Do HVAC technicians make more in Charlottesville or Washington?

Washington pays more: the median is $59,540 in Charlottesville and $71,920 in Washington, a 17% difference.

HVAC technician salary in Charlottesville, VA

Updated September 27, 2026 with BLS data from May 2025

HVAC technicians in the Charlottesville, VA area earn a median of $59,540 a year, or $28.63 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. The top 10% earn more than $76,860. Across all of Virginia, the median is $59,730, so Charlottesville pays about the same as the state as a whole.

Median yearly pay$59,540

Bottom 10% under$43,110Top 10% over$76,860

Apprentice starting pay (estimate): $20.73/hr
Jobs in this area: 420
After cost of living: $60,050
Median hourly pay: $28.63/hr
vs U.S. median: −2%
vs Virginia median: 0%
Mean (average) pay: $59,250 a year · $28.48 an hour

Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 (area 16820, Charlottesville, VA). Excludes self-employed HVAC technicians. Cost of living: BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024. *Starting pay is estimated from the 10th percentile; BLS does not report pay by license level.

Pay by percentile

What HVAC technicians in Charlottesville, VA 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	$20.73	$43,110
25th percentile	$23.57	$49,020
Median (50th)	$28.63	$59,540
75th percentile	$31.93	$66,410
90th percentile	$36.95	$76,860

BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. BLS yearly figures are the hourly wage times 2,080 hours.

How Charlottesville, VA compares

Charlottesville ranks 4th of 11 Virginia metro areas for HVAC technician pay.
HVAC technicians are more concentrated in the Charlottesville area than nationally: 3.6 of every 1,000 jobs, 1.4 times the U.S. share.

Other Virginia metro areas

Other trades in Charlottesville, VA

Electrician Welder Plumber Diesel mechanic Carpenter Heavy equipment operator Auto mechanic

Questions

Do HVAC technicians make more in Charlottesville or Washington?: Washington pays more: the median is $59,540 in Charlottesville and $71,920 in Washington, a 17% 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 16820 (Charlottesville, VA). 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 (99.1, where the U.S. average is 100). Page updated September 27, 2026. How we calculate these figures