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Reference · State of Nevada

Nevada trade labor costs

What a plumbing, HVAC or electrical tech earns in Nevada, 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
$29.62/h−3.4% vs the U.S.35th of 51
HVAC median
$29.09/h−0.8% vs the U.S.28th of 51
Electrical median
$35.37/h+16.4% vs the U.S.19th of 51
New-employer SUTA
2.95%wage base: check with the state
Payroll programs
Noneno paid-leave or disability program found
Sales tax on labor
Not taxedrepair and installation on buildings

Pay in Nevada

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 $20.29, 25th $23.34, median $29.62, 75th $43.05, 90th $56.94 an hour; U.S. median $30.67.

  • HVACU.S. median $29.33

    HVAC techs: 10th percentile $19.73, 25th $23.26, median $29.09, 75th $36.82, 90th $43.15 an hour; U.S. median $29.33.

  • ElectricalU.S. median $30.38

    electricians: 10th percentile $22.17, 25th $23.52, median $35.37, 75th $46.42, 90th $58.27 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 Nevada, BLS OEWS May 2025
PercentilePlumbingHVACElectrical
10th$20.29$19.73$22.17
25th$23.34$23.26$23.52
Median$29.62$29.09$35.37
75th$43.05$36.82$46.42
90th$56.94$43.15$58.27
Mean$34.38$30.46$36.40
U.S. median$30.67$29.33$30.38
vs U.S.−3.4%−0.8%+16.4%
Rank35th28th19th
Jobs5,3704,1708,350

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 Nevada 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)

Nevada Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation (DETR), Employment Security Division

Wage base
Check with the stateNevada’s own pages could not be read on October 28, 2026. The U.S. Labor Department’s July 2026 summary lists $45,400; the calculator below uses $43,700, the 2026 figure in the Labor Department’s January 2026 summary and in the state’s March 2026 newsletter.
New-employer rate
2.95%
Construction
No separate rate published

Charged with it

Per tech, a year 2.95% × $43,700 = $1,289With the employment and training contribution billed on top: (2.95% + 0.05%) × $43,700 = $1,311At the new-employer rate, for a plumber paid the state median ($29.62 × 2,080 h = $61,610). The calculator uses the rate alone.

State pages read

Workers’ compensation

Nevada Department of Business and Industry, Division of Industrial Relations, Workers' Compensation Section

Who must carry it
Any employeeAny Nevada employer with even one employee under a contract of hire must carry workers’ compensation; the law is “conclusive, compulsory and obligatory” on employer and employee (NRS 616B.633). The Workers’ Compensation Section can fine an uninsured employer up to $15,000 and order the business closed until insurance is obtained. leg.state.nv.us · dir.nv.gov
Where to buy it
Private insurersNevada employers buy coverage from a private carrier licensed in Nevada, or are certified by the Division of Insurance as a self-insured employer or as a member of an association of self-insured employers; there is no state fund. dir.nv.gov
Owners
A sole proprietor (which in Nevada includes working partners) is not covered unless he or she elects coverage by filing a written notice of election with the Administrator and a private carrier; the carrier may require a physical exam first (NRS 616A.310, 616B.659). Corporate officers and LLC managers are covered; an officer or manager who owns the company and is paid, or one who is unpaid, may reject coverage by written notice to the insurer (NRS 616B.624). leg.state.nv.us
Construction
Subcontractors, independent contractors and their employees are treated as employees of the principal contractor for workers’ comp, and a subcontractor who is a sole proprietor or partner licensed under NRS chapter 624 is deemed to earn $500 a month (NRS 616A.210); the independent-enterprise exception does not protect a licensed principal contractor (NRS 616B.603(3)). Before issuing or renewing a contractor’s license, the State Contractors’ Board requires proof of workers’ comp for the applicant’s employees, a self-insurance certificate, or an affidavit that the applicant has no employees and will not work as or bid to a subcontractor (NRS 624.256). leg.state.nv.us

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 Nevada 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 Nevada needs to charge

The calculator’s example shop — three techs, $120,000 of overhead, a truck each, 10% net profit — with Nevada’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 $29.62$111.29$123.65→ $125
HVACwage $29.09$110.15$122.39→ $125
Electricalwage $35.37$123.63$137.37→ $140

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

Charge at least Example shop · Nevada

Charge at least $123.65 per billable hour; break-even $111.29.

