength | 1.25 | not rated |
| Dynamic Flexibility | 1.00 | not rated |
Software used
Examples from O*NET data. "Hot" and "in demand" are O*NET flags for technologies often listed in job postings.
- Microsoft Excel in demand
- Microsoft Office software in demand
- Microsoft Outlook in demand
- Microsoft Word in demand
- Autodesk AutoCAD hot
- Intuit QuickBooks hot
- Microsoft PowerPoint hot
- Microsoft Project hot
- Oracle Primavera Enterprise Project Portfolio Management hot
- SAP software hot
- Arc Second PocketCAD
- Automated permit system software
- Database software
- ESRI ArcView
- Email software
- Inspection Depot Home Guide System
- Microsoft Exchange
- Microsoft Internet Explorer
- Mobile building inspection software
- Municipal geographic management software
- New construction inspection form software
- NorthWest Builders Network Plan Analyst
- OptaSoft Commercial Building Inspector
- Oracle Primavera Systems
- Quicken
- Real estate and tax software
- Residential home inspection form software
- Trimble Digital Fieldbook
- Vision Software
Where it concentrates
Metro areas ranked by BLS location quotient: the occupation's share of the area's jobs divided by its share of all US jobs. Above 1 means more concentrated than the nation. Metros employing fewer than 100 are left out.
| Metro area | Employment | Location quotient | Median annual |
|---|---|---|---|
| Odessa, TX | 230 | 3.01 | $49,610 |
| Trenton-Princeton, NJ | 660 | 2.90 | $82,660 |
| Panama City-Panama City Beach, FL | 210 | 2.51 | $67,650 |
| Raleigh-Cary, NC | 1,760 | 2.51 | $67,840 |
| Wildwood-The Villages, FL | 100 | 2.48 | $63,410 |
| Punta Gorda, FL | 120 | 2.25 | $60,510 |
| Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, FL | 230 | 1.99 | $71,230 |
| Dover, DE | 120 | 1.94 | $67,890 |
| Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL | 450 | 1.94 | $64,390 |
| Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL | 550 | 1.93 | $74,930 |