HVAC Technicians Salary: $76,478 Median Pay (2026 stats)
TL;DR
About 396,870 hvac technicians nationally earn a mean of $76,478. Employment in the series shown fell about 5% from the first to the last year; projections imply about 5.4% annual growth.
Key Statistics
HVAC Technicians: what the data shows
Common questions about hvac technicians careers, answered from BLS OEWS and O*NET in this repository.
What is a hvac technicians?
HVAC Technicians is tracked by the Bureau of Labor Statistics under SOC 49-9021.
Heating, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Mechanics and Installers
U.S. employment in our OEWS extract is about 396,870 workers.
What does a hvac technicians do?
O*NET work activities rated highest for this occupation include Getting Information, Performing General Physical Activities, Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials, Making Decisions and Solving Problems, Handling and Moving Objects, Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events, and related tasks. See Work Activities for the full list.
How much does a hvac technicians make?
BLS national median annual wage: $59,810 (May 2024 in our extract).
Mean annual wage in our occupational extract: $76,478 — higher than the median, which often reflects top earners in the distribution.
| Wage percentile | Annual wage |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $48,247 |
| 25th percentile | $57,233 |
| Median (50th) | $67,050 |
| 75th percentile | $87,004 |
| 90th percentile | $110,501 |
What education do you need?
For HVAC Technicians, O*NET incumbent surveys in our extract most often report: Some college (29%), High School or Equivalent (27%), Bachelors Degree (22%).
These are education levels of current workers, not minimum legal requirements.
What skills do you need?
O*NET ratings for this occupation emphasize skills such as Operations Monitoring, Troubleshooting, Critical Thinking, Repairing, Installation, Reading Comprehension, and knowledge areas including Mechanical, Building and Construction, Customer and Personal Service, Engineering and Technology. See Education & Skills for detail.
Is hvac technicians in demand?
Historical employment trend in our series implies about 5.4% annual growth (compound rate in the extract).
Five-year projected employment change: 29.8%.
Ten-year projected employment change: 68.6%.
Current U.S. headcount: 396,870.
We report federal series only—compare wages, growth, and openings against your target market.
Where do hvac technicianss work?
Top industries by employment share in our OEWS industry extract:
| Industry | Employment | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Cross-industry | 396,870 | 17.0% |
| Cross-industry, Private Ownership only | 377,330 | 16.2% |
| Construction | 302,390 | 13.0% |
| Specialty Trade Contractors | 299,220 | 12.8% |
| Building Equipment Contractors | 298,000 | 12.8% |
| Plumbing, Heating, and Air-Conditioning Contractors | 290,620 | 12.5% |
See Industry for charts.
What degrees lead to this career?
Common majors for HVAC Technicians in O*NET:
See Related degrees.
What careers are related?
Other occupations linked through shared degree pathways in our mapping:
| Occupation | U.S. employment | Median wage |
|---|---|---|
| Electrical and Electronics Repairers | 59,990 | $71,300 |
| Carpenters | 697,740 | $59,310 |
| Plumbers | 33,580 | $48,710 |
| Electricians | 742,580 | $62,350 |
| Mechanical Engineers | 286,760 | $102,320 |
| Aircraft Mechanics and Service Technicians | 136,390 | $78,680 |
| Computer Hardware Engineers | 75,710 | $155,020 |
Employment
Employment and salary information for the HVAC Technicians workforce.
Employment Over Time
396,870 Workforce in 2023
The HVAC Technicians workforce has been growing over time.
Historical employment trends for HVAC Technicians.
Yearly Wage Ranking
$76,478 Average Wage
In 2023, HVAC Technicians earned an average of $76,478.
Wage ranking compared to other occupations.
Wage Distribution
This chart shows the distribution of average salaries by income buckets for HVAC Technicians.
Salary distribution for HVAC Technicians.
Employment Growth Projections
5.4% Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR)
175,048 Projected Employment (5 years)
Projected growth: 29.8%
227,281 Projected Employment (10 years)
Projected growth: 68.6%
This occupation is projected to grow at 5.4% annually, indicating strong future demand.
Historical employment trends and future projections for HVAC Technicians.
Industry
Information on the industries that employ HVAC Technicians and on wages for those in the field.
Occupations by Industries
This graphic shows the share of HVAC Technicians employed by various industries.
Industry distribution for HVAC Technicians.
Wage Trends by Industry
3.0% Average Annual Wage Growth Rate
Historical wage growth trends by industry for HVAC Technicians.
