How much do pharmacy technicians make in 2026?
Pharmacy technicians earn a national median of $45,750 a year ($22.00 an hour) per BLS OEWS May 2025 (SOC 29-2052). The bottom 10% earn about $36,020 and the top 10% reach $61,040. Community retail sits at the bottom of that band and hospital and health-system work sits above it, because inpatient technicians handle IV admixture, automated dispensing cabinets and controlled-substance reconciliation. The credential that moves pay most is sterile-compounding competency under USP 797 and 800, which is required for chemotherapy and parenteral preparation and puts technicians near the $49,990 P75. Employment is projected to grow 6.4% through 2034 with roughly 49,000 openings a year. → Full pharmacy technician career guide, career path, credentials & placement →
Note: $45,750 blends every experience level and every setting in this occupation. For pay by level alone, see Pay by Level below.
- Pharmacy Technicians earn a national median $45,750/yr ($22.00/hr) (BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 29-2052); the P10 to P90 range is $36,020 to $61,040.
- Hospital and health-system technicians earn above community retail because the work covers IV admixture, cabinet management and controlled-substance reconciliation.
- Sterile-compounding competency under USP 797 and 800 is the single clearest pay step available, and it is what oncology and infusion pharmacies hire for.
- BLS projects 6.4% growth through 2034 with roughly 49,000 openings a year, and technician scope keeps widening as states allow more delegated tasks under pharmacist supervision.
US Pharmacy Technician Pay Distribution · BLS OEWS May 2025
Pay by Level · BLS OEWS May 2025
How much do pharmacy 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 29-2052; 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 29-2052, 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 pharmacy technician earn at each career stage?
Technician pay follows setting and delegated scope rather than a licence ladder. Each median below is anchored to the BLS OEWS percentile distribution for SOC 29-2052.
By State
Which states pay pharmacy technicians the most in 2026?
These are modeled state estimates — the BLS national median scaled by the GlobalCybers state wage index — rather than BLS state observations. State boards differ sharply on technician registration and on what a technician may do under supervision, and states with wider delegated scope tend to support higher technician pay.
6 of 51 state guides shown, ranked by median. Bar is relative to California ($52,610), the highest-paying state shown. See all role salary guides →
pharmacy technician pay by state — all 29 state guides
By Metro
Which cities pay pharmacy technicians the most?
Modeled metro estimates: the national median scaled by the state wage index and then by the published metro index for that state. They estimate local wage levels and are not BLS metropolitan-area observations.
BLS OEWS MSA estimates, May 2025. Nominal pay — weigh each metro against its cost of living before relocating.
Certification Impact
Which certifications raise a pharmacy 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 pharmacy technician pay compare to related roles?
BLS OEWS national median across the closest trades. Pharmacy 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 pharmacy technician wages on BLS.gov →
Take-Home Pay
What does a pharmacy 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
Pharmacy Technician Salary, Frequently Asked Questions
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