What is the salary and career path for a appliance repair technician?
Appliance repair technicians map exactly onto the BLS code Home Appliance Repairers, SOC 49-9031, with an OEWS May 2025 median of $50,990 a year ($24.51 an hour) and a spread from $36,190 at the 10th percentile to $80,660 at the 90th. Entry is through a high school diploma plus employer or factory training, or a one-year appliance or electronics programme at a community college; no state licenses appliance repair technicians as a trade. The one federal requirement that bites is EPA Section 608 certification under the Clean Air Act, which any technician who opens the sealed refrigerant system of a refrigerator, freezer or heat-pump dryer must hold — Type I for small appliances. BLS projects 2.6% growth over 2024–2034, close to flat, with only about 3,100 openings a year, so this is a small occupation where earnings depend heavily on whether you work as an employee, a factory-authorised servicer or an owner running your own route.
- Appliance Repair Technicians earn a national median $50,990/yr ($24.51/hr) (BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 49-9031); the top 10% clear $80,660.
- No state licenses the trade, but EPA Section 608 certification is federally required to open any sealed refrigerant system.
- BLS projects 2.6% change 2024–34 — effectively flat — with only about 3,100 openings a year in a small occupation.
- Earnings are driven by sealed-system capability, factory brand authorisation and ultimately owning the route rather than by years served.
Career Path
How do you become a appliance repair technician?
Service helper / trainee
Riding along, handling installs, hauling and simple part swaps while learning the model lines; pay starts near the SOC 49-9031 10th percentile of $36,190.
Appliance Repair Technician
Running a solo route and diagnosing laundry, refrigeration and cooking appliances, around the $50,990 national median for the code.
Senior / factory-authorised technician
Sealed-system and high-end brand authorisation with a strong first-call completion rate earns toward the 75th percentile of $63,390.
Service manager or independent shop owner
Owning a route, holding manufacturer authorisations and billing your own labour rate is what reaches the 90th percentile at $80,660.
BLS Salary Data
Which state pays appliance repair technicians the most in 2026?
Source: BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 49-9031. National median: $50,990. Full salary guide →
Pay Comparison
How does appliance repair technician pay compare to related roles?
Head-to-head against the roles appliance repair technicians most often weigh against. BLS OEWS May 2025 medians.
Takeaway: appliance repair technicians rank 4 of 4 on median pay among the comparable roles above, with a projected +2.6% employment change 2024–34 (BLS Employment Projections). Pay position and projected demand together are what determine how quickly appliance repair technicians clear offers across the GlobalCybers placement network.
Methodology & Sources
How this guide is sourced and reviewed
Wages (BLS): All median and percentile figures are BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 49-9031 (appliance repair technicians) and the matching SOC codes for each comparison role. OEWS is sampled on a rolling 3-year basis and published ~10 months after collection, so treat it as a firm anchor rather than a spot rate.
Job growth: Projected 2024–34 employment change, and the average annual openings figure, are from the BLS Employment Projections program, by occupation. Openings are a per-year average over the projection decade, not a decade total.
Licensing & credentials:Requirements are drawn from the issuing state licensing boards and the certifying body behind each credential — not from third-party aggregators.
Demand signal:Any statement about how quickly this role clears offers reflects GlobalCybers placement request volume across the trailing 12 months — our own network data, offered as a directional real-world indicator alongside BLS, not a market-wide survey.
Credentials
What licences and certifications do appliance repair technicians need?
Issued through EPA-approved certifying organisations; legally required to purchase refrigerant and to open a sealed system, with Type I covering small appliances and Universal covering all types. See all state licences →
Brand-specific training and servicer agreements are what grant access to warranty claims, technical bulletins and parts pricing — the practical gate on high-end refrigeration work.
The National Appliance Service Technician Certification and Professional Service Association credentials are the recognised independent competency tests in an unlicensed trade.
No state licenses the trade itself, but independent servicers need a local business licence and often a surety bond and liability insurance to work in occupied homes.
Tools & Software
What tools and software do appliance repair technicians use on the job?
⚙️ Core Tools & Equipment
📊 BLS Employment Data, SOC 49-9031
Salary Levers
How do appliance repair technicians earn above the $50,990 BLS median?
Sealed-system capability with EPA 608
Technicians who can recover, braze and recharge refrigeration take work that non-certified techs must refuse, lifting them off the $36,190 floor
Factory authorisation on premium brands
Warranty and high-end refrigeration work pays better per call and pushes earnings toward the $63,390 seventy-fifth percentile
Flat-rate and commission pay structures
Route technicians paid per completed call earn on first-call fix rate rather than hours, which widens the spread inside the code
Owning the route
Setting your own labour rate, parts margin and service-call fee is the main path to the $80,660 top decile
This Route vs. College
Is becoming an appliance repair technician worth it vs. a 4-year degree?
The entry route into this role, set against a four-year degree. Same starting line, side by side.
Entry-level (10th percentile) and all-level median wages: BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 49-9031. Student-debt figure: median federal borrower balance for bachelor's-degree completers. Starting-salary comparison is illustrative and varies by field and region.
FAQ
Appliance Repair Technician Career, Frequently Asked Questions
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