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Reference · State of Massachusetts

Massachusetts trade labor costs

What a plumbing, HVAC or electrical tech earns in Massachusetts, 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
$45.14/h+47.2% vs the U.S.6th of 51
HVAC median
$37.16/h+26.7% vs the U.S.4th of 51
Electrical median
$38.18/h+25.7% vs the U.S.6th of 51
New-employer SUTA
Checkon the first $15,000
Payroll programs
1 programPFML
Sales tax on labor
Not taxedrepair and installation on buildings

Pay in Massachusetts

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 $25.01, 25th $29.74, median $45.14, 75th $52.13, 90th $64.94 an hour; U.S. median $30.67.

  • HVACU.S. median $29.33

    HVAC techs: 10th percentile $24.44, 25th $29.36, median $37.16, 75th $45.71, 90th $49.23 an hour; U.S. median $29.33.

  • ElectricalU.S. median $30.38

    electricians: 10th percentile $22.59, 25th $27.82, median $38.18, 75th $48.31, 90th $61.64 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 Massachusetts, BLS OEWS May 2025
PercentilePlumbingHVACElectrical
10th$25.01$24.44$22.59
25th$29.74$29.36$27.82
Median$45.14$37.16$38.18
75th$52.13$45.71$48.31
90th$64.94$49.23$61.64
Mean$43.46$37.38$39.21
U.S. median$30.67$29.33$30.38
vs U.S.+47.2%+26.7%+25.7%
Rank6th4th6th
Jobs13,4608,20017,810

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 Massachusetts 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)

Massachusetts General Laws (malegislature.gov); mass.gov could not be read

Wage base
$15,000 per employee a year
New-employer rate
Check with the stateNot confirmed on the state’s own pages on October 28, 2026. The U.S. Labor Department’s July 2026 summary lists 2.42%; the calculator uses the 6.08% construction rate below.
Construction
Check with the stateThe calculator uses 6.08%, the 2026 construction rate the Department of Unemployment Assistance published (read October 4, 2026); mass.gov could not be read on October 28, 2026.

Construction employers (NAICS 23): 6.08% (Massachusetts Department of Unemployment Assistance (DUA), 2026 contribution rates). New-employer rates apply for the first 3 calendar years and carry no COVID-19 recovery assessment. (From the state’s pages as read on October 4, 2026; mass.gov could not be read on October 28, 2026.)

Per tech, a year 6.08% × $15,000 = $912At the construction rate, for a plumber paid the state median ($45.14 × 2,080 h = $93,891). The calculator uses the rate alone.

State pages read

Workers’ compensation

Massachusetts Department of Industrial Accidents

Who must carry it
Any employeeEvery employer must provide for the payment of workers’ compensation to its employees by insurance, membership in a self-insurance group, or a self-insurer license from the Department (M.G.L. c. 152, § 25A). Coverage stays elective only for employers of seasonal, casual or part-time domestic servants. malegislature.gov
Where to buy it
Private insurersEmployers insure with an insurer, join a licensed workers’ compensation self-insurance group, or obtain an annual self-insurer license from the Department of Industrial Accidents (M.G.L. c. 152, § 25A). malegislature.gov
Owners
Coverage is elective for a corporate officer or director who owns at least 25% of the stock, and the exclusion applies only after the officer files a written waiver with the Commissioner of Industrial Accidents. Sole proprietors and partnerships are employees only if they choose, by buying insurance from a carrier (M.G.L. c. 152, § 1(4)). malegislature.gov
Construction
State and local agencies must withhold any license or permit to operate a business or to construct buildings until the applicant shows acceptable evidence of workers’ compensation coverage (M.G.L. c. 152, § 25C(6)). When a contractor’s subcontractor is uninsured, the insurer of the business up the chain must pay that sub’s employees (§ 18). malegislature.gov

Statute and agency pages read

Massachusetts Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML)

In effect in 2026 Massachusetts Department of Family and Medical Leave (DFML)

Total rate
Check with the state
Employer pays
At least 60% of the medical-leave contribution; the family-leave contribution may be deducted in full
Small employers
Fewer than 25 MA employees: no employer portion; remit only 100% of family + 40% of medical contribution
Wage cap
The Social Security wage base
Employees
Deduction allowed: up to 100% of family and 40% of medical contribution

Employer’s own cost, share of wages 5 employees: None20 employees: None

Approved private plan (insured or self-insured with bond) allowed.

