How much do vet techs make?

Vet Tech salary 2026 · BLS occupation: Veterinary Technologists and Technicians (SOC 29-2056) · Updated October 28, 2026

Answer

Vet techs in the US earned a median of $47,380 a year ($22.78 an hour) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The middle half earned $38,910 to $57,650.

Median annual pay: $47,380; Mean $49,120
Median hourly pay: $22.78; Mean $23.61
Typical range (10th–90th): $35.7K–$63.2K; $35,710 to $63,180
US jobs: 129,140; +9.4% projected, 2025–35

BLS OEWS, May 2025, released April 30, 2026. Wages include tips, commissions and production bonuses but not overtime premiums, shift differentials, other bonuses or benefits; self-employed workers are not included. Methodology

How to become a vet tech: steps, years and cost · Best-paying state after cost of living: Minnesota

Vet Tech pay range

Annual wages, May 2025

10th percentile$35,710
25th percentile$38,910
Median$47,380
75th percentile$57,650
90th percentile$63,180

Half of all vet techs earned more than $47,380 and half earned less. The lowest-paid 10% made under $35,710; the top 10% made over $63,180. The middle 50%, from the 25th to the 75th percentile, ran from $38,910 to $57,650.

These percentiles describe everyone in the occupation at one time. They are not pay steps by years of experience: they mix new and senior workers, different states, employers and hours. Pay generally rises with experience, credentials and specialization, but BLS does not publish pay by experience.

Percentile	Annual	Hourly	Monthly
10th	$35,710	$17.17	$2,976
25th	$38,910	$18.71	$3,243
Median (50th)	$47,380	$22.78	$3,948
75th	$57,650	$27.72	$4,804
90th	$63,180	$30.38	$5,265
Mean (average)	$49,120	$23.61	$4,093

Vet Tech salary by state

Median annual pay; cost of living from BEA regional price parities 2024

Median annual pay for vet techs by state. Darker tiles pay more.

Highest-paying states

1. District of Columbia $61,270
2. California $60,630
3. Washington $59,740
4. New York $59,010
5. Minnesota $57,270

Lowest-paying states

51. Louisiana $35,530
50. Mississippi $36,380
49. Alabama $36,590
48. West Virginia $37,700
47. Arkansas $38,360

Best after cost of living: Minnesota. Its median of $57,270 is worth about $58,071 at national-average prices, more than in District of Columbia once prices are counted.


