How to read this: BLS publishes no occupation for pool cleaning. The closest comparable work it does track is "Maintenance and Repair Workers, General" (SOC 49-9071), so treat these figures as a reference point rather than a measurement of this trade.
The average pool technician in the United States earns $53,780 a year, and the median, which is the figure that describes a typical worker rather than one dragged around by the top end, is $49,590. That works out at about $25.86 an hour. Where you work moves that a long way: District of Columbia averages $63,420 and West Virginia $44,160. Everything below is from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025 release, not from job ads or self-reported surveys.
What a pool technician actually does for that money
Pool service technicians have no occupation of their own, so this uses general maintenance and repair workers. Most pool techs run a route as owner-operators, which puts them outside this data, and route businesses are usually valued on recurring revenue rather than on an hourly rate.
What pool technicians earn, from bottom to top
An average hides the spread, and the spread is what matters when you are deciding whether to enter the trade or what to pay someone. Here is the full range BLS publishes.
| Percentile | Annual | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Bottom 10% | $35,350 | Starting out, or an apprentice rate |
| 25th | $40,840 | Still building speed and a customer base |
| Median | $49,590 | The middle of the trade |
| 75th | $62,620 | Experienced, licensed, in demand |
| Top 10% | $77,180 | Specialists, supervisors and owners |
Pool Cleaning salary by state
District of Columbia pays the most at $63,420 a year, and West Virginia the least at $44,160. Cost of living explains part of that gap and licensing rules explain a good deal of the rest.
| # | State | Average annual | Median annual | Hourly | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | District of Columbia | $63,420 | $60,310 | $30.49 | 4,860 |
| 2 | Alaska | $63,330 | $60,270 | $30.45 | 4,590 |
| 3 | Washington | $61,430 | $59,160 | $29.53 | 32,450 |
| 4 | California | $60,050 | $57,000 | $28.87 | 143,060 |
| 5 | Hawaii | $59,290 | $57,960 | $28.50 | 8,030 |
| 6 | Connecticut | $59,160 | $57,620 | $28.44 | 11,700 |
| 7 | Minnesota | $59,080 | $59,200 | $28.40 | 29,660 |
| 8 | New York | $58,980 | $57,790 | $28.36 | 119,650 |
| 9 | Massachusetts | $58,930 | $58,320 | $28.33 | 29,830 |
| 10 | New Jersey | $57,750 | $54,810 | $27.77 | 37,350 |
| 11 | Illinois | $57,650 | $56,720 | $27.72 | 66,600 |
| 12 | Vermont | $56,930 | $55,510 | $27.37 | 2,610 |
| 13 | Nevada | $56,450 | $52,360 | $27.14 | 16,520 |
| 14 | Oregon | $56,390 | $54,350 | $27.11 | 16,160 |
| 15 | Colorado | $55,380 | $51,280 | $26.62 | 22,960 |
| 16 | Wisconsin | $55,230 | $55,810 | $26.55 | 30,880 |
| 17 | New Hampshire | $55,100 | $52,830 | $26.49 | 5,780 |
| 18 | Ohio | $54,760 | $53,420 | $26.33 | 64,770 |
| 19 | Delaware | $54,560 | $50,150 | $26.23 | 3,310 |
| 20 | Maryland | $54,540 | $51,490 | $26.22 | 23,730 |
| 21 | Rhode Island | $54,310 | $50,900 | $26.11 | 4,500 |
| 22 | Iowa | $54,140 | $52,160 | $26.03 | 16,500 |
| 23 | Utah | $54,010 | $50,450 | $25.96 | 16,090 |
| 24 | Virginia | $53,350 | $49,470 | $25.65 | 34,540 |
| 25 | Indiana | $53,280 | $49,890 | $25.61 | 34,480 |
| 26 | Maine | $52,990 | $49,430 | $25.48 | 5,820 |
| 27 | Wyoming | $52,910 | $47,900 | $25.44 | 3,920 |
| 28 | Pennsylvania | $52,760 | $49,290 | $25.37 | 55,590 |
| 29 | Idaho | $52,680 | $48,190 | $25.33 | 8,200 |
| 30 | Nebraska | $52,560 | $50,700 | $25.27 | 9,850 |
| 31 | Missouri | $52,210 | $48,370 | $25.10 | 31,180 |
| 32 | Arizona | $51,940 | $47,620 | $24.97 | 39,000 |
| 33 | North Dakota | $51,890 | $49,840 | $24.95 | 3,300 |
| 34 | South Carolina | $50,870 | $47,880 | $24.46 | 28,020 |
| 35 | Georgia | $50,590 | $47,680 | $24.32 | 48,430 |
| 36 | North Carolina | $50,460 | $47,910 | $24.26 | 43,440 |
| 37 | Michigan | $50,380 | $47,580 | $24.22 | 39,490 |
| 38 | Kentucky | $50,340 | $46,810 | $24.20 | 22,190 |
| 39 | South Dakota | $49,790 | $48,100 | $23.94 | 3,450 |
| 40 | Montana | $49,710 | $46,870 | $23.90 | 5,420 |
| 41 | Texas | $49,700 | $46,670 | $23.89 | 140,580 |
| 42 | Tennessee | $49,570 | $47,240 | $23.83 | 35,790 |
| 43 | Kansas | $49,330 | $47,210 | $23.72 | 12,730 |
| 44 | Florida | $48,750 | $46,060 | $23.44 | 111,530 |
| 45 | New Mexico | $48,660 | $45,760 | $23.39 | 9,320 |
| 46 | Louisiana | $48,020 | $43,960 | $23.09 | 21,490 |
| 47 | Mississippi | $46,490 | $44,350 | $22.35 | 14,550 |
| 48 | Oklahoma | $45,870 | $42,750 | $22.05 | 18,670 |
