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Reference · State of Arkansas

Arkansas trade labor costs

What a plumbing, HVAC or electrical tech earns in Arkansas, what the state adds to payroll, whether labor is taxed, what a license costs, how lien rights work and when the heating and cooling seasons peak — each figure from the agency that sets it, with the date we read it.

  • Wages BLS OEWS May 2025
  • Payroll and licenses state agencies
  • Checked and
Plumbing median
$23.39/h−23.7% vs the U.S.51st of 51
HVAC median
$23.13/h−21.1% vs the U.S.51st of 51
Electrical median
$23.59/h−22.4% vs the U.S.51st of 51
New-employer SUTA
2.00%on the first $7,000
Payroll programs
Noneno paid-leave or disability program found
Sales tax on labor
Dependsrepair and installation on buildings

Pay in Arkansas

Hourly pay across all industries, May 2025. Half of the workers in each trade earn less than the median and half earn more; one in ten earns less than the 10th percentile. Union and non-union, no self-employed.

Hourly pay, 10th to 90th percentileDrawn to scale: one dollar axis for all three trades

  • PlumbingU.S. median $30.67

    plumbers: 10th percentile $16.06, 25th $18.82, median $23.39, 75th $29.12, 90th $33.11 an hour; U.S. median $30.67.

  • HVACU.S. median $29.33

    HVAC techs: 10th percentile $17.81, 25th $20.59, median $23.13, 75th $28.73, 90th $33.31 an hour; U.S. median $29.33.

  • ElectricalU.S. median $30.38

    electricians: 10th percentile $16.79, 25th $18.54, median $23.59, 75th $29.99, 90th $35.80 an hour; U.S. median $30.38.

  • 25th–75th percentile
  • State median
  • U.S. median
Hourly pay by percentile for plumbers, HVAC techs and electricians in Arkansas, BLS OEWS May 2025
PercentilePlumbingHVACElectrical
10th$16.06$17.81$16.79
25th$18.82$20.59$18.54
Median$23.39$23.13$23.59
75th$29.12$28.73$29.99
90th$33.11$33.31$35.80
Mean$24.35$24.59$25.71
U.S. median$30.67$29.33$30.38
vs U.S.−23.7%−21.1%−22.4%
Rank51st51st51st
Jobs3,3704,9607,500

Dollars an hour. BLS occupations: Plumbers, pipefitters and steamfitters (SOC 47-2152); Heating, air conditioning and refrigeration mechanics and installers (SOC 49-9021); Electricians (SOC 47-2111). “vs U.S.” compares the medians; rank 1 is the highest median of the 50 states and DC. Released May 15, 2026; the next survey is due each spring.

Payroll costs the state adds

What Arkansas charges an employer on top of wages: unemployment tax, and any paid-leave or disability program funded through payroll, and who must carry workers’ comp. Federal Social Security, Medicare and unemployment tax apply in every state and are already in the calculator. Workers’ comp premiums depend on the class code and the insurer, so the card gives the rules, not a rate.

State unemployment tax (SUTA)

Arkansas Division of Reemployment

Wage base
$7,000 per employee a year
New-employer rate
2.00%
Construction
No separate rate published

Arkansas Division of Reemployment, 2026 tax rates table: new employer 2.0% on a $7,000 base. DOL’s table shows 1.80%, so the state figure is used. The same table lists a 0.2% stabilization rate on its own line and does not say whether the 2.0% includes it.

Charged with it

  • Stabilization rate 0.2% — listed on its own line; the state does not say whether the rate shown includes it.

Per tech, a year 2.00% × $7,000 = $140At the new-employer rate, for a plumber paid the state median ($23.39 × 2,080 h = $48,651). The calculator uses the rate alone.

