How much can Web Developers make?

That depends how smart they are.

It depends on your skill set, I would say. If you are building static sites, hundreds will be the more occurring figure on your paycheck, on the other hand, if you can build portals with all the latest features and web 2.0 tech, sky is the limit.

It all depends on your abilities, resume, word of mouth, creativity, etc, etc.

I started out many years ago building adult websites. When I got on Rent-A-Coder, now vWorker, I did websites for cheap prices, mainly to build my portfolio. I also did a couple pro-bono jobs for a charity and a local church.

Now, I'm only available on a freelance basis and don't have to advertise or anything because I have design firms, media companies, and ad agencies, that get a hold of me if they are backed up or need some temporary help.

Best thing you can do for yourself and put out the VERY BEST work you can ALWAYS. No matter if it's pro-bono, for a friend, etc. If your going to design a website for ANY reason, give it 110% of your best; because, you never know who's going to see it later.

The best thing I can tell you is to find a niche like Doctors, Lawyers, Restaurants that why you can target one or two service or industries.

As a Sys dev, web dev is somewhat differnet - its more of a jack-of-all-trades role.

The key is to make yourtself unique from the many other web devs that are around - lets get one thing straight - its NOT hard to do.... but to be good at it, you have to have something to sell and not be at the learning stage. If you want to learn, do it pro for a while and get some experience.

Then you get onto what is web dev? Design? CSS? etc isnt development - its creating. Programming something and designing something are 2 completely different skill sets and it amazes me the amount of people that think you can 'learn' programming to a decent level - its to do with how you think. (are you a problem solver? no? programming isnt for you).

Sure you might get by, but then there are hundreds of thousands of other web devs out there to do the same job to a better level.

With that said, theres no limit - i know several web devs earning in excess of $100k/year in a professional role with a little outsourced work from a former employer - because they are good at one part of it, the rest lands on their lap.

Future outlook? If i could predict the future i'd be worth a hell of a lot more

Between $0 - $Infinite..

Depends on your skills..speed...communication...focus !

You can make good money as a web developer dude, but you have to be smart about it. Outsourcing is the key.

If youre interested, take a look at my business kit in my signature link. Ive been a freelance web developer since 2001.

Thanks for all of your thoughts and advice!

As with any job, it's relative to your level of education, skill sets, experience, and even downright luck sometimes. If you have the skills and business acumen, though, you will generally make a lot more money working for yourself, and that's true with just about any job, IMO.

Here's some general info regarding the occupational outlook and such:

About.com: http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos042.htm