| 49 | Alabama | $45,670 | $43,630 | $21.96 | 16,660 |
| 50 | Arkansas | $45,130 | $43,400 | $21.70 | 12,410 |
| 51 | West Virginia | $44,160 | $38,890 | $21.23 | 8,060 |
Where the money is: highest paying metros
State averages flatten out the difference between a city and the rural county next to it. These are the metro areas paying pool technicians the most.
| # | Metro area | Average annual | Hourly |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | $69,440 | $33.39 |
| 2 | San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | $69,420 | $33.37 |
| 3 | Kahului-Wailuku, HI | $65,750 | $31.61 |
| 4 | Vallejo, CA | $65,110 | $31.30 |
| 5 | Napa, CA | $64,900 | $31.20 |
| 6 | Fairbanks-College, AK | $64,190 | $30.86 |
| 7 | Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | $64,140 | $30.84 |
| 8 | Decatur, IL | $63,570 | $30.56 |
| 9 | Kennewick-Richland, WA | $62,270 | $29.94 |
| 10 | Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard, WA | $62,170 | $29.89 |
What moves the number
- Service licensing is required in some warm-climate states, and CPO certification is standard for anyone handling commercial pools.
- A route business with recurring monthly revenue, which makes income predictable, and a hard seasonal split outside the sun belt.
- Equipment repair, heater and automation work pay far more per hour than cleaning, and commercial contracts pay above residential routes.
- The bottom ten percent of pool technicians earn under $35,350 and the top ten percent clear $77,180. That gap is the trade telling you where the money is.
- Working for somebody else and working for yourself are different questions. These figures cover employed pool technicians on a payroll, so they exclude the self-employed, and in this trade a large share of the best operators are exactly that.
What you can earn running the business instead
The number above is a wage. Running the business is a different calculation: you take the full ticket rather than an hourly rate, and what you keep depends on how many jobs you fit in a week, how quickly you get paid and how much of your day goes on scheduling, estimates and chasing invoices instead of on the work. That is the part software actually changes. Owners who put scheduling, estimating, invoicing and automated follow-up in one place tend to run more jobs with the same crew, which is where the gap between a pool technician wage and an owner income opens up.
Pool Cleaning salary FAQs
- How much do pool technicians make a year?
- The median pool technician in the United States earns $49,590 a year and the average is $53,780, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics May 2025 release. Half the trade earns more than the median and half less.
- How much do pool technicians make an hour?
- The mean hourly wage is $25.86. Annual earnings are usually higher than that rate multiplied by a standard year, because overtime, call-outs and premium work are not in the base rate.
- Which state pays pool technicians the most?
- District of Columbia pays the most at an average of $63,420 a year, followed by Alaska at $63,330 and Washington at $61,430. Cost of living accounts for some of that and licensing rules for much of the rest.
- Which cities pay pool technicians the most?
- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA tops the list at an average of $69,440 a year, with San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA at $69,420. Metro figures move a lot more than state averages, so the city matters more than the state.
- Can pool technicians earn six figures?
- As an employee it is uncommon: the top ten percent earn $77,180. Owners are a different question, because they are paid on the job rather than on the hour, and owner income is not in these figures.
- Do these figures include self-employed pool technicians?
- No. The Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program covers wage and salary workers, so sole proprietors and business owners are excluded. In a trade with as many owner-operators as this one, that matters when you read the number.
- Where does this pool cleaning salary data come from?
- The US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program, May 2025 release, for "Maintenance and Repair Workers, General" (SOC 49-9071). It is a survey of employers rather than of workers, which is why it is more reliable than self-reported salary sites.
All wage figures on this page are from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 release. BLS suppresses figures in areas with too few employers to publish safely; those appear as n/a rather than an estimate.
