- The middle half earn between $20.61 and $35.00 an hour.
- Rhode Island ranks 36th of the 50 states and DC for median pay in this trade.
- Rhode Island pays less than both neighboring states.
- BLS counts about 330 crime scene cleaners on payrolls in Rhode Island.
- At the state median wage, a biohazard cleaning business needs to bill about $110.00 an hour on the labor rate calculator's starting numbers.
Crime Scene Cleaner pay in Rhode Island, bottom to top
BLS has no figure for crime scene cleaners. These are its numbers for hazardous materials removal workers, the closest group, which includes decontamination workers along with asbestos and lead abatement crews. Treat them as a rough guide, not a measure of crime scene work itself.
| Pay level | Hourly | Yearly | National hourly |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $19.42 | $40,400 | $18.49 |
| 25th percentile | $20.61 | $42,870 | $21.50 |
| Median | $22.44 | $46,670 | $23.78 |
| 75th percentile | $35.00 | $72,800 | $29.58 |
| 90th percentile | $38.32 | $79,710 | $39.62 |
| Average (mean) | $25.63 | $53,300 | $27.13 |
From the bottom tenth ($19.42) to the top tenth ($38.32), the top of the scale pays about 2 times the bottom in Rhode Island, close to the 2.1 times spread for crime scene cleaners nationwide.
The floor is higher than nationally ($19.42 against $18.49) but the ceiling is lower ($38.32 against $39.62), which squeezes pay toward the middle.
The average wage, $25.63, sits 14% above the median. A smaller group of higher earners pulls the average up, so the median is the better guide to what a typical crime scene cleaner makes.
How Rhode Island compares with other states
Over a full year, the Rhode Island median of $46,670 is $2,780 less than the national $49,450.
In the state ranking, Rhode Island sits 36th, between Vermont ($22.49) and Ohio ($22.41). Indiana has exactly the same median, $22.44, so the two share that place. The range runs from $17.61 in Arkansas to $35.14 in New York.
Every one of the neighboring states pays crime scene cleaners more than Rhode Island. The closest is Connecticut at $22.64, and the biggest gap is with Massachusetts.
BLS wages are not adjusted for living costs. Lower pay often comes with lower housing costs, so the gap in take-home value can be smaller than the gap in wages.
| Neighboring state | Median hourly | Median yearly | Against Rhode Island |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rhode Island | $22.44 | $46,670 | |
| Connecticut | $22.64 | $47,090 | +$0.20 an hour |
| Massachusetts | $23.86 | $49,620 | +$1.42 an hour |
How many crime scene cleaners work in Rhode Island
About 330 crime scene cleaners work on payrolls in Rhode Island, 0.6% of the 51,710 nationwide, the 37th largest count among the states.
The trade is a bigger part of the local job market than it is nationally: 0.7 of every 1,000 jobs in Rhode Island, 2 times the national share.
What a biohazard cleaning business in Rhode Island should charge
A lower wage helps the price less than you might expect, because the overhead does not shrink with it. Here is a biohazard cleaning business in Rhode Island paying the state median of $22.44, on the labor rate calculator's starting numbers: 40-hour weeks, 10 paid days off, 2 unbilled hours a day, 7.65% payroll taxes, $90,000 a year of overhead and 15% profit.
| Step | Math | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Paid hours | 40 × 52 | 2,080 |
| Hours at work | 2,080 − 10 days × 8 | 2,000 |
| Billable hours | 2,000 × 6 ÷ 8 | 1,500 |
| Labor cost | $22.44 × 2,080 × 1.0765 | $50,246 |
| Break-even rate | ($50,246 + $90,000) ÷ 1,500 | $93.50 |
| Rate with 15% profit | $93.50 ÷ 0.85 | $110.00 |
That is $110.00 per billable hour, 4.9 times the wage, and $2.35 less than the $112.35 the same math gives at the national median wage.
Paying the 75th percentile instead, $35.00 in Rhode Island, to hire and keep experienced people raises the rate to $132.05.
A cheaper crew saves less than it seems: at the 25th percentile wage of $20.61, the rate only drops to $106.78.
At this wage, overhead is most of the price: $60 of every billed hour goes to it before anyone is paid. Spreading the same overhead over more billable hours, with a second person or less drive time, brings the rate down fastest.
Run it with your own numbers in the labor rate calculator. It is free and shows every step.
Where these numbers come from
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025.
The figures are the BLS state estimates for SOC 47-4041, hazardous materials removal workers, across all industries, read straight from the May 2025 state data file. They cover wage and salary workers, not the self-employed. Where BLS did not publish a figure, this page leaves it out.
All states in one table: crime scene cleaner salary by state.