State pages read

Workers’ compensation

Arkansas Workers' Compensation Commission (Arkansas Department of Labor and Licensing)

Who must carry it
Building work: 2 employees (1 if you sub out work)Coverage is required when an employer has three or more employees; for building or building repair work the trigger is two employees, and a contractor that subcontracts any part of its contract, or a subcontractor, must cover even one employee (Ark. Code Ann. § 11-9-102). Owners, sole proprietors, full-time partners, part-time employees and volunteers all count toward the number. labor.arkansas.gov
Where to buy it
Private insurersThe employer buys a workers’ compensation insurance policy or gets state approval to self-insure; any other arrangement may be fraud. Employees may not be made to pay any part of it. labor.arkansas.gov
Owners
A sole proprietor, partner or LLC member with no other employees can elect to be excluded by filing Form A, the Application for Certificate of Non-Coverage, with a notarized affidavit and a $50 fee. Corporate officers are excluded from a policy through the insurance agent or carrier, not Form A. labor.arkansas.gov
Construction
It is a felony for an employer or contractor to make an employee or subcontractor pay for workers’ compensation coverage, or to force a subcontractor to obtain a Certificate of Non-Coverage. labor.arkansas.gov

Statute and agency pages read

Paid leave and disability insurance

We found no state paid family and medical leave or temporary disability insurance program funded through payroll in Arkansas on October 28, 2026. State paid sick leave rules, where they exist, are not covered here.

New-employer rates usually last one to three years — longer in some states (four years in Indiana, four to five in D.C.); then the state assigns your own rate, and your rate notice wins over any figure here. The calculator below uses the new-employer rate where one is clear. Where a state’s own pages could not be read, the card says so and gives the U.S. Labor Department’s figure.

What a shop in Arkansas needs to charge

The calculator’s example shop — three techs, $120,000 of overhead, a truck each, 10% net profit — with Arkansas’s median wage for each trade and its unemployment tax filled in. Your own numbers will differ; change them in the calculator below.

Example shopBreak-evenRate, 10% profit
Plumbingwage $23.39$96.97$107.74→ $110
HVACwage $23.13$96.41$107.12→ $110
Electricalwage $23.59$97.40$108.22→ $110

Per billable hour; → is the rate rounded up, as the calculator rounds it. Everything except the wage and the unemployment tax is the national example (BLS, IRS and DOL figures listed on the labor rate calculator).

Change the numbers for your shop

The labor rate calculator, opened on Arkansas: pick your trade, put in your own crew, pay and overhead, and the rate and break-even redraw as you type.

Your labor rate

Who does the billable work?

Example shop in Arkansas: 3 techs at the state’s median plumber wage, $120,000 overhead. Change any number or pick another state.

Charge at least Example shop · Arkansas

Charge at least $107.74 per billable hour; break-even $96.97.

Round up to $110 (+$2.26)

See it drawn to scale
Rate build-upDrawn to scale: every dollar the same height
Rate build-up for the example, drawn to scaleColumn from $0 to $107.74 per billable hour, drawn to scale: wage $39.98, taxes & benefits $10.37, overhead $32.87, truck $13.74, profit 10% $10.77. Break-even line at $96.97. Rounded up to $110.12345$0Labor$50.36Break-even$96.97Your rate$107.74Round up to$110
  1. Wage$48,651.20 ÷ 1,216.8 h$39.98
  2. Taxes & benefits25.94% of pay$10.37
  3. Overhead$120,000 ÷ 3,650.4 h$32.87
  4. Truck$16,719.14 ÷ 1,216.8 h$13.74
  5. Profit 10%of the price$10.77
Break-even
$96.97
Profit per hour
$10.77
Revenue a year
$393,308

$96.97 ÷ (1 − 10%) = $107.74rounded up to $110

Already showing the example.

Price your tasks at $110 an hourOpens the price book builder with this rate.

