What will I earn as an apprentice?
Apprentices earn a share of the journeyperson rate that rises with each period. Pick your trade and province: where the law sets a minimum, we fill it in with its source. See each step’s hourly rate and a year after tax.
Count only the hours you work for your employer; leave out your weeks in school. Full time all year is about 2,000 hours.
Each step, and a year at that rate
A year is 1,800 hours at the step’s rate, after 2026 federal and provincial tax and contributions for someone living in Québec.
| Step | Share | Hourly | Year, gross | Year, after tax |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Period 1 | 50 % | $22.50 | $40,500 | $32,425 |
| Period 2 | 60 % | $27.00 | $48,600 | $37,881 |
| Period 3 | 70 % | $31.50 | $56,700 | $43,319 |
| Period 4 | 80 % | $36.00 | $64,800 | $48,066 |
| Journeyperson | 100 % | $45.00 | $81,000 | $57,622 |
How it’s calculated
Each step’s rate is its percentage of the journeyperson rate you enter. Where a province sets a minimum by law for this trade, we show it with its source; employers and collective agreements can pay more. Each law also says which journeyperson rate it counts from, for example the lowest-paid journeyperson at the same employer in Alberta.
Tax is the 2026 annual estimate for a single employment income (federal and provincial tax, CPP/QPP, EI, QPIP). Employment Insurance during school, grants, vacation pay and union dues aren’t included.