- The middle half earn between $18.53 and $22.17 an hour.
- Kentucky is 42nd of the 49 states with published figures, in the bottom ten for this trade.
- Kentucky pays less than all 7 neighboring states.
- BLS counts about 1,020 tree trimmers on payrolls in Kentucky.
- At the state median wage, a tree service needs to bill about $108.08 an hour on the labor rate calculator's starting numbers.
Tree Trimmer pay in Kentucky, 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 | $12.93 | $26,890 | $18.24 |
| 25th percentile | $18.53 | $38,540 | $21.56 |
| Median | $21.35 | $44,410 | $24.50 |
| 75th percentile | $22.17 | $46,110 | $30.72 |
| 90th percentile | $27.62 | $57,440 | $38.61 |
| Average (mean) | $21.01 | $43,690 | $26.91 |
From the bottom tenth ($12.93) to the top tenth ($27.62), the top of the scale pays about 2.1 times the bottom in Kentucky, close to the 2.1 times spread for tree trimmers nationwide.
Both ends trail the national figures. The bottom tenth earn $5.31 an hour less than the bottom tenth nationally, and the top tenth $10.99 less than the national top tenth.
The average wage ($21.01) is a little under the median, so the low end of the range stretches further than the high end in Kentucky.
How Kentucky compares with other states
Over a full year, the Kentucky median of $44,410 is $6,550 less than the national $50,960.
In the state ranking, Kentucky sits 42nd, between North Dakota ($21.55) and Idaho ($21.08). The range runs from $18.94 in Nebraska to $37.24 in Minnesota.
Every one of the neighboring states pays tree trimmers more than Kentucky. The closest is Indiana at $22.14, and the biggest gap is with Illinois.
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 Kentucky |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kentucky | $21.35 | $44,410 | |
| Illinois | $30.99 | $64,450 | +$9.64 an hour |
| Indiana | $22.14 | $46,050 | +$0.79 an hour |
| Missouri | $29.40 | $61,140 | +$8.05 an hour |
| Ohio | $23.87 | $49,650 | +$2.52 an hour |
| Tennessee | $22.76 | $47,350 | +$1.41 an hour |
| Virginia | $23.34 | $48,550 | +$1.99 an hour |
| West Virginia | $23.62 | $49,140 | +$2.27 an hour |
How many tree trimmers work in Kentucky
About 1,020 tree trimmers work on payrolls in Kentucky, 1.8% of the 55,160 nationwide, the 17th largest count among the states.
The trade is a bigger part of the local job market than it is nationally: 0.5 of every 1,000 jobs in Kentucky, 1.4 times the national share.
What a tree service in Kentucky should charge
A lower wage helps the price less than you might expect, because the overhead does not shrink with it. Here is a tree service in Kentucky paying the state median of $21.35, 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 | $21.35 × 2,080 × 1.0765 | $47,805 |
| Break-even rate | ($47,805 + $90,000) ÷ 1,500 | $91.87 |
| Rate with 15% profit | $91.87 ÷ 0.85 | $108.08 |
That is $108.08 per billable hour, 5.1 times the wage, and $5.53 less than the $113.61 the same math gives at the national median wage.
Paying the 75th percentile instead, $22.17 in Kentucky, to hire and keep experienced people raises the rate to $109.52.
A cheaper crew saves less than it seems: at the 25th percentile wage of $18.53, the rate only drops to $103.13.
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 tree trimmer in Kentucky
- 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.