What is the median HVAC technician salary a year?

BLS puts the May 2025 median at $61,010 for employed HVAC mechanics and installers, with half earning between $48,360 and $77,060. The self-employed are not surveyed.

How much do HVAC technicians make an hour?

$29.33 an hour at the median for employed HVAC mechanics and installers, BLS May 2025. No contractor price list we read published an hourly labor rate, so this page has no hourly price for owner-operators.

How much do HVAC business owners make?

Census counts 189,085 plumbing, heating and air-conditioning contractors with no employees, at $78,607 average gross receipts in 2024. That figure includes plumbers and comes before parts, equipment, vehicle, insurance and tax. What an owner takes home is not published.

How much is an HVAC service call or diagnostic?

At the four contractors we read, a diagnostic or service-call fee runs $85 to $99: $85 at Frosty's, $89 at Deane Electric and $99 at SwiftPro. The repair is billed on top. Frosty's and Deane Electric charge plan members $0 for the diagnostic, and Frosty's charges non-members $250 for an after-hours service call. Four companies are not a survey.

How much does an HVAC tune-up or maintenance plan cost?

Tune-ups: $99 per system at SwiftPro, $150 flat at Frosty's and $155 at Airmasters. Plans: SwiftPro's Comfort+ is $199 a year or $20 a month for two HVAC maintenance visits, a dryer vent cleaning and a water heater flush. Airmasters' PRO plan is $295 a year and its MASTER plan $595, each with two tune-ups. Frosty's Premium plan is $300 a year with two tune-ups, and Deane Electric's AC plan is $19.99 a month with one tune-up. Each is one company's own page.

Can HVAC technicians make six figures?

Some employees come close or pass it: BLS puts the top-paid tenth of employed HVAC mechanics and installers at $95,210 and up. One technician on YouTube, Surf Bros HVAC, says they made $95,000 in nine months at a California company, which they put at about $120,000 a year. That is their own statement.

Do you need a license to be an HVAC technician?

The EPA requires Section 608 certification for technicians who service equipment that could release refrigerants. Running your own business also takes a state contractor license in many states: Texas asks for 48 months of experience, California four years in the class, North Carolina 4,000 hours. Rules differ by state, so check with your state's board.

Do you tip HVAC technicians?

The IRS lists home heating and air conditioning mechanics and installers as entry 405 in its Tipped Occupation Codes, under the same code, 49-9021, as the pay figures here. The list does not say whether or how much to tip, and this page makes no call on it.

How much do HVAC technicians make in California, Texas, Florida and New York?

BLS May 2025 medians for employed HVAC mechanics and installers: California $72,560 ($34.88 an hour, 35,130 employed), Texas $57,760 ($27.77, 34,730), Florida $56,670 ($27.24, 39,160), New York $74,430 ($35.78, 24,430). Census 2024 averages for plumbing, heating and air-conditioning contractors with no employees: California $84,830, Texas $74,745, Florida $59,609, New York $64,391.

Which state pays HVAC technicians the most?

The District of Columbia has the highest median for employed HVAC mechanics and installers, $84,390, then Alaska at $77,430 and Illinois at $77,410. The highest-paying area is Fairbanks-College, Alaska, at $93,820.

How long does it take to become an HVAC technician?

Postsecondary HVAC programs take 6 months to 2 years, BLS says, and an apprenticeship is the other route. A contractor license takes longer: Texas asks for 48 months of practical experience in the past 72 months.

HVAC technician pay

How Much Do HVAC Technicians Make?

Q: How much do HVAC technicians make?

Employed HVAC mechanics and installers earned a median of $61,010 a year in May 2025, in BLS figures that count employees only. The lowest-paid tenth earned under $40,050 and the top-paid tenth $95,210 or more. Owner-operators are not in these numbers.

Q: Do HVAC technicians get commission?

Some companies pay it. John Moore Services in Houston says in a service technician posting: "We pay 18% commission on service work and 9% on all equipment sales," and advertises $60,000 to $80,000 a year potential. That is one company's posting, not market pay.

Q: What is EPA 608 certification?