Round up to $125 (+$1.35)

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 $123.65 per billable hour, drawn to scale: wage $50.63, taxes & benefits $14.04, overhead $32.87, truck $13.74, profit 10% $12.37. Break-even line at $111.29. Rounded up to $125.12345$0Labor$64.67Break-even$111.29Your rate$123.65Round up to$125
  1. Wage$61,609.60 ÷ 1,216.8 h$50.63
  2. Taxes & benefits27.73% of pay$14.04
  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$12.37
Break-even
$111.29
Profit per hour
$12.37
Revenue a year
$451,378

$111.29 ÷ (1 − 10%) = $123.65rounded up to $125

Already showing the example.

Price your tasks at $125 an hourOpens the price book builder with this rate.

Billable hours
1,216.8per tech a year
Loaded wage
$37.83per paid hour
Labor
$64.67per billable hour
Overhead
$32.87per billable hour
Truck
$13.74per billable hour
Labor burden
27.73%over gross pay

What moves your rate

  • Every billable hour sold under $111.29 loses money.
  • At 70% billable instead of 65%, break-even drops to $103.34, $7.95 an hour less.
  • Cut $10,000 of overhead a year and break-even drops $2.74 an hour, to $108.55.
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$29.62 × 2,080 h = $61,609.60
  4. Employer taxes and comp$3,819.80 SS + $893.34 Medicare + $42.00 FUTA + $1,289.15 SUTA + $1,644.98 comp = $7,689.26
  5. Benefits$61,609.60 × 15.25% = $9,395.46
  6. Labor per billable hour$78,694.32 ÷ 1,216.8 h = $64.67
  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$64.67 + $32.87 + $13.74 = $111.29
  10. Rate at 10% profit$111.29 ÷ (1 − 10%) = $123.65

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 Nevada3 figures
Wage Plumbing
$29.62/hr
Nevada median for plumbers · BLS OEWS May 2025
SUTA rate New employer
2.95%
New-employer rate; no separate construction rate found · DOL Significant Provisions, July 2026
SUTA wage base Per tech
$43,700
Nevada · Nevada DETR, March 2026 (state agency override)

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.

Nevada: pay, payroll taxes and licensesSee all 50 states and DC
Crew and pay

People who bill hours. Office staff go in overhead.

Average base pay. Filled: Nevada 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+27.73% of pay

Filled: Nevada new-employer rate, DOL Significant Provisions, July 2026. Your notice wins.

Pay per tech the rate applies to. Filled: Nevada, Nevada DETR, March 2026 (state agency override).

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

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

Loaded wage$37.83per paid hour · burden 27.73%

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: $123.65 per billable hour · break-even $111.29. Back to the result

Sales tax on your work

What Nevada’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 taxedWork under a construction contract, including remodeling or repairing an improvement to real property, isn’t a retail sale, and no sales tax goes on the invoice.Items that don’t become part of the property and are sold separately (furniture, equipment, display racks) are retail sales. If any tax is shown on the invoice, the Department of Taxation treats the job as a retail sale.
Materials
Contractor, when buyingThe contractor is the consumer and pays tax on all materials used in the job, usually when buying them; a contractor registered as a retailer may buy with a resale certificate and report the tax when the materials go into a job.

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, HVAC and Electrical

State license

Nevada State Contractors Board

  • Plumbing Contractor's license, Classification C-1 Plumbing and Heating (or subclassification C-1d Plumbing)A contractor is anyone who undertakes or offers to construct, alter, repair or improve any building or structure, including subcontractors and specialty contractors (Board, citing NRS 624.020); plumbing contractors hold a C-1 license.
  • HVAC Contractor's license, Classification C-21 Refrigeration and Air-ConditioningA contractor is anyone who undertakes or offers to construct, alter, repair or improve any building or structure, including specialty contractors (Board, citing NRS 624.020); refrigeration/air-conditioning contractors hold a C-21 license.
  • Electrical Contractor's license, Classification C-2 Electrical ContractingA contractor is anyone who undertakes or offers to construct, alter, repair or improve any building or structure, including specialty contractors (Board, citing NRS 624.020); electrical contractors hold a C-2 license.
FeeAmount
Application fee(application for a license in a classification the applicant is not licensed in)one-time$300
License issuance fee2 years (biennial)$600
License renewal fee2 years (biennial)$600

Fees are set in NAC 624.130: $300 to apply for a license in a new classification and $600 to issue or renew a license for two years. Exams are given by PSI and exam fees are paid to PSI (amounts not on the Board’s pages). Late renewal of an active license $150. A license bond ($1,000-$500,000, set by the Board) is also required.

