HVAC technician salary in Kentucky
Updated September 27, 2026 with BLS data from May 2025
HVAC technicians in Kentucky earn a median of $58,620 a year, or $28.18 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. One in ten earns more than $80,020. Nationally the median is $61,010, so Kentucky pays 4% less than the U.S. overall and ranks 37th of 51.
- Apprentice starting pay (estimate)
- $18.65/hr
- Jobs in Kentucky
- 5,100
- After cost of living
- $65,020
- Median hourly pay
- $28.18/hr
- vs U.S. median
- −4%
- Rank among states
- 37th of 51
- Mean (average) pay
- $58,870 a year · $28.30 an hour
Pay by percentile
What HVAC technicians in Kentucky earn at each point of the pay range, May 2025: 10% earn less than the 10th percentile, half earn less than the median, and 10% earn more than the 90th.
| Percentile | Hourly | Yearly |
|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $18.65 | $38,790 |
| 25th percentile | $22.97 | $47,780 |
| Median (50th) | $28.18 | $58,620 |
| 75th percentile | $32.47 | $67,540 |
| 90th percentile | $38.47 | $80,020 |
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. BLS yearly figures are the hourly wage times 2,080 hours.
Pay over time
The median HVAC technician wage in Kentucky rose 23.1%, from $47,620 in May 2021 to $58,620 in May 2025. Prices rose 19.4% over the same period, so after inflation it rose 3.1%.
| Year | Median a year | Median an hour |
|---|---|---|
| May 2021 | $47,620 | $22.89/hr |
| May 2022 | $48,080 | $23.12/hr |
| May 2023 | $50,540 | $24.30/hr |
| May 2024 | $58,880 | $28.31/hr |
| May 2025 | $58,620 | $28.18/hr |
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, each May release; inflation from the BLS Consumer Price Index (CPI-U, May of each year). BLS cautions against reading much into year-to-year changes, so we compare the first and last years. How we compare years
How Kentucky compares
- HVAC technicians hold about the same share of jobs in Kentucky as nationally: 2.5 of every 1,000 jobs.
Pay by metro area
Rural Kentucky
- East Kentucky$55,800
- West Kentucky$55,160
- Central Kentucky$52,220
- South Central Kentucky$50,010
Other trades in Kentucky
Bidding federal work? Davis-Bacon prevailing wage rates in Kentucky list what contractors must pay HVAC technicians on federal and federally assisted jobs, county by county.
Questions
- Where in Kentucky do HVAC technicians earn the most?
- Among Kentucky metro areas, Cincinnati has the highest median at $62,240 a year, and Huntington–Ashland the lowest at $48,860.
About this data
Wages are from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey for May 2025, occupation 49-9021 (Heating, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Mechanics and Installers), area code 21. BLS counts wage and salary workers only, so self-employed HVAC technicians and business owners aren't included. The cost-of-living figure divides the median by the Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parity for 2024 (90.2, where the U.S. average is 100). Page updated September 27, 2026. How we calculate these figures