West Virginia Solar jobs: 626 employed (2024)
As of the 2025 U.S. Energy & Employment Report, West Virginia employs 626 people in the solar sector — about 0.2% of the U.S. total. That makes West Virginia the 47th-largest state for solar jobs nationwide.
Solar Jobs in West Virginia (2024)
National share: 0.17% of all U.S. solar jobs.
Typical Median Wage
1. Employment Landscape
West Virginia ranks 47th out of 51 U.S. states in solar employment. At 626 workers, the state sits below the 25th-ranked Hawaii’s tally by 3,457 jobs, and trails the national leader California by 115,754 solar workers.
1.1 West Virginia’s position vs. the top 10 and median states
1.2 Share of U.S. total
The solar sector nationwide employs roughly 370,556 workers; West Virginia accounts for 626 of them.
1.3 Where West Virginia sits in its own mix
| Sector | Jobs (2024) | National rank |
|---|---|---|
| Energy Efficiency | 7,242 | #46 |
| Solar | 626 | #47 |
| Wind | 550 | #39 |
| Storage & Grid | 520 | #34 |
| Electric Vehicles | 342 | #39 |
| Hydropower | 194 | #36 |
| Clean Fuels | 40 | #48 |
1.4 Sub-sector breakdown in West Virginia
Every solar-related sub-category reported for West Virginia in the USEER workbook, ranked by employment.
2. Pay & Career Roles in West Virginia
West Virginia contributes 0.17% of the nation’s solar workforce. Within West Virginia’s own clean-energy economy, solar accounts for 6.6% of total clean-energy jobs (626 of 9,515 workers).
Cost-of-living in West Virginia is roughly 11.1% lower the U.S. average, so the state-adjusted median wage for solar roles in West Virginia is shown alongside the national BLS figure.
| Role | National median | West Virginia-adjusted | Job Zone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Electrician | $61,590 | $54,754 | 3 |
| Solar Photovoltaic Installer | $51,860 | $46,104 | 2 |
See all 2 solar occupations with national wages and skills →
4. Hiring Difficulty & Industry Mix
West Virginia employers rate 28.1% of clean-energy hires as “very difficult” (plus 32.0% as “somewhat difficult”) — tighter than the ~22% national baseline. Combined, 60.1% of West Virginia’s clean-energy roles see some level of hiring friction.
4.1 Employer hiring difficulty
4.2 Jobs by NAICS industry group
| Industry (NAICS group) | Jobs (2024) |
|---|---|
| Construction | 32,187 |
| Mining and Extraction | 18,834 |
| Manufacturing | 12,217 |
| Trade | 8,016 |
| Utilities | 4,847 |
| Other Services | 4,175 |
| Pipeline Transport & Commodity Flows | 3,436 |
| Professional Services | 2,120 |
| Agriculture and Forestry | 188 |
Frequently Asked Questions
Data source: U.S. Department of Energy — 2025 U.S. Energy & Employment Report (reflecting 2024 employment); U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics; O*NET Occupation Database 29.1.
Last updated: April 2026.