How much do environmental technicians make in 2026?
Environmental technicians are counted in the BLS environmental science and protection technicians, including health series: OEWS May 2025 gives SOC 19-4042 a national median of $55,090 a year ($26.49 an hour), with the bottom 10% near $38,170 and the top 10% at $94,160 across 34,670 workers. That code pools every technician-level environmental role — sampling crews, laboratory support, monitoring, inspection and compliance assistance — so it is a technician median rather than a figure specific to any one programme. The band is wider than most technician codes, and the reason is that the top of it is not really technician work: it is lead technicians running crews, HAZWOPER-qualified site staff on remediation projects, and technicians who have absorbed enough regulatory content to prepare submissions themselves. The floor is seasonal and entry sampling work, which is plentiful, competitive and paid accordingly. The single most useful thing a technician can hold is a stack of current field certifications — 40-hour HAZWOPER, confined space, DOT hazmat shipping, state water or wastewater operator grades — because each one removes a job the employer would otherwise have to subcontract. Employment is projected to grow 4% through 2034 with roughly 5,600 openings a year. → Full environmental technician career guide, career path, credentials & placement →
Note: $55,090 blends every experience level and every setting in this occupation. For pay by level alone, see Pay by Level below.
- Environmental Technicians earn a national median $55,090/yr ($26.49/hr) (BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 19-4042); the P10 to P90 range is $38,170 to $94,160.
- The $38,170 to $94,160 band is unusually wide for a technician code because its top end is lead and specialist work — crew leadership, remediation site staffing and compliance preparation — not routine sampling.
- Stackable field certifications are the fastest lever: each of HAZWOPER, confined space, DOT hazmat and state operator grades removes work the employer would otherwise subcontract.
- Entry sampling work is competitive and seasonal, so the first eighteen months are about accumulating qualifications rather than negotiating pay.
US Environmental Technician Pay Distribution · BLS OEWS May 2025
Pay by Level · BLS OEWS May 2025
How much do environmental technicians earn at each level?
BLS OEWS publishes one blended wage for the whole occupation and does not break pay out by credential or practice level. The levels below distribute the published percentile range across the credential tiers this role actually hires at.
Level medians are aligned to the BLS OEWS May 2025 percentile distribution for SOC 19-4042; GlobalCybers does not yet publish a verified placement sample for this role, so no verified median is shown.
Methodology & Sources
How the numbers on this page are built
Published (BLS): BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 19-4042, United States national estimate. Public, methodologically rigorous, but sampled on a rolling 3-year basis and published ~10 months after collection — so it reflects wages that are already 1–2 years old by the time you read them.
Level and certification medians: distributed across the published BLS percentile range for this SOC code (P10 through P90) according to the credential tiers this occupation actually hires at. They are modeled reference points, not separately surveyed wages.
State and metro figures: modeled — the BLS national median multiplied by the GlobalCybers state wage index, and for metros by the published metro index for that state. They are estimates of local pay, not BLS state or metropolitan-area observations, and are labelled as modeled in the tables below.
No verified placement sample:GlobalCybers does not yet publish a placement median for this role, so no "verified" figure appears anywhere on this page.
Pay by Career Level
How much does an environmental technician earn at each career stage?
Technician pay follows the certifications you hold and whether you can run a site without a scientist present. Each median is anchored to the BLS OEWS distribution for SOC 19-4042.
By State
Which states pay environmental technicians the most in 2026?
These are modeled state estimates — the national environmental technician median scaled by the GlobalCybers state wage index — not BLS state observations. Field technician pay follows the volume of regulated sampling work in a state more closely than its cost of living, so states with large remediation or drinking water programmes support more upper-band roles.
6 of 51 state guides shown, ranked by median. Bar is relative to California ($63,350), the highest-paying state shown. See all role salary guides →
By Metro
Which cities pay environmental technicians the most?
Modeled metro estimates: the national median scaled by the state wage index and then by that state's published metro index. They estimate local wage levels and are not BLS metropolitan-area observations. Technicians are frequently dispatched from a metro office to sites across a wide region, so the office location sets the pay rather than the site.
BLS OEWS MSA estimates, May 2025. Nominal pay — weigh each metro against its cost of living before relocating.
Certification Impact
Which certifications raise an environmental technician’s pay the most?
Median annual pay before and after each credential, based on GlobalCybers placement data cross-referenced with BLS. License upgrades move the needle most; stackable certs add on top.
Impacts are not additive, the licensing rows share the same career ladder. Browse all 167 certifications →
Trade Comparison
How does environmental technician pay compare to related roles?
BLS OEWS national median across the closest trades. Environmental Technicians sit mid-pack on median but carry one of the widest P10–P90 spreads, licensing and specialization drive the upside.
BLS OEWS May 2025. Verify environmental technician wages on BLS.gov →
Take-Home Pay
What does an environmental technician actually take home after taxes?
The medians above are gross base wage.
Estimates use 2026 federal brackets, standard deduction, and 7.65% FICA. Actual take-home varies with filing status, deductions, and local tax.
FAQ
Environmental Technician Salary, Frequently Asked Questions
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