- The middle half earn between $23.09 and $37.40 an hour.
- Michigan ranks 25th of the 50 states and DC for median pay in this trade.
- Michigan pays more than 1 of its 3 neighboring states.
- BLS counts about 12,590 HVAC technicians on payrolls in Michigan.
- At the state median wage, an HVAC business needs to bill about $121.97 an hour on the labor rate calculator's starting numbers.
HVAC Technician pay in Michigan, bottom to top
BLS files these as heating, air conditioning and refrigeration mechanics and installers, which covers service techs, installers and refrigeration work.
| Pay level | Hourly | Yearly | National hourly |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $19.33 | $40,210 | $19.25 |
| 25th percentile | $23.09 | $48,040 | $23.25 |
| Median | $29.26 | $60,850 | $29.33 |
| 75th percentile | $37.40 | $77,780 | $37.05 |
| 90th percentile | $45.81 | $95,290 | $45.78 |
| Average (mean) | $31.01 | $64,490 | $31.14 |
From the bottom tenth ($19.33) to the top tenth ($45.81), the top of the scale pays about 2.4 times the bottom in Michigan, close to the 2.4 times spread for HVAC technicians nationwide.
Both ends of the scale beat the national figures: $19.33 against $19.25 at the bottom tenth, and $45.81 against $45.78 at the top.
The average, $31.01, is close to the median, so pay sits fairly evenly around the middle.
How Michigan compares with other states
Over a full year the gap to the national median is small: $60,850 in Michigan against $61,010 nationally, $160 less.
In the state ranking, Michigan sits 25th, between South Dakota ($29.51) and Iowa ($29.17). Montana has exactly the same median, $29.26, so the two share that place. The range runs from $23.13 in Arkansas to $40.57 in the District of Columbia.
Against its neighboring states, Michigan is in the middle: Ohio and Wisconsin pay more, and Indiana pays less.
How many HVAC technicians work in Michigan
About 12,590 HVAC technicians work on payrolls in Michigan, 3.1% of the 409,670 nationwide, the 9th largest count among the states.
That is 2.9 of every 1,000 jobs in Michigan, close to the trade's share of jobs nationally.
What an HVAC business in Michigan should charge
Say you run an HVAC business in Michigan and pay the state median of $29.26 an hour. Here is the labor rate calculator's math on its 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 | $29.26 × 2,080 × 1.0765 | $65,517 |
| Break-even rate | ($65,517 + $90,000) ÷ 1,500 | $103.68 |
| Rate with 15% profit | $103.68 ÷ 0.85 | $121.97 |
That is $121.97 per billable hour, 4.2 times the wage, and almost the same as the $122.10 the same math gives at the national median wage.
Paying the 75th percentile instead, $37.40 in Michigan, to hire and keep experienced people raises the rate to $136.27.
A cheaper crew saves less than it seems: at the 25th percentile wage of $23.09, the rate only drops to $111.14.
Overhead, at $60 of every billed hour, and the unbilled hours move this rate more than a raise does. A dollar more in wages adds about $1.76 to the rate.
Run it with your own numbers in the HVAC labor rate calculator. It is free and shows every step.
Working as an HVAC technician in Michigan
- Licensing. What Michigan asks for before you can work on your own: HVAC license in Michigan.
- Running the business. Quotes, invoices, booking and your website in one place: how HVAC companies run on Koira.
- Getting found. The free Koira report checks how your business shows up in search and on maps against shops near you.
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 49-9021, heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers, 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: HVAC technician salary by state.