How to become a landscaper in California

The path in California, step by step

California licenses landscaping work at the state level through the California Contractors State License Board. These are the steps it lays out, in order.

1. Apply to the CSLB for the C-27 Landscaping classification.

The full license guide, with every fee and form: landscaping and irrigation license in California.

Finding an apprenticeship in California

California appears on both of the Labor Department's lists: it has a recognized State Apprenticeship Agency, and the federal Office of Apprenticeship works there too. Apprenticeship.gov lists the California Apprenticeship Office as a contact.

Either way, a registered program means paid work with a mentor, raises as you progress, classroom instruction and a credential recognized in every state. Search open spots in the Apprenticeship Job Finder.

Across the country. Grounds maintenance work is learned on the job, usually in 1 month or less. Pesticide sprayers, handlers and applicators may need more training, up to 1 year.

License levels and exams in California

The license to aim for: C-27 Landscaping Contractor.

What landscapers earn in California

The median landscaper in California earned $21.90 an hour in May 2025, 11th of 51 states, with 106,180 on payrolls. The national median was $18.82.

At the bottom of the range, a quarter of landscapers in California earned under $18.47 an hour and a tenth under $17.68. At the top, a quarter earned over $24.27 and a tenth over $29.42.

Every state, the neighbors and what a business should charge: landscaper salary in California.

Jobs ahead in California

California's labor market office projects jobs for landscapers growing from 135,200 in 2022 to 162,100 in 2032, a change of 19.9%. Counting people who retire or change careers, that is about 21,620 openings a year.

Jobs are projected to grow 19.9% from 2022 to 2032, faster than the 3.6% projected nationally, ranking 3rd of the 50 states in the file.

These are the state's own long-term projections, published together on Projections Central for the occupation group landscaping and groundskeeping workers.

Starting your own landscaper business in California

To contract on your own in California, the license is the C-27 Landscaping Contractor.

Pricing comes next. Paying yourself the California median of $21.90 an hour, the labor rate calculator's starting numbers (one person, 2 unbilled hours a day, $90,000 of overhead, 15% profit) come to $109.05 per billable hour. Try your own in the labor rate calculator.

The full checklist is in how to start a landscaping business. The free Koira Office plan gives you a website on a Koira address, estimates customers sign with a deposit, invoices with card payments and your day's jobs in one place, with no per-person fee. See the plans.