Keeping the license

Renewal
PlumbingNSCB contractor’s licenses (including C-1 Plumbing and Heating) expire 2 years after issue and must be renewed by that date or they are automatically suspended (NRS 624.283). leg.state.nv.usHVACNSCB contractor’s licenses (including C-21 Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning) expire 2 years after issue and must be renewed by that date or they are automatically suspended (NRS 624.283). leg.state.nv.usElectricalNSCB contractor’s licenses (including C-2 Electrical) expire 2 years after issue and must be renewed by that date or they are automatically suspended (NRS 624.283). leg.state.nv.us
Continuing ed.
PlumbingNo continuing-education requirement for renewal of an NSCB contractor’s license appears in NRS 624.283, which lists the application, fee, any recovery-fund assessment and financial information. leg.state.nv.usHVAC and ElectricalNo continuing-education requirement for renewal of an NSCB contractor’s license appears in NRS 624.283. leg.state.nv.us
Reciprocity
PlumbingNSCB licensure by endorsement waives the Nevada trade exam and experience certification for applicants actively licensed for the past 4 years in a substantially equivalent state; for C-1 Plumbing and Heating the equivalency chart lists Arizona, California and Tennessee (Florida still requires the Nevada exam). The Nevada Business and Law exam is always required. nvcontractorsboard.comHVACFor C-21 Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning, the NSCB endorsement chart accepts the trade exam from Arizona, California, Connecticut, Louisiana and Tennessee (Florida still requires the Nevada exam); 4 years of active licensure and the Nevada Business and Law exam are required. nvcontractorsboard.comElectricalFor C-2 Electrical, the NSCB endorsement chart accepts the trade exam from Arizona, California, Connecticut, Louisiana, North Carolina and Tennessee (Florida and West Virginia still require the Nevada exam); 4 years of active licensure and the Nevada Business and Law exam are required. nvcontractorsboard.com

Sources read

Beyond the trade license

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

Registration
In Nevada the trade license is the Nevada State Contractors Board (NSCB) contractor’s license itself (C-1 Plumbing and Heating, C-2 Electrical, C-21 Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning), so there is no separate state contractor registration on top of it; residential contractors also pay any Residential Recovery Fund assessment at renewal (NRS 624.283). leg.state.nv.us
Bond
Every NSCB licensee must post a surety bond or cash deposit in an amount the Board sets at license approval, from $1,000 to $500,000 depending on license type, monetary limit, finances, experience and character; the Board can change it at renewal. nvcontractorsboard.com
Insurance
NRS 624 requires proof of industrial insurance (workers’ compensation, NRS 624.256) and a bond, but no general liability insurance minimum for a contractor’s license. leg.state.nv.us · nvcontractorsboard.com

Board and statute pages read

State or city license?

State and local Who licenses the trades in Nevada

The NSCB license is statewide, but state law lets any county or incorporated city require its own additional contractor’s license with extra reasonable standards (NRS 624.035), on top of local business licenses and permits. leg.state.nv.us

State and city pages read

What Nevada 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

NRS 108.221 to 108.246NRS Chapter 108 – Statutory Liens (mechanics’ and materialmen’s liens)

