- Any business that offers pest control or applies pesticides for hire in Maryland needs a pesticide business license from the Department of Agriculture, with at least one certified pest control applicator.
- At least one year of practical pesticide application experience as a registered employee in your category, or a degree in a biological field, or an approved course. You must be 18.
- Plan for a trade exam.
- Pay runs from about $18.18 an hour for the lowest-paid tenth of pest control technicians to $31.49 for the top tenth.
- Jobs are projected to grow 6.5% from 2022 to 2032, faster than the 3.2% projected nationally.
The path in Maryland, step by step
Maryland licenses pest control work at the state level through the Maryland Department of Agriculture, Pesticide Regulation Section. These are the steps it lays out, in order.
- Get a year of experience as a registered employee, or the right degree or approved course.
- Apply for certification at least one month before the exam, with your experience forms or transcripts.
- Pass the Core exam and your category exam.
- Apply for the pesticide business license, pay $150 and file your certificate of insurance.
- Renew each year by June 30 and attend recertification training.
The full license guide, with every fee and form: pest control license in Maryland.
Finding an apprenticeship in Maryland
Maryland runs Registered Apprenticeship through its own State Apprenticeship Agency, recognized by the U.S. Department of Labor to register and oversee programs there. Its staff are state employees, and it may use the federal paperwork or forms of its own. Apprenticeship.gov lists the Maryland State Apprenticeship Agency as the 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. Pest control is learned mostly on the job rather than in a long apprenticeship. Training can usually be finished in less than 3 months.
License levels and exams in Maryland
The license to aim for: Pesticide business license, with a certified pest control applicator.
Trade exam. The Core exam and at least one category exam, closed book, 70 percent to pass. Exams are given every other month in Annapolis, Salisbury and Frederick.
Keeping it. Every year. The license period runs July 1 to June 30, and certified applicators attend recertification training each year.
Coming from another state. Maryland certifies some out of state applicators by reciprocity. They must still attend recertification training each year.
What the Maryland license costs
The fees the Maryland Department of Agriculture, Pesticide Regulation Section lists. Exam fees from a testing company, insurance and any bond come on top.
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Pesticide business license, yearly | $150 |
| Applicator certification, first category, yearly | $75 |
| Each added main category | $25 |
| Exam retake, each | $10 |
What pest control technicians earn in Maryland
The median pest control technician in Maryland earned $22.77 an hour in May 2025, 12th of 50 states, with 1,670 on payrolls. The national median was $21.75.
At the bottom of the range, a quarter of pest control technicians in Maryland earned under $20.61 an hour and a tenth under $18.18. At the top, a quarter earned over $27.15 and a tenth over $31.49.
| Pay level | Hourly | Yearly |
|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $18.18 | $37,810 |
| 25th percentile | $20.61 | $42,860 |
| Median | $22.77 | $47,360 |
| 75th percentile | $27.15 | $56,470 |
| 90th percentile | $31.49 | $65,500 |
Every state, the neighbors and what a business should charge: pest control technician salary in Maryland.
Jobs ahead in Maryland
Maryland's labor market office projects jobs for pest control technicians growing from 1,860 in 2022 to 1,980 in 2032, a change of 6.5%. Counting people who retire or change careers, that is about 260 openings a year.
Jobs are projected to grow 6.5% from 2022 to 2032, faster than the 3.2% projected nationally, ranking 25th of the 39 states in the file.
These are the state's own long-term projections, published together on Projections Central for the occupation group pest control workers.
Starting your own pest control technician business in Maryland
To contract on your own in Maryland, the license is the Pesticide business license, with a certified pest control applicator.
Insurance. General liability: bodily injury $100,000 per person and $300,000 per occurrence; property damage $15,000 per occurrence and $30,000 aggregate.
Pricing comes next. Paying yourself the Maryland median of $22.77 an hour, the labor rate calculator's starting numbers (one person, 2 unbilled hours a day, $90,000 of overhead, 15% profit) come to $110.58 per billable hour. Try your own in the labor rate calculator.
The full checklist is in how to start a pest control 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.
Where this comes from
The license steps, fees and rules are from the official pages below, read on the date shown. Pay is the BLS May 2025 state estimate, the job outlook is Maryland's own long-term projection, and the apprenticeship details are from the U.S. Department of Labor. A detail an official page did not confirm is left out.
- Certification and business licensing requirements (checked 2026-10-09)
- Requirements document (PDF) (checked 2026-10-09)
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, SOC 37-2021
- Projections Central, long-term occupational projections 2022 to 2032 (state labor market offices) (checked 2026-10-09)
- U.S. Department of Labor, Apprenticeship System (Office of Apprenticeship and State Apprenticeship Agencies) (checked 2026-10-09)
- U.S. Department of Labor, State Offices (checked 2026-10-09)
- U.S. Department of Labor, Registered Apprenticeship Program (checked 2026-10-09)
- BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, Pest Control Workers (checked 2026-10-09)
Training, schools and certifications for every state: how to become a pest control technician.