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 construction 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 Massachusetts needs to charge

The calculator’s example shop — three techs, $120,000 of overhead, a truck each, 10% net profit — with Massachusetts’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 $45.14$144.29$160.32→ $165
HVACwage $37.16$127.16$141.29→ $145
Electricalwage $38.18$129.35$143.72→ $145

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

Charge at least Example shop · Massachusetts

Charge at least $160.32 per billable hour; break-even $144.29.

Round up to $165 (+$4.68)

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 $160.32 per billable hour, drawn to scale: wage $77.16, taxes & benefits $20.51, overhead $32.87, truck $13.74, profit 10% $16.03. Break-even line at $144.29. Rounded up to $165.12345$0Labor$97.68Break-even$144.29Your rate$160.32Round up to$165
  1. Wage$93,891.20 ÷ 1,216.8 h$77.16
  2. Taxes & benefits26.59% of pay$20.51
  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$16.03
Break-even
$144.29
Profit per hour
$16.03
Revenue a year
$585,241

$144.29 ÷ (1 − 10%) = $160.32rounded up to $165

Already showing the example.

Price your tasks at $165 an hourOpens the price book builder with this rate.

Billable hours
1,216.8per tech a year
Loaded wage
$57.14per paid hour
Labor
$97.68per billable hour
Overhead
$32.87per billable hour
Truck
$13.74per billable hour
Labor burden
26.59%over gross pay

What moves your rate

  • Every billable hour sold under $144.29 loses money.
  • At 70% billable instead of 65%, break-even drops to $133.98, $10.31 an hour less.
  • Cut $10,000 of overhead a year and break-even drops $2.74 an hour, to $141.55.
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$45.14 × 2,080 h = $93,891.20
  4. Employer taxes and comp$5,821.25 SS + $1,361.42 Medicare + $42.00 FUTA + $912.00 SUTA + $2,506.90 comp = $10,643.57
  5. Benefits$93,891.20 × 15.25% = $14,318.41
  6. Labor per billable hour$118,853.18 ÷ 1,216.8 h = $97.68
  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$97.68 + $32.87 + $13.74 = $144.29
  10. Rate at 10% profit$144.29 ÷ (1 − 10%) = $160.32

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 Massachusetts3 figures
Wage Plumbing
$45.14/hr
Massachusetts median for plumbers · BLS OEWS May 2025
SUTA rate Construction
6.08%
Construction rate; other new employers pay 2.42% · Massachusetts Department of Unemployment Assistance, 2026
SUTA wage base Per tech
$15,000
Massachusetts · 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.

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

Construction employers (NAICS 23): 6.08% (Massachusetts Department of Unemployment Assistance (DUA), 2026 contribution rates). New-employer rates apply for the first 3 calendar years and carry no COVID-19 recovery assessment.

NAICS is the federal industry code; plumbing, HVAC and electrical contractors are 2382, construction as a whole is 23.

Crew and pay

People who bill hours. Office staff go in overhead.

Average base pay. Filled: Massachusetts 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+26.59% of pay

Filled: Massachusetts construction rate, Massachusetts Department of Unemployment Assistance, 2026. Your notice wins.

Pay per tech the rate applies to. Filled: Massachusetts, 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$57.14per paid hour · burden 26.59%

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: $160.32 per billable hour · break-even $144.29. Back to the result

Sales tax on your work

What Massachusetts’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
Not taxedPlumbers and electricians working on real property generally act as contractors, and their labor charges aren’t taxed.A shop that sells and installs a standard item, such as a faucet, is the vendor of that item: tax is due on the item’s price, and on the whole bill if the item isn’t separately stated and is worth more than 10% of the total charge.
Materials
Contractor, when buyingAs contractors they pay sales or use tax on materials when buying them; as vendors they buy for resale and charge tax on the item’s price.

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

Board of State Examiners of Plumbers and Gas Fitters (Massachusetts Division of Occupational Licensure)

Master Plumber license

No person shall engage in the business as a master plumber or master gas fitter, or work as a journeyman or apprentice, unless lawfully registered or licensed by the examiners (M.G.L. c.142 §3).

Fees: check with the state. The board’s fee schedule could not be confirmed on October 28, 2026.

