How much do groundskeepers make in 2026?
Groundskeepers are counted in the BLS landscaping and groundskeeping workers series: OEWS May 2025 gives SOC 37-3011 a national median of $39,150 a year ($18.82 an hour), with the bottom 10% near $31,150 and the top 10% at $56,730 across 952,640 workers. It is one of the largest occupational codes in the wage data, and this site shares it with our landscaper and irrigation technician records. The published median reflects the bulk of that population — residential and commercial landscape maintenance crews, much of it seasonal and physically demanding. The better-paid part of this occupation is the institutional and sports side, which is a genuinely different job. Sports turf management at a stadium, golf course maintenance, university and campus grounds, and botanical or public garden work require agronomy knowledge, irrigation and drainage understanding, pesticide applicator licensing and equipment skills that residential maintenance does not. Those positions are year-round rather than seasonal, which by itself changes annual earnings substantially, and they progress into assistant superintendent and superintendent roles at the top of this band and beyond it. State pesticide applicator certification is the most useful single credential, because it is legally required to apply many products and immediately widens what someone can be assigned to do. Employment is projected to grow 3.6% through 2034 with roughly 158,200 openings a year. → Full groundskeeper career guide, career path, credentials & placement →
Note: $39,150 blends every experience level and every setting in this occupation. For pay by level alone, see Pay by Level below.
- Groundskeepers earn a national median $39,150/yr ($18.82/hr) (BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 37-3011); the P10 to P90 range is $31,150 to $56,730.
- The institutional and sports side of this occupation — stadium turf, golf, campus and botanical grounds — is a genuinely different job with agronomy knowledge behind it and year-round employment.
- Year-round versus seasonal employment changes annual earnings more than the hourly rate does, which is why institutional roles outperform the $39,150 median so clearly.
- State pesticide applicator certification is the most immediately useful credential, because it is legally required for many products and widens what someone can be assigned to do.
US Groundskeeper Pay Distribution · BLS OEWS May 2025
Pay by Level · BLS OEWS May 2025
How much do groundskeepers 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 37-3011; 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 37-3011, 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 a groundskeeper earn at each career stage?
Groundskeeping pay follows specialism, licensing and whether the work is year-round. Each median is anchored to the BLS OEWS distribution for SOC 37-3011.
By State
Which states pay groundskeepers the most in 2026?
These are modeled state estimates — the national groundskeeping median scaled by the GlobalCybers state wage index — not BLS state observations. Climate matters as much as wage level here: states with year-round growing seasons offer continuous employment, while northern states concentrate the work into a shorter season and depress annual earnings regardless of the hourly rate.
6 of 51 state guides shown, ranked by median. Bar is relative to California ($45,020), the highest-paying state shown. See all role salary guides →
By Metro
Which cities pay groundskeepers 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. Institutional employers — universities, hospitals, stadiums, municipal parks — cluster in metros and offer the steadier positions in this occupation.
BLS OEWS MSA estimates, May 2025. Nominal pay — weigh each metro against its cost of living before relocating.
Certification Impact
Which certifications raise a groundskeeper’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 groundskeeper pay compare to related roles?
BLS OEWS national median across the closest trades. Groundskeepers 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 groundskeeper wages on BLS.gov →
Take-Home Pay
What does a groundskeeper 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
Groundskeeper Salary, Frequently Asked Questions
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