It is the EPA's refrigerant-handling certification for technicians, in four types: Type I for small appliances, Type II for high- or very high-pressure appliances, Type III for low-pressure appliances and Universal for all types. The credentials do not expire.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) wage survey counts employed HVAC mechanics and installers only, so the HVAC technician salary figures below leave out owners. Its Occupational Outlook Handbook adds that 6% of the trade work for themselves and 68% work for plumbing, heating and air-conditioning contractors. A plumbing, heating and air-conditioning contractor with no employees grosses more than the technician median, before parts, vehicle and insurance.

This page puts the technician's wage next to what a one-person contractor charges, taken from four contractors' own price lists. Below are three figures side by side, a ZIP code tool and a calculator.

$61,010 a year

Employed HVAC mechanics and installers' median, BLS May 2025[1]

The self-employed and owner-operators, whom BLS does not survey.

$95,210 a year

Where the top-paid tenth of employed HVAC mechanics start, BLS May 2025[1]

The other 90% of employees, and every owner-operator.

$40,050 a year

Where the lowest-paid tenth of employed HVAC mechanics stop, BLS May 2025[1]

The other 90%, and anyone who prices their own service calls.

Which of these you would be depends on how you earn: a wage, commission, or your own service calls.

HVAC technician pay near you

Employed HVAC technicians in Seattle earn a median of $80,100, against $61,010 nationally

Every US ZIP code is matched to its BLS area. 522 of the 528 BLS areas publish a median for HVAC mechanics and installers; the other six show their state figure. The county Census figure is not shown, because it mixes plumbers with HVAC contractors.

Your ZIP code

Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue pays employed HVAC technicians a median of $80,100

That is 31% above the $61,010 national median, across 3,940 jobs, in the BLS May 2025 figures for employees.

Employed HVAC technicians in New York-Newark-Jersey City earn a median of $77,990

BLS puts this May 2025 median 28% above the national one, across 21,820 jobs. Owner-operators are not in it.

Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands pays employed HVAC technicians a median of $58,940

That is 3% below the national median in the BLS May 2025 data, across 7,680 jobs held by employees.

Sources: BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 49-9021, by area, employees only. Census Nonemployer Statistics 2024, NAICS 23822, which counts plumbing, heating and air-conditioning contractors together; state figures appear in the table below, and county figures are not shown. ZIP codes are matched to counties with the Census ZIP-to-county file and sorted into rural and urban with USDA rural-urban codes. With a ZIP code, the calculator uses that area's employed pay level for the price, because no agency publishes self-employed pay by area. The lookup runs in your browser. It loads a small file for the first three digits of your ZIP code from this site and sends nothing else.

HVAC technician pay by state

Washington, DC pays employed HVAC technicians a median of $84,390; Arkansas pays $48,110

The table shows the national figure, the five highest and five lowest states for employed HVAC technicians, and the states that employ the most. The second column counts a different group: plumbing, heating and air-conditioning contractors with no employees.

State	Employed HVAC mechanics and installers, median a year (BLS May 2025)	One-person plumbing, heating and air-conditioning contractor, average gross (Census 2024)
United States	$61,010	$78,607
Highest five
District of Columbia	$84,390	$18,444
Alaska	$77,430	$99,072
Illinois	$77,410	$77,872
Massachusetts	$77,300	$98,007
Connecticut	$76,610	$109,291
Lowest five
Arkansas	$48,110	$83,254
Alabama	$48,370	$80,873
Mississippi	$48,680	$71,078
West Virginia	$48,850	$68,870
New Mexico	$50,270	$71,007
Most people employed in this job
Florida	$56,670	$59,609
California	$72,560	$84,830
Texas	$57,760	$74,745
New York	$74,430	$64,391
Pennsylvania	$62,400	$89,411
North Carolina	$57,260	$70,532

First column: BLS OEWS May 2025 state medians for SOC 49-9021, employees only. Second column: Census Nonemployer Statistics 2024 for NAICS 23822, average gross receipts before expenses, with plumbers counted alongside HVAC contractors.

