- The middle half earn between $22.54 and $37.74 an hour.
- Only 5 states pay tree trimmers more at the median.
- California pays more than 2 of its 3 neighboring states.
- BLS counts about 9,610 tree trimmers on payrolls in California.
- At the state median wage, a tree service needs to bill about $123.40 an hour on the labor rate calculator's starting numbers.
Tree Trimmer pay in California, bottom to top
BLS calls this group tree trimmers and pruners. It covers climbers who cut and prune trees for homes, roads and utility lines, and includes utility arborists.
| Pay level | Hourly | Yearly | National hourly |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $17.19 | $35,750 | $18.24 |
| 25th percentile | $22.54 | $46,880 | $21.56 |
| Median | $30.07 | $62,550 | $24.50 |
| 75th percentile | $37.74 | $78,500 | $30.72 |
| 90th percentile | $44.36 | $92,270 | $38.61 |
| Average (mean) | $30.58 | $63,610 | $26.91 |
Pay spreads out a lot in California. The bottom tenth earn $17.19 an hour or less while the top tenth earn $44.36 or more, a gap of 2.6 times against 2.1 nationally. Where a tree trimmer sits on that range matters as much as the state.
The bottom of the scale is lower than nationally ($17.19 against $18.24) while the top is higher ($44.36 against $38.61), so the climb from new hire to top earner is longer here.
The average, $30.58, is close to the median, so pay sits fairly evenly around the middle.
How California compares with other states
Over a full year, the California median of $62,550 is $11,590 more than the national $50,960.
In the state ranking, California sits 6th, between Washington ($30.70) and New York ($30.00). Massachusetts has exactly the same median, $30.07, so the two share that place. The range runs from $18.94 in Nebraska to $37.24 in Minnesota.
Against its neighboring states, California is in the middle: Oregon pays more, and Arizona and Nevada pay less.
These are wages as paid, not adjusted for what it costs to live in California. Rent, home prices and taxes decide how far a higher wage goes.
How many tree trimmers work in California
BLS estimates 9,610 tree trimmers on payrolls in California, 17.4% of the 55,160 nationwide. No other state has more.
The trade is a bigger part of the local job market than it is nationally: 0.5 of every 1,000 jobs in California, 1.5 times the national share.
What a tree service in California should charge
Higher wages in California go straight into the price. Take a tree service in California paying the state median of $30.07 and run it through the labor rate calculator with 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 | $30.07 × 2,080 × 1.0765 | $67,330 |
| Break-even rate | ($67,330 + $90,000) ÷ 1,500 | $104.89 |
| Rate with 15% profit | $104.89 ÷ 0.85 | $123.40 |
That is $123.40 per billable hour, 4.1 times the wage, and $9.78 more than the $113.61 the same math gives at the national median wage.
Paying the 75th percentile instead, $37.74 in California, to hire and keep experienced people raises the rate to $136.87.
A cheaper crew saves less than it seems: at the 25th percentile wage of $22.54, the rate only drops to $110.17.
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 labor rate calculator. It is free and shows every step.
Working as a tree trimmer in California
- Running the business. Quotes, invoices, booking and your website in one place: how tree services 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 37-3013, tree trimmers and pruners, 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: tree trimmer salary by state.