Alabama	$36,590	49	$41,194	48	$17.59	1,880	0.89
Alaska	$46,480	25	$45,409	32	$22.35	380	1.18
Arizona	$46,300	29	$45,989	31	$22.26	3,970	1.23
Arkansas	$38,360	47	$44,124	40	$18.44	320	0.24
California	$60,630	2	$54,760	5	$29.15	11,310	0.62
Colorado	$49,650	12	$48,180	24	$23.87	3,720	1.30
Connecticut	$50,950	8	$49,175	20	$24.49	1,690	1.00
Delaware	$48,370	20	$48,463	23	$23.25	530	1.08
District of Columbia	$61,270	1	$55,750	3	$29.46	120	0.17
Florida	$46,380	28	$44,849	35	$22.30	11,380	1.15
Georgia	$43,060	37	$44,718	36	$20.70	2,410	0.49
Hawaii	$48,550	19	$44,156	39	$23.34	270	0.44
Idaho	$42,120	39	$44,107	41	$20.25	790	0.93
Illinois	$46,440	26	$46,460	30	$22.33	5,040	0.83
Indiana	$48,720	18	$52,202	9	$23.43	1,820	0.57
Iowa	$45,560	31	$51,913	10	$21.90	1,220	0.78
Kansas	$45,810	30	$50,862	15	$22.02	1,270	0.88
Kentucky	$39,590	42	$43,911	42	$19.03	1,670	0.84
Louisiana	$35,530	51	$40,280	51	$17.08	2,220	1.15
Maine	$50,810	9	$52,354	8	$24.43	910	1.42
Maryland	$47,350	23	$45,113	33	$22.77	2,540	0.92
Massachusetts	$49,540	13	$46,843	27	$23.82	3,990	1.10
Michigan	$49,710	11	$51,664	12	$23.90	2,550	0.58
Minnesota	$57,270	5	$58,071	1	$27.54	3,560	1.21
Mississippi	$36,380	50	$41,839	45	$17.49	650	0.56
Missouri	$43,520	36	$47,921	25	$20.92	2,040	0.69
Montana	$41,170	40	$43,499	43	$19.79	480	0.93
Nebraska	$43,680	35	$48,478	22	$21.00	690	0.68
Nevada	$50,250	10	$50,261	18	$24.16	1,120	0.72
New Hampshire	$48,780	17	$46,830	28	$23.45	870	1.27
New Jersey	$49,050	15	$45,081	34	$23.58	2,910	0.68
New Mexico	$44,790	34	$48,573	21	$21.53	890	1.02
New York	$59,010	4	$54,679	6	$28.37	5,350	0.55
North Carolina	$47,620	22	$50,484	17	$22.89	2,580	0.52
North Dakota	$48,790	16	$54,845	4	$23.46	340	0.80
Ohio	$47,990	21	$51,728	11	$23.07	4,790	0.86
Oklahoma	$39,100	44	$44,511	37	$18.80	1,060	0.62
Oregon	$55,810	6	$53,995	7	$26.83	1,120	0.57
Pennsylvania	$46,430	27	$47,585	26	$22.32	6,620	1.09
Rhode Island	$45,310	32	$44,300	38	$21.78	530	1.06
South Carolina	$39,020	45	$41,622	47	$18.76	2,540	1.10
South Dakota	$45,300	33	$51,137	14	$21.78	300	0.66
Tennessee	$42,810	38	$46,598	29	$20.58	1,640	0.50
Texas	$39,410	43	$40,605	50	$18.95	16,730	1.19
Utah	$40,560	41	$41,026	49	$19.50	1,550	0.89
Vermont	$49,490	14	$50,522	16	$23.80	390	1.27
Virginia	$52,090	7	$51,521	13	$25.04	2,790	0.68
Washington	$59,740	3	$55,825	2	$28.72	2,290	0.65
West Virginia	$37,700	48	$42,124	44	$18.13	400	0.57
Wisconsin	$47,020	24	$49,971	19	$22.61	2,590	0.88
Wyoming	$38,650	46	$41,698	46	$18.58	310	1.10

BLS OEWS, May 2025, state estimates. Adjusted pay = median ÷ (state price level ÷ 100), using BEA regional price parities for 2024; it ignores taxes. Figures for states with few workers in the occupation have larger survey errors and can change sharply from one year to the next. “—” means BLS did not publish the figure. State names link to each state’s highest-paying jobs.

Best-paying metro areas for vet techs

310 metro areas with published pay

Highest median pay
Metro area	Median	Adjusted	Jobs
San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA	$71,090	$61,490	1,220
Corvallis, OR	$67,960	$65,335	80
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA	$67,280	$60,929	470
Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA	$62,810	$57,154	150
Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA	$61,940	$57,467	250
Salinas, CA	$61,330	$56,244	130
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA	$61,260	$55,123	1,170
Vallejo, CA	$61,230	$56,444	110
Kennewick-Richland, WA	$61,070	$61,022	50
Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA	$60,970	$57,158	1,010

Most jobs
Metro area	Jobs	Median	Adjusted
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ	4,850	$59,680	$53,019
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX	4,570	$44,360	$43,030
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA	3,640	$60,670	$53,423
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX	3,570	$44,110	$44,723
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD	3,370	$48,340	$47,136
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN	3,250	$47,820	$46,161
Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH	2,970	$50,970	$47,078
Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ	2,760	$46,390	$44,901
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL	2,640	$47,620	$41,715
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI	2,520	$59,090	$56,372

BLS OEWS, May 2025, metropolitan statistical areas; adjusted with BEA metro price parities (2024).

What moves vet tech pay: employers and settings

Vet tech pay is modest across the board, and where you work makes the biggest difference. The District of Columbia has the highest median at $61,270, followed by California at $60,630, Washington at $59,740, New York at $59,010, and Minnesota at $57,270. The lowest are in the South: Alabama at $36,590, Mississippi at $36,380, and Louisiana at $35,530. After living costs, Minnesota comes out best at $58,071.

