SOC 47-2082.00

    Tapers

    Seal joints between plasterboard or other wallboard to prepare wall surface for painting or papering.

    Median pay
    $68,270
    Growth
    -1.6%
    Decline
    Openings a year
    900
    Typical education
    No formal credential

    Data verified Nov 2026 · CollegesRef 2026–27 edition

    Source: BLS 2025 wages · 2025–35 projections

    See the pathway

    Annual pay range

    Lowest 10% earn less than
    $43,670
    Median
    $68,270
    Highest 10% earn more than
    $107,110
    National wages for all workers in this occupation. BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025.

    12,840 people work in this occupation.

    What tapers do

    Job Zone 2: Some preparation

    Seal joints between plasterboard or other wallboard to prepare wall surface for painting or papering.

    Usually a high school diploma; some on-the-job training or experience.

    Interest profile

    Realistic (R) · strongest
    92 / 100
    Investigative (I)
    11 / 100
    Artistic (A)
    12 / 100
    Social (S)
    8 / 100
    Enterprising (E)
    1 / 100
    Conventional (C)
    41 / 100
    How strongly each interest area describes the work, from O*NET (scores rescaled to 0–100). The interest code lists the strongest areas in order.

    Interest code RCA. Compare it with yours

    What you'd do

    Performing General Physical Activities
    75
    Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates
    73
    Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events
    70
    Handling and Moving Objects
    66
    Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work
    65
    Getting Information
    65
    Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials
    63
    Judging the Qualities of Objects, Services, or People
    62
    Scheduling Work and Activities
    62
    Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge
    60
    Work activities rated by importance for this occupation, O*NET (0–100).

    Skills and strengths

    Skills

    • Monitoring
    • Active Listening
    • Time Management
    • Coordination
    • Social Perceptiveness
    • Speaking
    • Critical Thinking
    • Judgment and Decision Making
    • Quality Control Analysis
    • Reading Comprehension

    Knowledge

    • English Language
    • Administration and Management
    • Public Safety and Security
    • Education and Training
    • Building and Construction
    • Customer and Personal Service
    • Mathematics
    • Transportation
    • Mechanical
    • Production and Processing

    Abilities

    • Manual Dexterity
    • Near Vision
    • Arm-Hand Steadiness
    • Extent Flexibility
    • Multilimb Coordination
    • Trunk Strength
    • Oral Comprehension
    • Stamina
    • Gross Body Equilibrium
    • Dynamic Strength

    Work styles

    • Attention to Detail
    • Dependability
    • Cautiousness
    • Achievement Orientation
    • Perseverance
    • Stress Tolerance
    • Integrity
    • Self-Confidence
    • Cooperation
    • Sincerity

    Also called

    Drywall Finisher · Drywall Mechanic · Drywall Taper · Finisher · Patch Guy · Patcher · Sheet Rock Taper · Sheetrock Finisher · Taper Finisher · Wall Taper

    CareerOneStop

    Certifications, licenses and pay by state

    What tapers may need beyond a degree, where a license is required, and what the work pays in each state.

    Licenses by state

    2 states list a license for this work. Open your state for the license and the agency that issues it.

    Check license requirements on CareerOneStop

    Data from CareerOneStop, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor (Employment and Training Administration, with the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development). Retrieved November 6, 2026.

    Your plan

    Build my pathway plan

    Courses, majors, colleges, scholarships and a timeline for this career, built from your profile.

    Related careers

    Careers with similar work, interests or skills.

    All careers

    Sources and attribution

    Every figure on this page comes from these public datasets. Missing values are shown as not reported, never estimated.

    O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. CollegesRef has modified all or some of this information.

    Data from CareerOneStop, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor (Employment and Training Administration, with the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development). Retrieved November 6, 2026.

    Page data updated November 5, 2026.