How to become a carpet installer
Official title: Carpet installer
Also called: Carpet layer, Floor covering installer, Carpet installer apprentice, Carpeter, Carpet layer apprentice
Carpet installers lay, replace or repair carpet and underlay on floors.
Main tasks
- Install carpet and other flooring materials
- Measure rooms and flooring areas
- Cut carpet and flooring to size
- Prepare floors before installation
- Inspect floors for damage and repair
- Smooth floors before laying carpet
- Plan flooring layouts
- Read plans and installation instructions
How to become one
You need to do an apprenticeship to become a carpet installer and experience may be useful. You usually need NCEA Level 2 to do the study or training for this job. Required: to do an apprenticeship in floor installation and get a New Zealand Certificate in Flooring Installation (Level 4) or similar. Other requirements: a driver licence; experience in similar work.
Ways in
- Apprenticeship: Apprenticeship in ceiling, wall and floor installation. TEC links this job to study in building and construction. New Zealand apprenticeship (NZQA level 4). Qualifications: NZ Cert in Interior Linings Installation, NZ Cert in Proprietary Systems Installation, NZ Cert in Fibrous Plaster Manufacture. Usually 2 to 2.5 years. Graduates of these qualifications earn a median $65,000 a year one year after study and $72,000 five years after; 88% are employed one year after (TEC, from Stats NZ IDI data).
Pay · Past change
- Most common pay: $53,000 to $89,000 a year (median $69,000), a TEC estimate before tax.
- Upper: $126,000 a year
- TEC's pay figures are estimates only. TEC says they must not be used to set pay, in pay negotiations or in visa applications.
- Change in the number of people doing this job between the 2018 and 2023 Censuses: Steady (TEC). This is past change, not a forecast.
Who does this work
- About 850 people did this job at the 2023 Census (TEC).
Related jobs
- Building insulation worker
- Brush hand
- Flooring installer
- Floor finisher
- Wall and floor tiler
- Drywall and ceiling tile installer
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Questions people ask
How do I become a carpet installer?
You need to do an apprenticeship to become a carpet installer and experience may be useful. You usually need NCEA Level 2 to do the study or training for this job. Required: to do an apprenticeship in floor installation and get a New Zealand Certificate in Flooring Installation (Level 4) or similar. Other requirements: a driver licence; experience in similar work.
How much does a carpet installer earn in New Zealand?
The Tertiary Education Commission estimates median pay at $69,000 a year, before tax. Most common pay is $53,000 to $89,000 a year.
Has the number of people working as a carpet installer grown in New Zealand?
It has held steady: TEC records the number of people doing this job as steady between the 2018 and 2023 Censuses. This is past change, not a forecast.
Sources
- Tertiary Education Commission (Tahatu Career Navigator): Tahatu career ideas: descriptions, tasks, pay estimates, people employed, employment change 2018 to 2023, entry requirements, registration, interest scores (Site scrape 2026-10 (816 career ideas, sitemap lastmod 2026-10-01)), CC BY 4.0, retrieved 4 October 2026
This content is sourced from the Tertiary Education Commission through the Tahatū Career Navigator website (www.tahatu.govt.nz) and used under the CC BY 4.0 licence. All or some of the information has been modified by Peernovo. TEC has not approved, endorsed or tested these modifications. TEC will not be held accountable for any errors within this content.
Qualification information from NZQA, used under CC BY 3.0 NZ.
This work is based on/includes Stats NZ's data which are licensed by Stats NZ for reuse under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence. Census data via Figure.NZ.
Includes information from O*NET OnLine by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.
Sources: Tertiary Education Commission, Tahatū Career Navigator (career ideas, pay estimates, entry requirements and study options, CC BY 4.0, modified by Peernovo); Stats NZ, 2023 Census (via Figure.NZ) and the National Occupation List (CC BY 4.0); NZQA qualification information (CC BY 3.0 NZ); O*NET interest scores (CC BY 4.0); ILO global generative AI exposure index (CC BY 4.0). Links between career ideas and ANZSCO groups, degree fields and broad job groups are Peernovo's.
These results are not official statistics. They have been created for research purposes from the Integrated Data Infrastructure (IDI), which is carefully managed by Stats NZ.
Graduate outcomes: these results are not official statistics. They have been created for research purposes from the Integrated Data Infrastructure (IDI), which is carefully managed by Stats NZ.
Updated 4 October 2026