Maintenance Technician salary

The median pay for a maintenance technician nationally is $29.50 an hour — about $61,360 a year full time. That is based on 19 job postings on LocalWork from the last 12 months that stated pay, so it reflects what employers are advertising rather than verified earnings. Half of the roles pay more than this and half pay less, so treat it as the middle of the market rather than a target.

Most maintenance technicians nationally earn between $19.65 an hour and $35.20 an hour — that is the 10th to the 90th percentile. The spread usually reflects experience, shift, certifications and employer size more than anything else.

Pay at the bottom of the range — roughly what someone starting out can expect — is around $19.65 an hour. A quarter of maintenance technicians earn below $22.75 an hour, so the first year or two typically sits in that band.

The top 10% of maintenance technicians nationally earn about $35.20 an hour or more, roughly 1.2× the median. Getting there usually means experience plus something specific — certifications, supervisory duties, specialised skills or premium shifts.

Maintenance technicians keep buildings and equipment running — a broad role spanning plumbing, electrical, HVAC and general repair across apartments, plants and facilities. Day to day, that means diagnose and repair building and equipment faults, carry out preventive maintenance schedules, handle basic plumbing, electrical and HVAC work and respond to work orders and emergencies.

The usual route is: (1) enter through a trade or general handywork, (2) build breadth across systems, (3) add certifications — EPA, CPO, electrical, (4) progress to lead technician or facilities manager. Employers typically look for trade experience or vocational training, EPA 608 if handling refrigerants and driver's licence for multi-site roles.

Usually not. Most employers hire maintenance technicians without a specific licence, though driver's licence for multi-site roles will widen your options and often your pay.

There are currently 19 open maintenance technicians listed on LocalWork. Every building needs maintaining, so demand is unusually stable and geographically spread compared with construction trades.