Skip to content
TryHired.
Role hub · Pest Control Workers

Pest Control Technician: what the job is, what it pays, and how to get hired.

The work, the skills that matter, the tools in demand and the pay range, from U.S. government data, plus every TryHired page for the role.

Maid DizdarevicCareer coach · 8x LinkedIn Top Voice
Updated Nov 2, 2026 · Data: BLS OEWS May 2025 · O*NET 31.0
Pay ladder · select a percentile
Median percentile pay

Half of pest control technicians earn more than this and half earn less.

Annual
$45,250
Hourly
$21.75
Source
BLS May 2025
Quick answer

Pest Control Technicians apply or release chemical solutions or toxic gases and set traps to kill or remove pests and vermin that infest buildings and surrounding areas. The median pay is $45,250 a year ($21.75 an hour) (BLS, May 2025).

Median pay
$45,250
BLS May 2025
Employed in the U.S.
102,620
BLS May 2025
Preparation
Job Zone 1-2 of 5
very little to some preparation

Data Government data groups this job as Pest Control Workers (O*NET-SOC 37-2021.00). Figures on this page are for that occupation.

Key facts

Pest Control Technicians at a glance

  • Pest control workers in the United States earned a median annual wage of $45,250 in May 2025, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

    Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025

  • In its 2025–35 employment projections, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics lists a high school diploma or equivalent as the typical entry-level education for pest control workers in the United States.

    Source: BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35

  • BLS projects employment of pest control workers in the United States to grow 5.5% from 2025 to 2035, with about 13,700 openings a year on average, including replacement openings.

    Source: BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35

  • BLS estimated that 102,620 people were employed as pest control workers in the United States in May 2025, not counting the self-employed.

    Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025

Explore the role

Every page for Pest Control Technicians

SalaryPest Control Technician salary

Pay by percentile, state and metro, with a negotiation script.

Open →ResumePest Control Technician resume

Keywords, bullet formulas and the skills to prove.

Open →Interview questionsPest Control Technician interview questions

Questions with what they test, plus practice mode.

Open →Free toolCheck your resume

Parsed text, evidence per bullet, fixes first.

Open →
The work

What pest control technicians do day to day

Data Core tasks rated most important by workers in the role (O*NET).

  1. Record work activities performed.
  2. Clean work site after completion of job.
  3. Measure area dimensions requiring treatment, calculate fumigant requirements, and estimate cost for service.
  4. Spray or dust chemical solutions, powders, or gases into rooms, onto clothing, furnishings, or wood, or over marshlands, ditches, or catch basins.
  5. Recommend treatment and prevention methods for pest problems to clients.
  6. Inspect premises to identify infestation source and extent of damage to property, wall, or roof porosity and access to infested locations.
  7. Drive truck equipped with power spraying equipment.
  8. Direct, or assist other workers in, treatment or extermination processes to eliminate or control rodents, insects, or weeds.
Where this career works

Industries that employ it

Data Share of all pest control technician jobs in each industry, 2025 (BLS Employment Matrix).

  1. Administrative and support services89.1% of all jobs in this occupation · +5.8% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $46,060
  2. Government, excluding state and local education and hospitals2.2% of all jobs in this occupation · +2.6% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $58,990
  3. Educational services; state, local, and private0.3% of all jobs in this occupation · +0.9% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $48,490
  4. Management of companies and enterprises0.2% of all jobs in this occupation · +4.6% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $46,840
  5. Food manufacturing0.1% of all jobs in this occupation · +5.4% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $52,340
  6. Merchant wholesalers, nondurable goods0.1% of all jobs in this occupation · +7.0% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $51,130

Sources: BLS 2025–35 National Employment Matrix (share of the occupation's jobs, projected change) and BLS OEWS May 2025 industry estimates (mean wage). Different industry estimates are not a pay forecast for any person.

Skills that matter

Ranked by importance to the job

Data O*NET importance ratings. The first three are core.

Active ListeningcoreCritical ThinkingcoreWritingcoreSpeakingMonitoringTime ManagementSocial PerceptivenessService OrientationComplex Problem Solving

Knowledge areas: Customer and Personal Service, Chemistry, Mathematics, Biology, Law and Government, Public Safety and Security.

Tools and technology

Software pest control technicians use

Data Examples reported for the role; employer demand flags from O*NET.

  • Supply inventory softwareInventory management software
  • YouTubeVideo creation and editing software
  • Intuit QuickBooksAccounting softwareHot technology
  • Microsoft ExcelSpreadsheet softwareHot technology
  • Microsoft Office softwareOffice suite softwareHot technology
  • Microsoft SharePointDocument management softwareHot technology
  • Microsoft WordWord processing softwareHot technology
  • Database softwareData base user interface and query software
  • Email softwareElectronic mail software
  • Marathon Data Systems PestPacData base user interface and query software
  • Report writing softwareWord processing software
  • Work scheduling softwareCalendar and scheduling software

Also called: Pest Control Worker, Commercial Pest Control Technician (Commercial Pest Control Tech), Exterminator, Pest Control Applicator, Pest Control Chemical Technician (Pest Control Chemical Tech), Pest Control Operator, Pest Control Technician (Pest Control Tech).

Method

How this page is built

Tasks, skills, tools, education and related roles come from O*NET 31.0. Pay and employment come from the BLS OEWS May 2025 national estimates. The skill-match score is our calculation: Skill match is the cosine similarity of the two occupations' skill profiles: for each of 35 O*NET skills (10 essential, 25 transferable) we multiply importance by level and subtract the average across all occupations, then compare the direction of the two profiles. 100 means identical shape; 0 means unrelated or opposite (negative values are shown as 0). Only occupations that O*NET itself lists as related are compared.

What this page can't tell you
  • How a specific employer defines the job.
  • Pay for self-employed workers (OEWS covers employees).
  • Your own chances: data describes the occupation, not you.
Sources
  1. O*NET 31.0 Database, U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. TryHired selected, ranked and combined the data; O*NET is not responsible for these pages.
  2. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 estimates (public domain).

How TryHired builds this data: sources, methods and downloads. Spotted an error? Report a correction.