You, hired by the owner
Before signing a construction contract, the prime contractor must give the owner the written explanation of NRS 108.245 set out in NRS 108.246 (failure is ground for discipline, not loss of the lien). On single-family or multifamily residential work, every lien claimant except laborers, including the prime, must serve the owner and reputed prime contractor a 15-day notice of intent to lien before recording the lien (NRS 108.226(6)). leg.state.nv.us
Subs and suppliers
Notice requiredSubs and suppliers must deliver a Notice of Right to Lien to the owner in person or by certified mail (with a copy to the prime contractor); the lien covers only work and materials furnished in the 31 days before the notice and afterward (NRS 108.245). Those who contract directly with the owner are exempt. leg.state.nv.us
File the lien
90 daysRecord the notice of lien with the county recorder within 90 days after the latest of completion of the work, your last delivery of materials or equipment, or your last work, or within 40 days after a valid notice of completion is recorded and served (NRS 108.226(1)); on residential jobs the 15-day notice of intent adds 15 days. Serve a copy on the owner within 30 days after recording (NRS 108.227). leg.state.nv.us
Enforce it
6 monthsFile suit to enforce the lien within 6 months after the notice of lien was recorded, unless a recorded written extension (no more than 1 year from recording) is signed by the owner (NRS 108.233). leg.state.nv.us
Homes
On construction, alteration or repair of single-family or multifamily residences, a 15-day notice of intent to lien must be served on the owner and the reputed prime contractor by personal delivery or certified mail before the lien is recorded; it extends the recording deadline by 15 days, and a materials or equipment lien cannot be enforced without it (NRS 108.226(6)). It does not apply to nonresidential projects. leg.state.nv.us

Statutes read

Payment deadlines and retainage

Private jobs (public contracts have their own rules)

Prompt payment
Statute sets deadlinesThe owner must pay the prime by the contract’s payment date or, with no schedule, within 21 days after a pay request (NRS 624.609), and the balance within 30 days after occupancy or availability for use (NRS 624.620); a contractor must pay subs within 10 days after it is paid (or by the contract date, if earlier) (NRS 624.624). Late money accrues interest at the contract rate or prime plus 4%, whichever is higher (NRS 624.630); owner-prime rules do not cover a natural person’s single-family residence (NRS 624.622(4)). leg.state.nv.us
Retainage
Capped at 5%Retention may not exceed 5% of each payment from the owner to the prime (NRS 624.609(2)) or from a higher-tier contractor to a sub (NRS 624.624(2)); remaining money, including retention, is payable within 30 days after the owner occupies or uses the work or it becomes available for use (NRS 624.620). leg.state.nv.us

Statutes read

Heating and cooling season in Nevada

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 Las Vegas airport, month by month.

Heating degree days
1,836
Cooling degree days
3,720
Nights ≤ 32 °F
10
Days ≥ 90 °F
137
Normal heating and cooling degree days (base 65 °F) and freezing nights by month at Las Vegas airport, NOAA 1991–2020 normals
MonthHeatingCoolingNights ≤ 32 °F
Jan48103
Feb32311
Mar16636–
Apr55136–
May8390–
Jun1679–
Jul0876–
Aug0828–
Sep0560–
Oct33200–
Nov250161
Dec51905

Cooling carries the load at Las Vegas airport: 3,720 cooling degree days a year against 1,836 heating degree days, peaking in July (876).

The lightest months for heating and cooling together are March and April (202 and 191 degree days).

Nights at or below 32 °F: about 10 a year. Days reaching 90 °F: about 137 a year, the most in July.

Weighted by where Nevada’s people live, NOAA’s statewide normals (1981–2010) are 3,690 heating and 1,934 cooling degree days — 36th for heating and 6th for cooling among the 48 contiguous states (the contiguous U.S.: 4,332 and 1,272).

Station: Las Vegas airport (USW00023169), NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 — station file; statewide figures: NOAA Climate Prediction Center. Bars share one scale: the longest is 876 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 (leg.state.nv.us)Nevada Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation (DETR), Employment Security Division · 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. Tax Bulletin SUT 14-0002: Construction ContractorsNevada Department of Taxation · June 25, 2014 · read October 24, 2026
  7. ConstructionNevada Department of Taxation · no date shown · read October 24, 2026
  8. NRS 108.221 to 108.246 — NRS Chapter 108 – Statutory Liens (mechanics’ and materialmen’s liens)Official state code · read November 4, 2026
  9. Workers’ compensation coverage requirementsNevada Department of Business and Industry, Division of Industrial Relations, Workers' Compensation Section · read November 4, 2026
  10. U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020, Las Vegas airport (USW00023169)NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information · read November 4, 2026
  11. 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