Billable hours
1,216.8per tech a year
Loaded wage
$29.46per paid hour
Labor
$50.36per billable hour
Overhead
$32.87per billable hour
Truck
$13.74per billable hour
Labor burden
25.94%over gross pay

What moves your rate

  • Every billable hour sold under $96.97 loses money.
  • At 70% billable instead of 65%, break-even drops to $90.04, $6.93 an hour less.
  • Cut $10,000 of overhead a year and break-even drops $2.74 an hour, to $94.23.
Show the math
  1. Worked hours2,080 h − 26 days × 8 h = 1,872 h
  2. Billable hours per tech1,872 h × 65% = 1,216.8 h
  3. Gross pay per tech$23.39 × 2,080 h = $48,651.20
  4. Employer taxes and comp$3,016.37 SS + $705.44 Medicare + $42.00 FUTA + $140.00 SUTA + $1,298.99 comp = $5,202.80
  5. Benefits$48,651.20 × 15.25% = $7,419.31
  6. Labor per billable hour$61,273.31 ÷ 1,216.8 h = $50.36
  7. Overhead per billable hour$120,000 ÷ (3 × 1,216.8 h) = $32.87
  8. Truck per billable hour$16,719.14 ÷ 1,216.8 h = $13.74
  9. Break-even$50.36 + $32.87 + $13.74 = $96.97
  10. Rate at 10% profit$96.97 ÷ (1 − 10%) = $107.74

Change the numbers

State and trade
Trade

Fills the wage and state unemployment tax (SUTA). Workers’ comp and everything else stay as they are.

Filled for Arkansas3 figures
Wage Plumbing
$23.39/hr
Arkansas median for plumbers · BLS OEWS May 2025
SUTA rate New employer
2.00%
New-employer rate; no separate construction rate found · Arkansas Division of Reemployment, 2026 table (state agency override)
SUTA wage base Per tech
$7,000
Arkansas · DOL Significant Provisions, July 2026

Your own rate notice wins. These are new-employer rates: after one to three years the state sets your own, and construction employers often pay a different rate.

Arkansas: pay, payroll taxes and licensesSee all 50 states and DC
Arkansas: the fine print

Arkansas Division of Reemployment, 2026 tax rates table: new employer 2.0% on a $7,000 base. DOL’s table shows 1.80%, so the state figure is used. The same table lists a 0.2% stabilization rate on its own line and does not say whether the 2.0% includes it.

Crew and pay

People who bill hours. Office staff go in overhead.

Average base pay. Filled: Arkansas median for plumbers, BLS OEWS May 2025.

Hours and time off2,080 h · 26 days off

40 hours × 52 weeks = 2,080.

Holidays, vacation and sick days, 8 h each. Example: 8 + 11 + 7 (BLS).

Optional. Paid at 1.5 × the wage. Leave 0 if none.

Billable time

Share of worked hours that ends up on invoices. Published figures run from 30% to 65%.

Billable hours1,216.8 hper tech · 3,650.4 h for the shop
Payroll taxes and benefits+25.94% of pay

Filled: Arkansas new-employer rate, Arkansas Division of Reemployment, 2026 table (state agency override). Your notice wins.

Pay per tech the rate applies to. Filled: Arkansas, DOL Significant Provisions, July 2026.

Use the rate on your policy. Example: BLS construction average.

Health, retirement and other benefits. Example: BLS construction average.

Loaded wage$29.46per paid hour · burden 25.94%

Included automatically (IRS, tax year 2026): Social Security 6.2% of pay up to $184,500, Medicare 1.45%, federal unemployment (FUTA) 0.6% of the first $7,000.

Shop costs

An example figure. Everything except field pay and trucks — split it in the worksheet below.

Payments, fuel, insurance and upkeep. Enter 0 if trucks are already in overhead.

Profit

Profit as a share of the price, not a markup on cost.

Your rate: $107.74 per billable hour · break-even $96.97. Back to the result

Sales tax on your work

What Arkansas’s tax agency says about repair and installation labor on buildings and the parts and fixtures that go into them. This is what the agency’s pages say, not tax advice.

