Refrigeration Tech Salary by State: 2026 Ranking
All 50 states ranked by median pay, using May 2024 wage data for heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers. The national median is $59,810 per year, or $28.75 per hour.
All 50 States Ranked by Median Pay
Median pay sorts this list because it shows the middle of the market, not a number pulled up by a small group of top earners. The high annual pay column reflects the top-end wage level reported in the same state table.
Rank |
State |
Median hourly |
Median annual |
High annual |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 |
Alaska |
$40.22 |
$83,660 |
$104,100 |
2 |
Massachusetts |
$37.02 |
$76,990 |
$109,220 |
3 |
Connecticut |
$35.53 |
$73,910 |
$97,940 |
4 |
Minnesota |
$35.29 |
$73,390 |
$94,420 |
5 |
Illinois |
$34.44 |
$71,620 |
$110,570 |
6 |
New Jersey |
$33.56 |
$69,800 |
$102,050 |
7 |
Washington |
$32.51 |
$67,630 |
$108,800 |
8 |
North Dakota |
$32.10 |
$66,770 |
$92,650 |
9 |
New York |
$32.05 |
$66,670 |
$98,530 |
10 |
California |
$31.39 |
$65,290 |
$107,600 |
11 |
Maryland |
$31.25 |
$65,000 |
$100,760 |
12 |
New Hampshire |
$30.97 |
$64,410 |
$87,920 |
13 |
Hawaii |
$30.67 |
$63,780 |
$89,900 |
14 |
Rhode Island |
$30.57 |
$63,580 |
$86,290 |
15 |
Colorado |
$30.49 |
$63,420 |
$100,790 |
16 |
Oregon |
$30.16 |
$62,740 |
$93,620 |
17 |
Maine |
$29.87 |
$62,130 |
$80,330 |
18 |
Wisconsin |
$29.82 |
$62,030 |
$96,970 |
19 |
Pennsylvania |
$29.38 |
$61,120 |
$84,190 |
20 |
Virginia |
$29.15 |
$60,630 |
$81,750 |
21 |
Ohio |
$29.08 |
$60,490 |
$91,710 |
22 |
Missouri |
$29.00 |
$60,330 |
$94,870 |
23 |
Indiana |
$28.99 |
$60,310 |
$93,080 |
24 |
Vermont |
$28.93 |
$60,170 |
$80,160 |
25 |
Michigan |
$28.89 |
$60,090 |
$84,070 |
26 |
Delaware |
$28.82 |
$59,940 |
$95,160 |
27 |
Nebraska |
$28.70 |
$59,690 |
$78,370 |
28 |
Iowa |
$28.60 |
$59,490 |
$85,760 |
29 |
South Dakota |
$28.59 |
$59,460 |
$77,280 |
30 |
Nevada |
$28.48 |
$59,230 |
$91,040 |
31 |
Kentucky |
$28.31 |
$58,880 |
$79,100 |
32 |
Montana |
$28.17 |
$58,600 |
$79,240 |
33 |
Kansas |
$27.29 |
$56,750 |
$77,570 |
34 |
Arizona |
$27.20 |
$56,580 |
$78,380 |
35 |
Utah |
$27.02 |
$56,200 |
$80,330 |
36 |
South Carolina |
$26.57 |
$55,260 |
$72,460 |
37 |
New Mexico |
$26.45 |
$55,020 |
$77,980 |
38 |
Georgia |
$26.45 |
$55,020 |
$77,580 |
39 |
Texas |
$25.99 |
$54,050 |
$82,870 |
40 |
Louisiana |
$25.73 |
$53,510 |
$77,940 |
41 |
Idaho |
$25.35 |
$52,730 |
$78,720 |
42 |
North Carolina |
$24.97 |
$51,940 |
$75,470 |
43 |
Tennessee |
$24.75 |
$51,480 |
$76,600 |
44 |
Oklahoma |
$24.48 |
$50,920 |
$79,580 |
45 |
Wyoming |
$24.48 |
$50,920 |
$78,730 |
46 |
Florida |
$24.32 |
$50,580 |
$74,670 |
47 |
Alabama |
$23.70 |
$49,290 |
$69,350 |
48 |
Mississippi |
$22.73 |
$47,270 |
$70,360 |
49 |
Arkansas |
$22.71 |
$47,240 |
$65,810 |
50 |
West Virginia |
$22.13 |
$46,040 |
$65,390 |
Where the Money Sits
Highest Paying States
Alaska ranks first at $83,660 per year, followed by Massachusetts at $76,990, Connecticut at $73,910, Minnesota at $73,390, and Illinois at $71,620. All five sit well above the national median of $59,810.