Technician wage or your own service calls

A one-person plumbing, heating and air-conditioning contractor grosses $78,607 a year, against the $61,010 technician median

An employer sets a wage, sometimes with commission on top. Running your own service calls means you set the prices and pay the costs.

Choose one

AOn a wage or commission

+The BLS median for employed HVAC mechanics and installers is $61,010 a year, or $29.33 an hour, in May 2025.

+Half of those employees earn between $48,360 and $77,060 a year.

+John Moore Services in Houston advertises $60,000 to $80,000 a year potential for service technicians: "We pay 18% commission on service work and 9% on all equipment sales," plus product spiffs, semi-annual bonuses, a take-home vehicle and a gas card.

−The John Moore figures come from one company's posting, not market pay, and the posting gives no amounts for the spiffs.

−No company careers page we read gave a plain hourly range, so the BLS median is the nearest hourly figure.

BRunning your own service calls

+Census counts 189,085 plumbing, heating and air-conditioning contractors with no employees, averaging $78,607 in gross receipts in 2024, before parts, vehicle and insurance.

+New Hampshire ($125,777), Connecticut ($109,291) and Vermont ($108,990) have the highest state averages for that group.

+Four contractors publish diagnostic or service-call fees of $85 (Frosty's), $89 (Deane Electric) and $99 (SwiftPro, and Airmasters' PRO plan rate), with the repair billed on top. Tune-ups run $99 at SwiftPro, $150 at Frosty's and $155 at Airmasters.

+Maintenance plans bring the customer back: SwiftPro's $199 a year covers two visits, Airmasters' $295 and Frosty's $300 cover two tune-ups each, and Deane Electric's $19.99 a month covers one AC tune-up.

−The Census average mixes plumbers with HVAC contractors, so it is not what HVAC owners alone gross.

−These are four companies' own price lists, not a survey. None of the four published an hourly labor rate.

The money in an owner's week is service calls, plus maintenance plans that bring the customer back twice a year. ACCA's 2025 Contractor of the Future Study, run with Farmington Consulting Group, surveyed contractors in September and October 2025 and covers technician wages, but the findings were not published on the page we read, so this page prints no ACCA wage.

HVAC service income calculator

Work out what a year of service calls brings in before tax

Put in your own price, jobs, days and weeks. The defaults are examples taken from four contractors' published prices, not a survey.

Price per job$150An example between four contractors' $85 to $99 diagnostic fees and $155 tune-up, not a survey.Jobs a day3Count the jobs you finish on a working day.Days a week5Use your own week.Weeks a year48Weeks worked after time off.

Job income in a year$108,000
Your share$108,000
Card fees− $3,240

Before tax, a year$104,760about $2,015 a week

Checked November 2026. Parts, equipment, vehicle, insurance, license fees and tax are not deducted: subtract your own costs. Jobs, days and weeks are examples. With a ZIP code, the price follows that area's pay level.

HVAC license and certification

The EPA requires nearly all HVAC technicians to be certified to handle refrigerant

Licensing and certification decide who may run their own service calls. The facts below come from BLS, the EPA and three state agency pages we read in November 2026. Most states license HVAC contractors, and the rules differ; check your own state's board.

EPA Section 608 certification comes in four types and does not expire[5]

The EPA says technicians who "maintain, service, repair, or dispose of equipment that could release refrigerants into the atmosphere must be certified." The four types are Type I for small appliances, Type II for high- or very high-pressure appliances, Type III for low-pressure appliances, and Universal for all types. "Section 608 Technician Certification credentials do not expire." Apprentices are exempt while a certified technician closely and continually supervises them.

BLS says state licensing for HVAC work varies[2]

The Occupational Outlook Handbook says "The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requires nearly all HVAC technicians to be certified in proper refrigerant handling." It adds that state licensing requirements vary.

Texas asks HVAC contractors for 48 months of experience and liability insurance[7]

TDLR's Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Contractor license needs 48 months of practical experience in the past 72 months, or 36 months plus 12 months as a certified technician, and a written exam for Class A or Class B. Class A contractors carry commercial general liability insurance of $300,000 per occurrence, $600,000 aggregate and $300,000 products-completed operations; Class B carries $100,000, $200,000 and $100,000.