Employer type matters next. Veterinary practices, counted by BLS under other professional, scientific and technical services, employ nearly 90% of vet techs at a median of $47,170. Research labs pay more, $60,690 in scientific research and development, and colleges and universities pay $52,200. Government jobs, though few, pay above private employers ($47,220): $68,220 in the federal government and $56,240 in local government.

Across all vet techs, pay runs from $35,710, the 10th percentile, to $63,180, the 90th. That spread mostly reflects state and employer; percentiles rank all vet techs' pay at one point in time and do not correspond to years of experience.

Where vet techs work
Industry	Share of jobs	Median pay
Other Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services	89.9%	$47,170
Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools	3.1%	$52,200
Other Personal Services	1.5%	$44,730
Social Advocacy Organizations	1.2%	$45,970
Scientific Research and Development Services	0.9%	$60,690
Local Government, excluding Schools and Hospitals	0.6%	$51,500

Private employers and government
Employer type	Jobs	Median pay
Private employers	124,420	$47,220
Federal government (incl. Postal Service)	440	$68,220
State government (incl. schools and hospitals)	3,320	$52,160
Local government (incl. schools and hospitals)	960	$56,240

BLS OEWS, May 2025, national industry-specific and ownership estimates (4-digit NAICS).

Vet Tech pay over time

Median annual pay, 2015–2025

$47.4K $31.8K

2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025

Nominal median (dollars of each year)In May 2025 dollars (adjusted with CPI-U)

The median rose from $31,800 in 2015 to $47,380 in 2025, up 49% in nominal dollars. After inflation, the 2015 median is worth $42,987 in May 2025 dollars, so real pay grew 10% over the period.

BLS OEWS, May 2025 and earlier May releases; inflation from the CPI-U, US city average, May of each year.

What vet techs do

A vet tech, or veterinary technician, does the nursing and technical work in an animal hospital so the veterinarian can focus on diagnosis, surgery and prescribing. Vet techs take histories, draw blood, run lab tests, take x-rays, place IV catheters, induce and monitor anesthesia, clean teeth and care for animals as they recover. They also restrain frightened patients and explain medications and home care to owners. Veterinarians diagnose, prescribe and operate; vet techs do much of the rest under their supervision.

Nearly 90% of the jobs are in veterinary practices, from small clinics that see mostly dogs and cats to 24-hour emergency and specialty hospitals. Others work in university teaching hospitals, research labs, shelters, zoos and farm or equine practices. Veterinary technologists do similar work but usually hold a bachelor's degree rather than the associate degree most technicians have. Expect long hours on your feet, lifting heavy dogs, bites and scratches, and the emotional weight of euthanasia and abuse cases.

A typical day

Check in patients, weigh them and record the owner's account of symptoms
Draw blood and collect urine or stool samples, then run blood counts, chemistry panels and fecal tests
Position animals for x-rays and dental radiographs
Prepare patients for surgery, induce anesthesia and watch heart rate, breathing and blood pressure throughout
Give vaccines, fluids and prescribed medications, and keep the controlled-drug log
Scale and polish teeth during dental cleanings
Show owners how to give pills, insulin or wound care at home

Also called: veterinary technician, veterinary technologist, vet technician, certified veterinary technician (cvt), emergency veterinary technician (emergency vet tech), internal medicine veterinary technician (internal medicine vet tech), licensed veterinary technician (lvt), registered veterinary technician (rvt).

How to become a vet tech

Full guide

To become a vet tech, you complete a 2-year associate degree in veterinary technology from an AVMA-accredited program, pass the Veterinary Technician National Examination (VTNE) and register with your state. Most people are working within about 2 to 2.5 years.

Typical time: 2-2.5 years; Fastest: About 2 years
Minimum education: Associate degree from an AVMA CVTEA-accredited veterinary technology program
License: Credential (registered, licensed or certified) required in most states; titles and rules vary
Typical training cost: $10.3K–$15.3K; See the guide for what it includes

Read the step-by-step guide to becoming a vet tech: each step with its time and cost, education options, exams, licensing and advancement.

Is it worth it? Training cost against pay

Compare careers

Training time: 2-2.5 years; Typical path in our guide
Training cost: $10.3K–$15.3K; Tuition and exam fees, before aid
Median pay: $47,380; $3,600 below the all-jobs median ($50,980)
Cost vs. one year's pay: 22–32%; Training cost as a share of a year at the median

The median for vet techs is below the median for all US jobs, so the case for training rests on the work itself, entry speed and local pay rather than a pay premium. This is a rough guide: it ignores taxes, financial aid, interest, earnings given up while training and how pay changes over a career. How we calculate ROI.