Labor
DependsInstalling, replacing or repairing pipes and nonmechanical plumbing fixtures is not taxed. Installing mechanical or electrical equipment in an existing building, or repairing or replacing it (water heaters, HVAC units), is taxed.First-time installation of HVAC equipment and ducts in a new or substantially modified building is not taxed. When a job repairs or replaces both ductwork and a heating or air unit, the whole charge is taxed unless the ductwork is billed separately.
Materials
Depends on the job or contractOn work that isn’t taxed, the contractor pays tax on its materials; on taxable services, tax on the parts and materials is collected from the customer with the labor.

Read October 24, 2026 on the agency pages listed under Sources. All 50 states and DC side by side.

Licenses and state fees

The license a shop needs from the state to contract for each trade, the board that issues it and the fees on its own schedule. Cities and counties can add their own licenses, registrations and permit fees; exam vendors and fingerprinting may charge more.

Plumbing

State license

Arkansas Department of Health – Plumbing & Natural Gas (Committee of Plumbing Examiners)

Master Plumber license

No person shall engage in work as a master plumber, journeyman plumber, apprentice plumber, or restricted license holder unless first licensed or registered by the Department of Health (Ark. Code Ann. 17-38-301, Plumbing Law PDF).

FeeAmount
Master application (examination) feeone-time (per application)$125
Master license fee (initial and annual renewal)per year (expires Dec 31)$200

Department instructions dated 1/15/2026 list 'MASTER $125.00 $200.00 31-DEC' (application fee, license fee, expiration). Re-examination after failing any portion is $50; late fee $5 per month after 30 days; deferment $20/year. Rules effective Sept 5, 2024.

Keeping the license

Renewal
Master, journeyman and apprentice plumber licenses from the Arkansas Department of Health expire every December 31 and must be renewed by February 1; after that a $5 per month penalty is added. Restricted plumber licenses expire June 30. healthy.arkansas.gov
Continuing ed.
The Arkansas plumbing statute and the Board of Health plumber licensing rules (effective September 5, 2024) set no continuing-education hours for renewing master or journeyman plumber licenses; only plumbing inspectors need 8 hours of refresher training each year. healthy.arkansas.gov
Reciprocity
The Arkansas Department of Health has plumbing reciprocity agreements with Ohio, Texas, Louisiana and Oklahoma. Licensees from other states with substantially similar laws may be approved to test, and new residents may qualify for automatic licensure under Act 457 of 2023. healthy.arkansas.gov

Sources read

HVAC

State license

HVACR Licensing Board, Arkansas Department of Labor and Licensing

Class A HVACR contractor license (Class B for systems up to 25 tons / 1,000,000 BTUH)

It is unlawful for any person to engage in HVACR work without the appropriate license or registration (Ark. Code 17-33-301). Class A entitles the licensee to perform HVACR work without limitation to BTUH or horsepower (17 CAR 261-103).

FeeAmount
Class A examination feeone-time (per exam)$100
Class A license fee (initial and each annual renewal)per year$200

17 CAR 261-106. Class B, D and E license fees are $150 per year; registrant fee $25 per year. Licenses expire one year from issuance. The HVACR application form (2022) lists 'Class A: $200.00'. Exams are proctored by Prov.

Keeping the license

Renewal
Arkansas HVACR licenses expire on the last day of the month one year after the original issue date and renew every year; late renewal adds $10 per month. labor.arkansas.gov
Continuing ed.
An HVACR license cannot be renewed unless the licensee completes at least 8 hours of board-approved continuing education per International Mechanical Code cycle (a three-year code cycle), finished before the final year of the cycle (17 CAR 261-120). labor.arkansas.gov
Reciprocity
The Arkansas HVACR Licensing Board states it has no reciprocal licensing agreements with any other state; licensees from states with substantially similar laws may be approved to take the exam. labor.arkansas.gov

Sources read

Electrical

State license

Board of Electrical Examiners of the State of Arkansas (Arkansas Department of Labor and Licensing)

Master Electrician license (Residential Master Electrician for residential-only work)

No person shall perform electrical work in this state or indicate that the person is an electrician unless the person has first obtained a license to perform electrical work under the chapter (Ark. Code 17-28-304).