Fees for the first license, the two-year renewal and the exam are set each year by the state Commissioner of Administration (M.G.L. c.142 §5) in the state fee regulation 801 CMR 4.00, posted on mass.gov. That page could not be opened for this page, so no fee amounts are shown.

Keeping the license

Renewal
Plumber and gas fitter licenses are issued for two years and renew every two years on or before May 1 (M.G.L. c. 142 §6). malegislature.gov
Continuing ed.
Check with the boardThe official pages and rules we read on November 4, 2026 do not settle it.
Reciprocity
Check with the boardThe official pages and rules we read on November 4, 2026 do not settle it.

Sources read

HVAC

State license

Office of Public Safety and Inspections, Massachusetts Division of Occupational Licensure

Refrigeration Contractor license (refrigeration technician license for workers)

No person shall work as a refrigeration technician (or engage in the business of a master pipefitter) unless licensed under M.G.L. c.146 §85; applications are filed with the Office of Public Safety and Inspections (c.146 §§84-85).

Fees: check with the state. The board’s fee schedule could not be confirmed on October 28, 2026.

Fees for the first license, the two-year renewal and the exam for refrigeration contractors and technicians are set each year by the state Commissioner of Administration (M.G.L. c.146 §85) in the state fee regulation 801 CMR 4.00, posted on mass.gov. That page could not be opened for this page, so no fee amounts are shown.

Keeping the license

Renewal
Refrigeration contractor and refrigeration technician licenses (Office of Public Safety and Inspections) expire on the licensee’s birthday 12 to 24 months after issue and then renew every two years on the birthday, staying in even or odd years (M.G.L. c. 146 §85). malegislature.gov
Continuing ed.
Check with the boardThe official pages and rules we read on November 4, 2026 do not settle it.
Reciprocity
Check with the boardThe official pages and rules we read on November 4, 2026 do not settle it.

Sources read

Electrical

State license

Board of State Examiners of Electricians (Massachusetts Division of Occupational Licensure)

Master Electrician (Certificate A) license

Certificate A (master electrician’s license) is issued to any person, firm or corporation engaged in the business of installing wires, conduits, apparatus, devices, fixtures or other appliances and systems (M.G.L. c.141 §§1A, 3).

Fees: check with the state. The board’s fee schedule could not be confirmed on October 28, 2026.

License and exam fees are set each year by the state Commissioner of Administration (M.G.L. c.141 §1) in the state fee regulation 801 CMR 4.00, posted on mass.gov. That page could not be opened for this page, so no fee amounts are shown.

Keeping the license

Renewal
Master (Certificate A) and journeyman (Certificate B) electrician licenses expire on July 31 every third year and are renewed for three years without re-examination (M.G.L. c. 141 §3). malegislature.gov
Continuing ed.
Check with the boardThe official pages and rules we read on November 4, 2026 do not settle it.
Reciprocity
Check with the boardThe official pages and rules we read on November 4, 2026 do not settle it.

Sources read

Beyond the trade license

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

Registration
Residential contractors must register as Home Improvement Contractors with the Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation (M.G.L. c. 142A §9), but licensed plumbers, electricians and other trade licensees acting only within the scope of their license are exempt (c. 142A §14), as are jobs under $500. malegislature.gov
Bond
No license bond is set. To get a plumbing, gas or electrical permit, a self-employed licensee must show liability insurance with completed-operations coverage or, instead, a bond or equivalent indemnity (c. 142 §21A; c. 141 §8); the statutes set no amount. malegislature.gov
Insurance
Cities and towns may not issue a plumbing, gas fitting or electrical permit to a self-employed licensee without proof of liability insurance including completed-operations coverage (or an equivalent bond), unless the property owner signs the permit application instead (c. 142 §21A; c. 141 §8). No minimum amount is set in the statutes. malegislature.gov

Board and statute pages read

State or city license?