The top 10 are not all warm-weather service markets. They include cold-climate states, union-heavy markets, expensive coastal markets, and states with strong commercial building demand. Refrigeration pay is driven by supermarkets, cold storage, food processing, hospitals, universities, controls work, rack refrigeration, and emergency coverage, not by how many air conditioners run in July.
Lowest Paying States
West Virginia ranks 50th at $46,040 per year. Arkansas, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida round out the bottom five. Those states still have refrigeration work, but the statewide median sits below the national median.
Read the bottom of this list as a wage baseline, not as bad places to work. Florida ranks low statewide at $50,580, yet commercial demand is constant in grocery, restaurants, hospitality, healthcare, and cold storage. Texas ranks 39th at $54,050, and major metro areas and industrial accounts pay above the state median for experienced techs.
Compare These Four Items Before You Move
Use the ranked table to screen markets, not to make the whole decision. Start with the state median, then check the high annual pay column. A modest median with a strong high end often means better upside for skilled commercial techs. Colorado runs $63,420 median against $100,790 high annual pay. Washington runs $67,630 against $108,800.
- Base hourly rate. The number the offer letter leads with, before anything else stacks on top.
- Overtime rules and on-call pay. How the shop handles nights, weekends, and food-loss calls. See overtime and on-call pay.
- Paid drive time and dispatch area. Unpaid windshield time quietly erases a higher hourly rate.
- System mix. Racks, CO2, ammonia, and controls. The systems you touch set your ceiling more than the state does.
A $31 hourly job with steady overtime and paid travel beats a $35 hourly job with weak benefits, unpaid windshield time, and no training path.
What This Data Does and Does Not Show
This ranking uses BLS occupation 49-9021, which covers heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers. BLS describes these workers as techs who install, maintain, and repair heating, ventilation, cooling, and refrigeration systems.
That makes the data useful, but not clean for commercial refrigeration alone. It includes residential HVAC installers, service techs, commercial HVAC techs, refrigeration mechanics, and related HVACR workers. It does not isolate supermarket rack technicians, ammonia operators, CO2 specialists, or industrial refrigeration mechanics. A tech running supermarket calls at 2 a.m. is in a different pay lane than an entry-level residential installer.
The ranking still works for hiring and job hunting because it reflects the labor market each employer competes in. A contractor hiring commercial refrigeration techs in Massachusetts competes against a stronger wage floor than a contractor hiring in Arkansas. A cold storage operator in Illinois competes in a market where the median is already $71,620. If you want to see how the trade compares to adjacent work, read refrigeration tech vs HVAC tech.
The Short Version
Median annual pay for the occupation, the top of all 50 states.
Median annual pay, roughly $37,600 below Alaska.
Skilled commercial techs should look past the median and compare high-end pay, overtime, system type, and local market demand.
Common Questions
Alaska ranks first at $83,660 in median annual pay, followed by Massachusetts at $76,990, Connecticut at $73,910, Minnesota at $73,390, and Illinois at $71,620.
The national median is $59,810 per year, or $28.75 per hour, based on May 2024 wage data for BLS occupation 49-9021, Heating, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Mechanics and Installers.
Median pay shows the middle of the market, not a number pulled up by a small group of very high earners. The high annual pay column shows the top-end wage level reported in the same state table.
No. BLS occupation 49-9021 includes residential HVAC installers, service techs, commercial HVAC techs, refrigeration mechanics, and related HVACR workers. It does not isolate supermarket rack technicians, ammonia operators, CO2 specialists, or industrial refrigeration mechanics.
Not necessarily. Read the bottom of the list as a wage baseline. Florida ranks low statewide at $50,580, but commercial refrigeration demand is constant in grocery, restaurants, hospitality, healthcare, and cold storage. Texas ranks 39th at $54,050, and major metro areas and industrial accounts pay above the state median for experienced techs.
Related Pay and Career Guides
Compare Real Openings
See what employers are actually paying. Look for roles that mention supermarket racks, CO2, ammonia, industrial refrigeration, controls, and on-call commercial service.
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Open Salary EstimatorSkilled trades recruiting executive and founder of FridgeJobs.com. Matthew has 15+ years placing commercial and industrial trades professionals, authored four books on hiring, and hosted the Hired podcast, ranked in the top 0.5% of career podcasts worldwide.