FeeAmount
Master Electrician examination feeone-time (per exam)$80
Master Electrician license fee (initial)one-time (first year)$50
Master Electrician renewal feeper year$50

Initial fee from Ark. Code 17-28-301(a) (Board’s 2025 statutes PDF); renewal from 17 CAR 210-504 and 17-28-301(b). Late renewal = one year’s fee plus $10 per month. The HVAC-R page notes separate state contractor licensing by the Arkansas Contractors Licensing Board (not researched here).

Keeping the license

Renewal
Arkansas electrical licenses (master, journeyman and others) expire on the last day of the month one year after issue and renew every year (17 CAR 210-504). labor.arkansas.gov
Continuing ed.
Master and journeyman electricians must complete at least 8 hours of board-approved continuing education on the National Electrical Code for each NEC cycle (three years) before renewing (17 CAR 210-1002). labor.arkansas.gov
Reciprocity
The Board of Electrical Examiners has journeyman reciprocity with Alaska, Colorado, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, Vermont, Wisconsin and Wyoming, and master reciprocity with Iowa, Oregon and Texas (a note on the board’s list also names North Dakota for masters). Only an original license from the issuing state qualifies. labor.arkansas.gov

Sources read

Beyond the trade license

Contractor registration, bond and insurance the state asks of a trade shop

Registration
A shop doing work of $50,000 or more (labor and materials) on any project other than a single-family home also needs a commercial contractor license from the Arkansas Contractors Licensing Board (ACA 17-25-101), in the mechanical, electrical, plumbing or HVACR classification, which requires a full-time master plumber, master electrician or Class A/B HVACR licensee on staff (17 CAR 255-208). Residential home improvement licenses (jobs over $2,000) do not apply to a contractor working within the scope of another Arkansas state license (ACA 17-25-513(5)). labor.arkansas.gov
Bond
Arkansas sets no surety bond for plumbing, HVACR or electrical licenses. A commercial contractor licensee must file a CPA-reviewed financial statement with each original and renewal application, or instead post a surety bond equal to ten times the net worth its classification requires (ACA 17-25-304). healthy.arkansas.gov · labor.arkansas.gov
Insurance
$250,000Holders of HVACR Class A, B, D or E licenses must carry liability insurance (or be covered by an employer policy) of at least $250,000 per licensee and show proof at issuance and each renewal (17 CAR 261). The plumbing and electrical licensing rules set no insurance minimum. labor.arkansas.gov

Board and statute pages read

State or city license?

State and local Who licenses the trades in Arkansas

Plumbers, HVACR technicians and electricians are licensed by the state, but the plumbing law leaves cities, towns and counties full authority to supervise plumbing inspection and plumbers by local ordinance (ACA 17-38-204(e)). Cities and counties with a mechanical code program must register their mechanical inspectors with the state HVACR board. healthy.arkansas.gov · labor.arkansas.gov

State and city pages read

What Arkansas law says about lien rights on private jobs — the notices, the deadline to file and the deadline to sue — and whether a statute sets payment deadlines or caps retainage. Read from the statute itself; it is not legal advice.

Mechanic’s lien

The state’s official code could not be read normally; the rules below come from the enacted acts.

