- The middle half earn between $17.73 and $23.33 an hour.
- North Carolina ranks 25th of the 50 states with published figures for median pay in this trade.
- North Carolina pays more than 3 of its 4 neighboring states.
- BLS counts about 4,870 pest control technicians on payrolls in North Carolina.
- At the state median wage, a pest control company needs to bill about $108.36 an hour on the labor rate calculator's starting numbers.
Pest Control Technician pay in North Carolina, bottom to top
The BLS group is pest control workers: the technicians who inspect, treat and set traps in homes and businesses.
| Pay level | Hourly | Yearly | National hourly |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $15.38 | $31,990 | $16.67 |
| 25th percentile | $17.73 | $36,890 | $18.00 |
| Median | $21.51 | $44,740 | $21.75 |
| 75th percentile | $23.33 | $48,530 | $23.85 |
| 90th percentile | $29.76 | $61,900 | $29.75 |
| Average (mean) | $21.89 | $45,520 | $22.31 |
Pay spreads out a lot in North Carolina. The bottom tenth earn $15.38 an hour or less while the top tenth earn $29.76 or more, a gap of 1.9 times against 1.8 nationally. Where a pest control technician sits on that range matters as much as the state.
The bottom of the scale is lower than nationally ($15.38 against $16.67) while the top is higher ($29.76 against $29.75), so the climb from new hire to top earner is longer here.
The average, $21.89, is close to the median, so pay sits fairly evenly around the middle.
How North Carolina compares with other states
Over a full year the gap to the national median is small: $44,740 in North Carolina against $45,250 nationally, $510 less.
In the state ranking, North Carolina sits 25th, between Rhode Island ($21.65) and Louisiana ($21.43). Utah has exactly the same median, $21.51, so the two share that place. The range runs from $17.82 in New Mexico to $24.66 in Washington.
Against its neighboring states, North Carolina is in the middle: Virginia pays more, and Georgia, South Carolina and Tennessee pay less.
| Neighboring state | Median hourly | Median yearly | Against North Carolina |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Carolina | $21.51 | $44,740 | |
| Georgia | $18.20 | $37,860 | −$3.31 an hour |
| South Carolina | $20.73 | $43,130 | −$0.78 an hour |
| Tennessee | $19.08 | $39,690 | −$2.43 an hour |
| Virginia | $22.09 | $45,950 | +$0.58 an hour |
How many pest control technicians work in North Carolina
BLS estimates 4,870 pest control technicians on payrolls in North Carolina, 4.7% of the 102,620 nationwide. Only 3 states have more.
The trade is a bigger part of the local job market than it is nationally: 1.0 of every 1,000 jobs in North Carolina, 1.5 times the national share.
What a pest control company in North Carolina should charge
Say you run a pest control company in North Carolina and pay the state median of $21.51 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 | $21.51 × 2,080 × 1.0765 | $48,163 |
| Break-even rate | ($48,163 + $90,000) ÷ 1,500 | $92.11 |
| Rate with 15% profit | $92.11 ÷ 0.85 | $108.36 |
That is $108.36 per billable hour, 5 times the wage, and almost the same as the $108.78 the same math gives at the national median wage.
Paying the 75th percentile instead, $23.33 in North Carolina, to hire and keep experienced people raises the rate to $111.56.
A cheaper crew saves less than it seems: at the 25th percentile wage of $17.73, the rate only drops to $101.73.
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.
Working as a pest control technician in North Carolina
- Licensing. What North Carolina asks for before you can work on your own: Pest control license in North Carolina.
- Running the business. Quotes, invoices, booking and your website in one place: how pest control 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 37-2021, pest control 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: pest control technician salary by state.