State license only Who licenses the trades in Massachusetts

Plumber, gas fitter, electrician and refrigeration licenses are issued by the state and valid throughout Massachusetts. A master plumber or master gas fitter must also register name and business address with the inspector of buildings or board of health in each town where he does business (fee no more than $20); towns issue permits and inspect. malegislature.gov

State and city pages read

What Massachusetts 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

M.G.L. c. 254, §§1 to 33Chapter 254: LIENS ON BUILDINGS AND LAND

You, hired by the owner
No notice to startA contractor with a written contract with the owner sends no notice to the owner before or during the job; the lien is created by recording a notice of contract at the registry of deeds (M.G.L. c. 254, §2), which is itself the first deadline. The lien under §2 requires a written contract with the owner. malegislature.gov
Subs and suppliers
Notice requiredA sub or supplier with a written contract records its own notice of contract and must give the owner actual notice of the filing; its lien is limited to what the owner still owes under the prime contract at that time (c. 254, §4). A lower-tier sub or supplier with no contract with the prime contractor must send the prime a Notice of Identification by certified mail within 30 days after starting work, or its lien is capped at what is owed under the first-tier subcontract. malegislature.gov
File the lien
90 daysRecord the notice of contract by the earliest of 60 days after a notice of substantial completion is recorded, 90 days after a notice of termination is recorded, or 90 days after you last furnished labor or materials (c. 254, §§2, 4). Then record a statement of the amount due by the earliest of 90 days after the notice of substantial completion, or 120 days after a notice of termination or after the last day of work (c. 254, §8). malegislature.gov
Enforce it
90 daysFile a civil action to enforce the lien within 90 days after recording the statement of amount due (c. 254, §11), and record an attested copy of the complaint at the registry of deeds within 30 days after filing suit (§5), or the lien is dissolved. malegislature.gov

Statutes read

Payment deadlines and retainage

Private jobs (public contracts have their own rules)

Prompt payment
Statute sets deadlinesOnly private jobs whose prime contract is $3,000,000 or more (excluding projects of 1 to 4 dwelling units) are covered: pay applications are approved or rejected within 15 days and paid within 45 days after approval, and pay-if-paid clauses are void except as M.G.L. c. 149, §29E allows. The statute sets no interest rate for late payment. malegislature.gov
Retainage
Capped at 5%On private projects with a prime contract of $3,000,000 or more (not 1 to 4 dwelling units), retainage may not exceed 5% of any progress payment (M.G.L. c. 149, §29F). After 60 days past substantial completion you may apply for retainage, which must be paid within 30 days of the application (7 more days per lower tier). malegislature.gov

Statutes read

Heating and cooling season in Massachusetts

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 Boston Logan, month by month.

Heating degree days
5,546
Cooling degree days
802
Nights ≤ 32 °F
92
Days ≥ 90 °F
14
Normal heating and cooling degree days (base 65 °F) and freezing nights by month at Boston Logan, NOAA 1991–2020 normals
MonthHeatingCoolingNights ≤ 32 °F
Jan1,086025
Feb930022
Mar828116
Apr49642
May23429–
Jun50138–
Jul4284–
Aug5245–
Sep7191–
Oct3269–
Nov60807
Dec908020

Heating carries the load at Boston Logan: 5,546 heating degree days a year against 802 cooling degree days, peaking in January (1,086).

The lightest months for heating and cooling together are June and September (188 and 162 degree days).

Nights at or below 32 °F: about 92 a year, ten or more a month in December through March; 1 at or below 0 °F. Days reaching 90 °F: about 14 a year, the most in July.

Weighted by where Massachusetts’s people live, NOAA’s statewide normals (1981–2010) are 6,369 heating and 516 cooling degree days — 15th for heating and 36th for cooling among the 48 contiguous states (the contiguous U.S.: 4,332 and 1,272).

Station: Boston Logan (USW00014739), NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 — station file; statewide figures: NOAA Climate Prediction Center. Bars share one scale: the longest is 1,086 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 (malegislature.gov)Massachusetts Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development, Department of Unemployment Assistance (DUA) · 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. Massachusetts Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML)Massachusetts Department of Family and Medical Leave (DFML) · read October 28, 2026
  7. Sales Tax Guide for PlumbersMassachusetts Department of Revenue · updated March 6, 2026 · read October 24, 2026
  8. Sales Tax Guide for ElectriciansMassachusetts Department of Revenue · updated July 25, 2023 · read October 24, 2026
  9. M.G.L. c. 254, §§1 to 33 — Chapter 254: LIENS ON BUILDINGS AND LANDOfficial state code · read November 4, 2026
  10. Workers’ compensation coverage requirementsMassachusetts Department of Industrial Accidents · read November 4, 2026
  11. U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020, Boston Logan (USW00014739)NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information · read November 4, 2026
  12. 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