You, hired by the owner
On residential real estate of four or fewer units, the residential contractor must deliver the statutory notice in Ark. Code § 18-44-115(a) to the owner, the owner’s authorized agent or the owner’s registered agent before work begins, by personal delivery or certified mail, on behalf of all potential lien claimants. A residential contractor who fails to give it may not use the lien (§ 18-44-115(a)(4), as amended by Act 984 of 2021). arkleg.state.ar.us · opinions.arcourts.gov
Subs and suppliers
Check with the stateArkansas publishes its official code only through LexisNexis, which could not be read normally, and no other official page we found states this rule.
File the lien
Check with the stateArkansas publishes its official code only through LexisNexis, which could not be read normally, and no other official page we found states this rule.
Enforce it
Check with the stateArkansas publishes its official code only through LexisNexis, which could not be read normally, and no other official page we found states this rule.
Homes
Residential jobs (four or fewer units) have their own rule: no lien can be acquired unless the owner received the § 18-44-115(a) notice by personal delivery or certified mail before work began, and the residential contractor who skips it loses its lien (Act 984 of 2021). The notice is not required when the residential contractor supplies a performance and payment bond or the transaction is a direct sale to the owner (§ 18-44-115(a)(8)(A)). opinions.arcourts.gov

Statutes read

Payment deadlines and retainage

Private jobs (public contracts have their own rules)

Check with the state Payment deadlines and retainage on private jobs: Arkansas publishes its official code only through LexisNexis, which could not be read normally, and no other official page we found states this rule.

Statutes read

Heating and cooling season in Arkansas

Degree days, NOAA’s index of the energy it takes to heat or cool a building: each degree a day’s mean temperature falls below 65 °F is one heating degree day, each degree above is one cooling degree day. Thirty-year normals for Little Rock airport, month by month.

Heating degree days
3,165
Cooling degree days
1,989
Nights ≤ 32 °F
50
Days ≥ 90 °F
76
Normal heating and cooling degree days (base 65 °F) and freezing nights by month at Little Rock airport, NOAA 1991–2020 normals
MonthHeatingCoolingNights ≤ 32 °F
Jan754117
Feb569111
Mar391114
Apr15448–
May30182–
Jun0389–
Jul0510–
Aug0490–
Sep11281–
Oct14569–
Nov42575
Dec684113

Little Rock airport has two working seasons: 3,165 heating and 1,989 cooling degree days a year, heating peaking in January and cooling in July.

The lightest months for heating and cooling together are April and May (202 and 213 degree days).

Nights at or below 32 °F: about 50 a year, ten or more a month in December through February. Days reaching 90 °F: about 76 a year, the most in July.

Weighted by where Arkansas’s people live, NOAA’s statewide normals (1981–2010) are 3,385 heating and 1,800 cooling degree days — 39th for heating and 10th for cooling among the 48 contiguous states (the contiguous U.S.: 4,332 and 1,272).

Station: Little Rock airport (USW00013963), NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 — station file; statewide figures: NOAA Climate Prediction Center. Bars share one scale: the longest is 754 degree days. Read .

Sources

Each page opened on the date shown. License, registration, lien and workers’ comp sources are linked beside each fact above. Figures change: the agency’s own page wins over this one.

  1. May 2025 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates (state file oesm25st)U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · read October 28, 2026
  2. Occupational Employment and Wages — May 2025 (news release USDL-26-0725, May 15, 2026)U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · read October 28, 2026
  3. Public Data API (national OEWS series for the three occupations)U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · read October 28, 2026
  4. Unemployment insurance tax rates (reemployment.arkansas.gov)Arkansas Division of Reemployment · read October 28, 2026
  5. Significant Provisions of State Unemployment Insurance Laws, Effective July 2026U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Unemployment Insurance · read October 28, 2026
  6. Rule 26 CAR § 30-1003, ContractorsArkansas Department of Finance and Administration (Code of Arkansas Rules) · no date shown · read October 24, 2026
  7. Sales and Use Tax FAQsArkansas Department of Finance and Administration · no date shown · read October 24, 2026
  8. Workers’ compensation coverage requirementsArkansas Workers' Compensation Commission (Arkansas Department of Labor and Licensing) · read November 4, 2026
  9. U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020, Little Rock airport (USW00013963)NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information · read November 4, 2026
  10. Population-weighted daily heating and cooling degree day normals, 1981–2010 (states and CONUS)NOAA National Weather Service, Climate Prediction Center · read November 4, 2026