California's C-20 HVAC license needs four years of journey-level experience[8]

The Contractors State License Board asks for "at least four (4) years of experience, in the class you are applying for", at journey level, for the C-20 Warm-Air Heating, Ventilating and Air-Conditioning class. An exam is required. We did not verify the bond amount, so this page does not print one.

North Carolina licenses heating contractors in three groups after 4,000 hours[9]

The State Board of Examiners of Plumbing, Heating and Fire Sprinkler Contractors issues heating licenses in Heating Group No. 1, 2 and 3. Each asks for "2 years (4,000 hours) on-site full-time experience", up to half of which can come from academic or technical training, and each group has its own exam.

The IRS tipped occupation list includes HVAC mechanics and installers as entry 405[4]

Treasury's Tipped Occupation Code entry 405 reads: "Home heating and air conditioning mechanics and installers. Install or repair heating, central air conditioning, HVAC, or refrigeration systems. Air conditioning repairer, heating system installer, chimney sweep 49-9021". That is the same code, 49-9021, as the BLS pay figures on this page. The entry says nothing about whether customers tip, and this page gives no tax advice.

An HVAC technician's own number

One employed technician says they made about $90,000 in their last twelve months

We searched videos from 2023 to 2026 for HVAC technicians and owner-operators who gave their own income and do not sell courses or coaching. One technician qualified; no owner-operator gave a yearly figure we could use.

$90,000

a 12-month stretch at an employer, in a video published December 2024; before or after tax not stated

Surf Bros HVAC

YouTube · December 2024 · Arizona, then California

Employed service technician, five years in the tradeResidential HVAC

In the video they say they made about $75,000 to $80,000 in a year in Arizona, then $95,000 in nine months at a California company, which they put at about $120,000 a year, and about $90,000 in twelve months at a later job. These are one technician's own figures, not a survey.

How much do new HVAC technicians make

The lowest-paid tenth of employed HVAC technicians earn under $40,050

BLS reports $40,050 a year at the 10th percentile and $48,360 at the 25th for employed HVAC mechanics and installers in May 2025. Those are the nearest official figures to new-hire pay.

A quarter of employed HVAC technicians earn under $48,360[1]

That is the BLS 25th percentile for May 2025. The figure covers employees, not owner-operators.

Training takes 6 months to 2 years in a postsecondary program, or an apprenticeship[2]

Those are the two routes BLS lists into the trade.

New technicians need EPA Section 608 certification before they handle refrigerant[5]

An apprentice can work without it while closely and continually supervised by a certified technician. The credential does not expire once earned.

BLS projects 11% job growth from 2025 to 2035, with about 40,600 openings a year[2]

BLS calls that growth "much faster than average." It counted 440,900 jobs in the trade in 2025.

The step from technician to contractor is a state license[7][8][9]

Texas asks for 48 months of practical experience, California four years at journey level in the class, and North Carolina 4,000 hours. Most states license HVAC contractors, and the rules differ; check your own state's board.

What people ask about HVAC technician pay

Each bar counts the distinct ways people phrase the question in Google's suggestions, from fixed starting points per row at the same depth for every row, so the numbers compare. Phrasings that name a place are counted separately.

about payaround the edgesthe control

Is it worth it

203

Installs and system prices

200

Starting out

121

Per year

104

Per hour

Maintenance plans and tune-ups

Service call and per job

Owning an HVAC business

Companies and commission

By state or city

Domain and email

Whether HVAC work is worth it is the most-asked row, with 203 phrasings

This page gives no verdict on whether it is worth it; the figures are here to judge by. Installs and system prices came next with 200. We found no figure for install pay beyond the BLS band above and the four contractors' price lists, and none of them published an install price.

Starting out drew 121 phrasings, and pay per year drew 104

Starting out ranks third, which is why the first-year and licensing sections carry the training and EPA facts. Pay per hour drew 57 phrasings, and so did maintenance plans and tune-ups.

Service calls and pay per job drew 47 phrasings; owning an HVAC business drew 39

Companies and commission drew 35, and pay by state or city drew 12.