Geographic Distribution
Employment and wage information by geographic location for HVAC Technicians.
Metropolitan employment on this page is from the California OEWS extract. Area names omit state codes; all listed metros are in California, so the state chart shows California totals (not a multi-state ranking).
Top States by Employment
Top States by Employment:
- CA: 31,980 employees, $76,810 avg wage
Top 10 states by employment for HVAC Technicians.
Top Metropolitan Areas
Top Metropolitan Areas:
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale MD: 5,700 employees, $75,276 avg wage
- Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario MSA: 5,380 employees, $71,056 avg wage
- Anaheim-Santa Ana-Irvine MD: 3,720 employees, $77,955 avg wage
- Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom MSA: 3,030 employees, $75,204 avg wage
- San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad MSA: 2,810 employees, $76,652 avg wage
- Oakland-Fremont-Berkeley MD: 2,250 employees, $85,573 avg wage
- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara MSA: 2,050 employees, $98,147 avg wage
- Fresno MSA: 1,180 employees, $67,061 avg wage
- San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City MD: 1,150 employees, $89,273 avg wage
- Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura MSA: 840 employees, $67,769 avg wage
Top 10 metropolitan statistical areas by employment for HVAC Technicians.
Diversity
Demographic information on HVAC Technicians in the US.
Gender and Age
The workforce of HVAC Technicians in 2023 was 396,870 people, with 62.0% women and 38.0% men.
Gender and age distribution for HVAC Technicians.
Races
Racial and ethnic shares when present in the career dataset. If the chart area shows a notice instead, occupational race/ethnicity fields are not yet populated for this extract.
Race and ethnicity distribution for HVAC Technicians.
Education & Skills
Data on higher education choices and required skills for HVAC Technicians.
Majors
The most common majors achieved by HVAC Technicians in 2023 were Hvac Technology, Mechanical Engineering, Technical Training.
Common majors for HVAC Technicians.
Education Levels
The main educational levels achieved by HVAC Technicians workers.
Education level distribution for HVAC Technicians.
Skills
HVAC Technicians need many skills, but most especially Operations Monitoring, Troubleshooting, Critical Thinking, Repairing, Installation.
Required skills for HVAC Technicians.
Knowledge & Abilities
Knowledge areas and abilities required for HVAC Technicians.
Knowledge Areas
The most important knowledge areas for HVAC Technicians include Mechanical, Building and Construction, Customer and Personal Service, Engineering and Technology, Computers and Electronics.
Knowledge areas required for HVAC Technicians.
Abilities
Key abilities needed for HVAC Technicians include Near Vision, Problem Sensitivity, Deductive Reasoning, Arm-Hand Steadiness, Oral Comprehension.
Required abilities for HVAC Technicians.
Work Activities
Common work activities performed by HVAC Technicians.
Daily Activities
HVAC Technicians spend their time on activities such as Getting Information, Performing General Physical Activities, Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials, Making Decisions and Solving Problems, Handling and Moving Objects.
Most important work activities for HVAC Technicians.
About
Heating, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Mechanics and Installers
The average yearly wage for HVAC Technicians was $76,478 in 2023.
SOC Code
49-9021 - HVAC Technicians
Insights and Analysis
Compensation snapshot: HVAC Technicians reports an average salary of $76,478.
Labor market presence: The current workforce is approximately 396,870 workers, indicating sustained demand.
Forward outlook: Projected annual growth is 5.4%, which should inform long-term career planning.
Data Sources
This page uses data from the following sources:
- College Scorecard - U.S. Department of Education
- Institutional characteristics, costs, completion rates, and earnings data
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: collegescorecard.ed.gov
- Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS)
- Employment and wage data by occupation
- Latest data: May 2024
- Source: bls.gov/oes
- O*NET Online - U.S. Department of Labor
- Occupational skills, knowledge, abilities, and work activities
- Database version: 28.0 (August 2023)
- Source: onetcenter.org
- IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) - National Center for Education Statistics
- Institutional data, completions, enrollment, and financial aid
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: nces.ed.gov/ipeds
- Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS)
- Demographic and workforce data
- Latest data: 2023 ACS 5-Year Estimates
- Source: census.gov/acs
Data Processing: All data has been processed, cleaned, and aggregated for presentation. Where specific data points are unavailable, estimates are based on available data and clearly marked.
Last Updated: Data reflects the most recent available information as of January 2025.
Methodology
Data for this profile is sourced from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS), and O*NET Online.
All wage figures represent annual averages and may vary by location, industry, and experience level.