Delaware Apprenticeship Programs
Delaware's registered-apprenticeship system is small — 2,500 active apprentices across 128 programs as of September 2026 — so its structure, not its size, is the story below.
- Active apprentices
- 2,500
- National rank
- #47 / 51
- Completion rate
- 58.4%
- Completion wage
- $30
Delaware ranks #47 of 51 jurisdictions by active registered apprentices - about 0.3% of all U.S. registered apprentices. Its 58.4% completion rate sits 0.2 pts above the 58.2% national average, and apprentices who finish raise their pay by 82% - from $17 to $30 an hour.
Apprenticeship filing desk
Jurisdiction DE · Delaware
Delaware registered-apprenticeship filing: 2,500 active apprentices (rank 47/51), 128 programs, 58.4% completion.
- BOOK-TRACE 2,500
- RANK-LOWER #47
- PROG-SPARSE 128
- COMP-MID 58.4%
- WAGE-STRONG +82%
- SHARE-SMALL 0.3%
- NEW-FY 660
Nearest enrollment peer: Montana (100 apprentice gap)
U.S. Department of Labor registered-apprenticeship filing stamps for this jurisdiction. Read: future proof careers
Where Delaware sits among all 51 jurisdictions
Enrollment by jurisdiction; Delaware is marked near the small end. Inventory size is not a quality ranking.
Delaware vs all states by active apprentices
Where this state's DOL registered-apprenticeship enrollment sits among every tracked jurisdiction
2,500 47th of 51 higher than 4 of 51 states
States and territories, banded by active apprentices
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more states. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Department of Labor registered-apprenticeship data · 2026-09-25
Source: U.S. Department of Labor registered-apprenticeship data, compiled by PlainWorkforce.
Reading Delaware's numbers
What stands out in this state's DOL filing, most distinctive first. Every figure below is computed from the state's own row in the dataset.
The signature stat: program size
Delaware's most unusual number is how thinly enrollment spreads: only 19.5 apprentices per program, a smaller program size than 96% of states.
One of the smallest systems
At rank 47 of 51 with 2,500 active apprentices (0.3% of the national total), this is one of the country's smallest registered systems — which makes the per-program and intake figures above the more telling comparison.
Completion near the average
A 58.4% completion rate holds within two points of the national average (58.2%).
Fast intake pipeline
New registrations are running hot: 660 in the latest fiscal year equals 26.4% of the active base (national pace 25.9%). If completions keep up, this system is compounding.
Typical wage progression
Pay runs $16.50/hour at the start and $30.00 at completion — a 81.8% progression near the 82.7% norm.
Delaware's largest registered-apprenticeship occupations, ranked by AI-exposure score, most sit well below the 37% occupation-wide average (the dotted line), which is exactly why the trades are AI-resilient. Bars link to the full occupation profile where tracked.
- Electrician 13%
- Plumber 27%
- Carpenter 28%
- Iron Worker -
- HVAC Mechanic -
AI-exposure scores are PlainWorkforce's analysis of O*NET task data; the 37% line is the average across all 832 tracked occupations. Lower = more AI-resilient.
Frequently asked questions
How many apprentices does Delaware have?
About 2,500 active registered apprentices, one of the smaller state totals (rank 47 of 51), in roughly 128 programs.
What is the apprenticeship completion rate in Delaware?
Roughly 58.4%, effectively at the national average of 58.2%.
How much do apprentices earn in Delaware?
Entry wages average $16.50/hour, rising to about $30.00 at completion (81.8% growth).
What are the top apprenticeship trades in Delaware?
The dataset's largest registered-apprenticeship occupations for Delaware are Electrician, Plumber, Iron Worker, Carpenter, HVAC Mechanic — construction trades dominate registered apprenticeship in every state.
Is apprenticeship growing in Delaware?
The intake numbers say yes: 660 new apprentices registered in the latest fiscal year, 26.4% of the current active base and above the 25.9% national pace.
Compare other states
Next steps here
Use Delaware's apprenticeship numbers above to plan a specific trade path, not just compare states.
- Compare an apprenticeship path against a college degree using real wage and growth numbers. Apprenticeships vs college
- Check wage and AI exposure for a specific trade in the full occupation directory. Browse all occupations
- Through 2034, these are the occupations projected to add the most jobs. Fastest-growing occupations
Apprenticeship figures come from U.S. Department of Labor Registered Apprenticeship data; enrollment and completion vary by program and year.
Every figure on PlainWorkforce is rendered directly from BLS/O*NET source data, no number is typed in by an editor. Enrollment and wage figures are rounded. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these figures, or report a data error. Data current as of U.S. Department of Labor, Registered Apprenticeship.
Sources: U.S. Department of Labor, Registered Apprenticeship (active apprentices, registered programs, completion rates, and wages by state), O*NET (occupation task data, for the linked AI-exposure scores).