Measured by us in November 2026. Training (HVAC school) was measured too and is left off the chart.

HVAC technician pay questions

Booking software for HVACLet customers book service calls and pay online.How much do handymen makeThe same wage-against-business comparison for handymen.How much do pressure washers makeThe same comparison for pressure washing.

If you run your own HVAC service business, let customers book service calls and pay online between jobs.

Set up your services and prices once, then share one booking link.

A booking page that works as the link in your bio.
Each service with its own length and price, like an AC tune-up, a diagnostic visit or a maintenance plan visit.
A deposit at booking, or a card on file for later.
Tap to Pay on iPhone, to take a card in person.

Free to start. No credit card needed.

HVAC technician in a grey work shirt carrying a tool bag and ladder up a driveway, a white service van at the curb.

HVAC technician kneeling at an open furnace in a basement utility room, a lantern on the floor.

Gloved hands holding a manifold gauge set with red and blue hoses beside an outdoor condenser.

The kiwilaunch iPhone app showing today's bookings and payments

Services

Book now

Sources

Where every number on this page comes from, by publisher and release, with the date we read each web page.

Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025: Heating, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Mechanics and Installers (49-9021), national, state and area, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2026-05-15 Employees only; the self-employed are not surveyed. Of the 528 BLS areas, 522 publish a median for this job and six fall back to their state figure.
Occupational Outlook Handbook: Heating, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Mechanics and Installers, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2026-11-10 Page last modified October 29, 2026. Source of the job count, the self-employed share, the growth projection, the training routes and the EPA certification quote.
Nonemployer Statistics 2024: Plumbing, Heating, and Air-Conditioning Contractors (NAICS 23822), national and state, U.S. Census Bureau, 2026-09-29 Gross receipts of businesses with no paid employees, before parts, equipment, vehicle, insurance and tax. Census does not publish 238220 separately, so plumbers and HVAC contractors are counted together. County figures are not shown.
Tipped Occupation Codes, entry 405: Home heating and air conditioning mechanics and installers, Internal Revenue Service, U.S. Department of the Treasury, 2026-11-10
Section 608 Technician Certification Requirements, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 2026-11-10 Who must be certified, the four certification types, that credentials do not expire, and the apprentice exemption.
Service technician job posting, Houston, Texas, John Moore Services, 2026-11-10 One company's posting, posted November 2026; not market pay.
Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Contractor: how to apply, Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, 2026-11-10
Experience requirements for the contractor license exam, Contractors State License Board, California, 2026-11-10
Applicant information, North Carolina State Board of Examiners of Plumbing, Heating and Fire Sprinkler Contractors, 2026-11-10
Contractor of the Future Study, with Farmington Consulting Group, Air Conditioning Contractors of America (ACCA), 2026-11-10 A free webinar sign-up page for the study, which surveyed contractors in September and October 2025 and covers technician wages and benefits. The findings were not published on the page we read, so this page prints no ACCA wage.
How Much Do HVAC Techs Make? Not What You Think..., Surf Bros HVAC, YouTube, 2024-12-10
HVAC service cost (contractor's own blog), SwiftPro, Chantilly, Virginia, 2026-11-10 Updated October 27, 2026. One contractor's own prices, not a survey.
Frosty Club membership (contractor's own page), Frosty's, Euless, Texas, 2026-11-10
HVAC maintenance membership FAQs (contractor's own blog), Airmasters, Cleburne, Texas, 2026-11-10 Posted April 2026. The live page refuses automated reads; every figure we print checks out on the Internet Archive capture of May 20, 2026: http://web.archive.org/web/20260520220916/https://www.airmasters-inc.com/blog/2026/april/hvac-maintenance-membership-20-faqs-answered-/
Comfort Club membership (contractor's own page), Deane Electric, Killeen, Texas, 2026-11-10
Stripe pricing, standard US card rate, Stripe, 2026-10-25 The card processor kiwilaunch uses; quoted for the 3% card fee in the calculator.

Not tax, legal or financial advice. Prices, pay and what you keep vary by state and city, licensing rules differ by state, and the tax rules on tips have conditions. A tax professional who knows your situation can answer for you.