HVAC technician salary in Durham, NC
Updated September 27, 2026 with BLS data from May 2025
HVAC technicians in the Durham–Chapel Hill, NC area earn a median of $59,180 a year, or $28.45 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. One in ten earns more than $77,360. Statewide, HVAC technicians earn a median of $57,260; Durham is 3% above it.
- Apprentice starting pay (estimate)
- $19.02/hr
- Jobs in this area
- 750
- After cost of living
- $60,650
- Median hourly pay
- $28.45/hr
- vs U.S. median
- −3%
- vs North Carolina median
- +3%
- Mean (average) pay
- $58,480 a year · $28.12 an hour
Pay by percentile
What HVAC technicians in Durham, NC 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 | $19.02 | $39,560 |
| 25th percentile | $23.27 | $48,390 |
| Median (50th) | $28.45 | $59,180 |
| 75th percentile | $30.54 | $63,520 |
| 90th percentile | $37.19 | $77,360 |
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. BLS yearly figures are the hourly wage times 2,080 hours.
How Durham, NC compares
- Durham ranks 3rd of 16 North Carolina metro areas for HVAC technician pay.
- HVAC technicians are less concentrated in the Durham area than nationally: 2.2 of every 1,000 jobs, 0.83 times the U.S. share.
Other North Carolina metro areas
Other trades in Durham, NC
Questions
- Do HVAC technicians make more in Durham or Charlotte?
- Charlotte pays more: the median is $59,180 in Durham and $59,840 in Charlotte, a 1% difference.
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 20500 (Durham-Chapel Hill, NC). 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 (97.6, where the U.S. average is 100). Page updated September 27, 2026. How we calculate these figures