Occupation · SOC 49-9021

Heating, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Mechanics and Installers: pay and where the jobs are

What heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers earn in the U.S., how pay varies across workers and states, and tools to plan around it.

BLS May 2025 data · methodology

National pay, May 2025

$61,010 median annual wage

Mean (average) annual wage
$64,780
Median hourly wage
$29.33
Mean hourly wage
$31.14
Employment
409,670

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 49-9021.

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See where your pay falls among heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers nationally and in your state. Nothing you type leaves your browser.

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How much do heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers make?

The median annual wage for heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers was $61,010 in May 2025, so half of workers earned more and half earned less. The lowest-paid 10% earned less than $40,050 and the highest-paid 10% more than $95,210. As an hourly rate, the median is $29.33. About 409,670 people work in this occupation nationwide. The highest state medians are in District of Columbia ($84,390), Alaska ($77,430) and Illinois ($77,410). After taxes and local prices, though, a median paycheck goes furthest in North Dakota.

Pay ladder

What each step of the pay range for heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers looks like per month. Take-home here includes federal tax, Social Security and Medicare for a single filer; add your state in the paycheck calculator.

Heating, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Mechanics and Installers: pay at each percentile
StepAnnualHourlyMonthly grossMonthly after federal tax & FICA
10th percentile$40,050$19.25$3,338$2,863
25th percentile$48,360$23.25$4,030$3,420
Median$61,010$29.33$5,084$4,267
75th percentile$77,060$37.05$6,422$5,253
90th percentile$95,210$45.78$7,934$6,318

Heating, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Mechanics and Installers: pay by state

54 states and territories have a published median, sorted from highest to lowest. The last two columns are our estimates: the median after 2026 federal and state taxes, and that take-home restated in national-average prices.

1

North Dakota

$68,616 take-home in national prices

2

Alaska

$61,578 take-home in national prices

3

Illinois

$59,626 take-home in national prices

Where a median heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installer paycheck goes furthest after 2026 taxes and BEA price levels.

Annual wages by state, May 2025, with after-tax and price-adjusted estimates
StateEmploymentMedian10th pct.90th pct.Median after tax*In national prices†
District of Columbia400$84,390$49,940$108,240$63,994$58,229
Alaska610$77,430$48,580$105,140$63,031$61,578
Illinois9,740$77,410$46,690$117,550$59,601$59,626
Massachusetts8,200$77,300$50,820$102,410$59,210$55,987
Connecticut3,800$76,610$45,280$100,160$58,879$56,827
Minnesota4,200$76,350$48,220$100,030$58,538$59,356
Washington7,370$75,660$48,810$120,360$61,007$57,009
North Dakota970$74,490$46,610$94,060$61,040$68,616
New Jersey10,330$74,450$48,020$116,550$58,137$53,432
New York24,430$74,430$48,560$100,680$57,417$53,202
New Hampshire2,560$73,850$47,520$97,140$60,783$58,353
California35,130$72,560$46,950$109,060$56,353$50,897
Maryland8,560$70,020$46,180$106,740$55,129$52,524
Rhode Island1,450$67,370$38,100$104,080$53,574$52,380
Hawaii1,300$65,450$43,120$99,430$51,271$46,631
Colorado8,940$65,200$48,220$103,640$52,121$50,577
Maine2,250$63,170$47,090$82,090$50,035$51,556
Oregon3,980$62,940$46,990$94,520$48,174$46,608
Ohio14,150$62,510$38,630$98,310$51,131$55,114
Pennsylvania15,880$62,400$45,970$89,440$50,359$51,612
Delaware1,730$62,320$45,000$97,600$49,223$49,318
Vermont970$62,150$50,280$93,110$50,469$51,521
Wisconsin6,630$61,710$45,930$98,070$49,609$52,723
South Dakota1,610$61,390$48,420$75,190$51,507$58,143
Michigan12,590$60,850$40,210$95,290$48,738$50,654
Montana1,230$60,850$41,900$81,230$48,970$51,740
Iowa3,840$60,680$43,040$86,280$49,282$56,155
Nevada4,170$60,510$41,040$89,750$50,800$50,810
Kansas3,770$60,460$43,660$83,500$48,186$53,499
Indiana8,530$60,430$40,460$97,800$48,982$52,483
Missouri7,220$59,950$39,180$88,760$48,470$53,371
Nebraska3,020$59,850$43,540$81,110$48,426$53,745
Virginia14,690$59,730$39,760$83,420$47,553$47,033
Arizona10,860$59,400$37,950$80,160$48,817$48,488
Utah5,580$58,730$37,570$80,500$47,195$47,738
Louisiana5,380$58,650$36,950$78,210$47,932$54,340
Kentucky5,100$58,620$38,790$80,020$47,347$52,515
Texas34,730$57,760$38,100$81,860$48,590$50,064
Oklahoma5,650$57,560$36,050$79,660$46,385$52,804
North Carolina15,230$57,260$37,780$77,160$46,412$49,204
Florida39,160$56,670$38,370$78,210$47,714$46,139
South Carolina6,920$56,610$39,170$75,530$46,228$49,311
Georgia12,290$56,390$36,990$79,130$45,424$47,173
Idaho4,550$56,240$38,660$80,780$45,496$47,643
Tennessee9,740$55,490$38,540$81,590$46,766$50,905
Wyoming690$54,700$37,840$79,050$46,131$49,769
New Mexico1,950$50,270$37,380$75,770$41,375$44,869
West Virginia1,690$48,850$36,160$72,640$40,035$44,734
Mississippi2,700$48,680$36,160$76,240$40,079$46,093
Alabama8,260$48,370$36,510$65,690$39,048$43,962
Arkansas4,960$48,110$37,040$69,290$39,544$45,486
Virgin Islands70$45,030$36,220$68,490——
Guam240$40,110$29,780$69,830——
Puerto Rico1,140$31,480$24,010$49,510——

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 49-9021. *Our estimate for a single filer paid biweekly with no pre-tax deductions or local tax, 2026 federal and state rules. †Take-home ÷ BEA Regional Price Parity × 100 (2024 price levels).

Sources

  1. OEWS May 2025 (oesm25nat.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.
  2. OEWS May 2025 (oesm25st.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.