Job outlook for vet techs

BLS Employment Projections 2025–35

Projected growth: +9.4%; All occupations +3.5%
Jobs in 2025: 131,400; 143,800 projected for 2035
Openings each year: 13,400; New jobs plus replacements
Self-employed: —; Not in the pay figures above

BLS projects vet tech jobs to grow 9.4% from 2025 to 2035, from 131,400 to 143,800, much faster than the 3.5% average for all occupations. More households own pets, owners are spending more on their care, and veterinary medicine now offers more complex procedures for aging animals, all of which need trained technicians. About 13,400 openings are expected each year, many of them to replace techs who move to other occupations or stop working, such as to retire.

Related careers and their pay

Related occupations from O*NET 31.0; median annual pay from BLS OEWS, May 2025.

Vet Tech salary FAQ

How much do vet techs make an hour?

The median hourly wage for vet techs was $22.78 in May 2025. The lowest-paid 10% earned less than $17.17 an hour and the highest-paid 10% more than $30.38. Hourly figures are BLS estimates for all workers in the occupation, full-time and part-time.

Which state pays vet techs the most?

District of Columbia has the highest median pay for vet techs, $61,270 a year, followed by California ($60,630) and Washington ($59,740). After adjusting for each state's price level, Minnesota comes out ahead at about $58,071 in national-average dollars.

Do vet techs make six figures?

Few do: based on the BLS percentiles, fewer than 10% of vet techs earn more than $100,000 a year. The median is $47,380, and the top 10% earn more than $63,180. Pay generally rises with experience, specialization and location.

What is the difference between a vet tech and a vet assistant?

A vet tech has graduated from an AVMA-accredited veterinary technology program, passed the VTNE and holds a state credential such as RVT, LVT or CVT, depending on the state. That allows them to do skilled tasks like inducing anesthesia, placing catheters and running lab work. A veterinary assistant usually has on-the-job training or a short certificate, needs no credential, and handles restraint, feeding, cleaning and kennel care.

What does RVT, LVT or CVT mean?

They are the same job with different state titles. Depending on the state, a credentialed vet tech is registered (RVT), licensed (LVT) or certified (CVT). The requirements behind each title are broadly similar, usually an accredited degree and a passing VTNE score, but each state board sets its own rules for exams, fees and continuing education.

Is being a vet tech physically hard?

Yes. BLS reports that vet techs have one of the highest injury and illness rates of any occupation. You restrain scared or aggressive animals, lift large dogs onto tables, stand for most of a shift and risk bites, scratches and kicks. Emergency hospitals run nights, weekends and holidays. The work is emotionally hard too: techs care for abused animals and help with euthanasia.

Sources

Data updated October 28, 2026 · Text checked against its sources October 28, 2026

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 estimates, released April 30, 2026, SOC 29-2056
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025–2035, released September 2026
O*NET 31.0 Database (29-2056.00), U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under CC BY 4.0; tasks rewritten by Careers and Salaries
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities by state and metro area, 2024
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), US city average, May values
U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard field-of-study and institution data, most recent cohorts, released 2026-10-15
Veterinary Technologists and Technicians, Occupational Outlook Handbook, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · checked October 28, 2026
Applying to Take the VTNE, American Association of Veterinary State Boards · checked October 28, 2026
Preparing for a Veterinary Career, American Association of Veterinary State Boards · checked October 28, 2026
Scheduling and Taking the VTNE, American Association of Veterinary State Boards · checked October 28, 2026
FAQs, National Association of Veterinary Technicians in America · checked October 28, 2026
License Finder, CareerOneStop, U.S. Department of Labor · checked October 28, 2026
Programs accredited by the AVMA Committee on Veterinary Technician Education and Activities (CVTEA), American Veterinary Medical Association · checked October 28, 2026
Veterinary Technician Specialties, National Association of Veterinary Technicians in America · checked October 28, 2026
Distance education programs in veterinary technology accredited by the AVMA CVTEA, American Veterinary Medical Association · checked October 28, 2026
Retake the VTNE, American Association of Veterinary State Boards · checked October 28, 2026

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