Why Pest Control Cannot Hire: The Trade Pay Gap, Verified
Pest control pays $45,250 against $63,800 for plumbers. We checked the widely cited trade pay gaps against BLS and they are wrong.
Pest control technicians earn a median of $45,250 against $63,800 for plumbers, $63,190 for electricians and $61,010 for HVAC technicians. That is a gap of 41.0%, 39.6% and 34.8% respectively, verified against BLS May 2025 data. Over half of pest control companies report persistent hiring difficulty, and 45% now rank recruiting and retention as their biggest business threat.
The pay gap between pest control and the other skilled trades is the structural fact behind every hiring conversation in this industry. It is widely cited and, as far as we can establish, widely misquoted. We pulled the figures from the BLS API directly.
What pest control pays against the other trades
All figures are national annual median wages from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics programme, May 2025.
| Occupation | SOC code | Median annual wage | National employment | Premium over pest control |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pest control workers | 37-2021 | $45,250 | 102,620 | Baseline |
| General maintenance and repair workers | 49-9071 | $49,590 | 1,529,700 | +9.6% |
| Carpenters | 47-2031 | $60,580 | 670,090 | +33.9% |
| HVAC mechanics and installers | 49-9021 | $61,010 | 409,670 | +34.8% |
| Electricians | 47-2111 | $63,190 | 757,220 | +39.6% |
| Plumbers, pipefitters, steamfitters | 47-2152 | $63,800 | 465,840 | +41.0% |
A correction worth noting. Widely circulated figures state that HVAC pays about 28% more than pest control, plumbers about 42% more and electricians nearly 44% more. Against BLS May 2025 the actual gaps are 34.8%, 41.0% and 39.6%. The HVAC gap is understated in the common version and the electrician gap overstated. The direction is right; the numbers are not.
The competitive set is bigger than you think
The comparison that matters for hiring is not only the high-paying trades. General maintenance and repair workers, at $49,590, employ 1,529,700 people nationally, nearly fifteen times pest control’s 102,620. That occupation pays only 9.6% more and requires no pesticide certification.
That is the realistic alternative for many candidates: a job that pays modestly better, has far more openings, and carries no exam, no continuing education and no regulatory liability. Competing against electricians on wages is not the immediate problem. Competing against building maintenance is.
What the hiring market looks like
| Indicator | Reported figure |
|---|---|
| Companies expecting to retain 75% or more of staff in 2026 | 91%, down from 94% |
| Companies with retention below 79% | 18% |
| Companies ranking recruiting and retention as their biggest threat | 45% |
| Average time to fill a technician role | 45 to 60 days |
| Candidates who stop responding after interview | 61%, up 9 points since 2024 |
| Companies planning to raise technician wages | 89% |
These are industry survey figures reported by trade sources in 2026 rather than federal statistics, and sample methods are not published. Treat them as directional.
What a vacancy actually costs
The useful number here is not a survey figure, it is the one from your own route. Census data puts revenue per employee at about $139,825 a year across the industry, roughly $560 per working day.
A role vacant for the reported 45 to 60 days is therefore somewhere near $25,000 to $34,000 of unproduced revenue at industry-average productivity, before considering the effect on service quality for accounts absorbed by other technicians. Against that, a wage increase of $3,000 to $5,000 on an existing technician is a small number.
The retention arithmetic follows the same logic. Since payroll runs 36% of revenue industry-wide, there is room to move on wages before the ratio breaks, and the constraint is usually route density rather than the rate itself. Our guide to pricing pest control services sets out where that pressure actually sits.
Where the pay ceiling is, and how to use it
Pest control has a comparatively high floor and a low ceiling. The national 90th percentile is $61,890 against a 10th percentile of $34,680, a ratio of 1.78, which is narrow for a skilled trade. That shapes what you can credibly offer.
- Sell the entry, not the peak. The trade offers licensed work with no degree and employer-funded certification, which competes well against general maintenance.
- Add categories to add earnings. Fumigation categories carry more regulatory responsibility and sit toward the upper end of the distribution.
- Use geography honestly. State medians range from $37,660 in Texas to $51,300 in Washington, detailed in our technician pay breakdown.
- Route density is a retention tool. Less windscreen time is a genuine quality-of-work improvement that costs nothing per hour.
- Fund certification. Paying for exams is cheap against 45 to 60 days of vacancy.
For candidates weighing the trade, our guide to becoming a pest control technician covers the route in.
Frequently asked questions
How much less do pest control technicians earn than other trades?
Against BLS May 2025 national medians, pest control workers earn $45,250 while plumbers earn $63,800 (+41.0%), electricians $63,190 (+39.6%), HVAC technicians $61,010 (+34.8%) and carpenters $60,580 (+33.9%). General maintenance workers earn $49,590, only 9.6% more.
Why is it hard to hire pest control technicians?
Pay sits below comparable trades and the nearest alternative, general maintenance and repair, pays 9.6% more with no certification requirement and roughly fifteen times as many positions nationally. Over half of companies report persistent hiring difficulty, average time to fill runs 45 to 60 days, and 61% of candidates stop responding after interview.
What does an unfilled technician position cost?
At the industry average of about $139,825 revenue per employee, roughly $560 per working day, a vacancy lasting the reported 45 to 60 days represents approximately $25,000 to $34,000 of unproduced revenue. That is before any effect on service quality for accounts absorbed by remaining technicians.
Can pest control companies afford to raise wages?
Payroll runs 36% of revenue industry-wide, and firms with 5 to 9 employees run higher at 38.4% while the largest run lower at 33.1% on route density. That suggests the binding constraint is usually route efficiency rather than the wage rate itself. A raise of $3,000 to $5,000 is small against the cost of a two-month vacancy.
Sources
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, national annual median wages, SOC 37-2021, 47-2031, 47-2111, 47-2152, 49-9021 and 49-9071. Retrieved via the BLS public API v2. bls.gov/oes
- U.S. Census Bureau, Statistics of U.S. Businesses 2022, NAICS 561710, revenue per employee and payroll share.
- Retention, time-to-fill and wage intention figures reported by pest control trade sources, 2026. Survey methods are not published.