BLS pharmacy technician pay by state and percentile, hospital vs drugstore pay, part-time hours and take-home after 2026 tax
Pharmacy technicians earned a median of $22.00 an hour in May 2025 ($45,750 a year on BLS's full-time basis), according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which counted 471,680 technicians. The bottom tenth earned under $17.32 and the top tenth over $29.35. Because part-time work is common, the hourly figure is the one to compare offers with.
This is the BLS line for pharmacy technicians (SOC 29-2052) on employers' payrolls. Pharmacy aides, who do mostly clerical and stocking work, and pharmacists are separate lines; the pharmacist calculator is linked below. Take-home assumes a single filer with 2026 federal tax and FICA and no state tax.
| Pay level | Hourly | Annual | Monthly | Take-home a year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $17.32 | $36,020 | $3,002 | $31,122 |
| 25th percentile | $18.20 | $37,850 | $3,154 | $32,592 |
| Median | $22.00 | $45,750 | $3,813 | $38,940 |
| 75th percentile | $24.04 | $49,990 | $4,166 | $42,347 |
| 90th percentile | $29.35 | $61,040 | $5,087 | $51,226 |
Washington pays pharmacy techs the most at $28.32 an hour, then California ($26.50) and Oregon ($26.39); West Virginia pays the least at $18.37. Texas employs the most technicians, 41,740 — slightly more than California — at $22.07, and Florida pays $20.96.
| State | Median hourly | Median annual | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Washington | $28.32 | $58,900 | 8,150 |
| California | $26.50 | $55,110 | 39,860 |
| Oregon | $26.39 | $54,900 | 4,320 |
| Alaska | $25.31 | $52,640 | 800 |
| Colorado | $24.02 | $49,970 | 6,010 |
| Montana | $23.75 | $49,400 | 1,340 |
| Minnesota | $23.22 | $48,300 | 7,340 |
| Wyoming | $23.20 | $48,260 | 600 |
| Utah | $23.14 | $48,140 | 5,030 |
| Nevada | $23.07 | $47,980 | 4,070 |
| Vermont | $23.05 | $47,940 | 760 |
| Arizona | $22.90 | $47,640 | 12,970 |
| North Dakota | $22.86 | $47,560 | 890 |
| District of Columbia | $22.79 | $47,410 | 1,130 |
| New Hampshire | $22.77 | $47,360 | 1,970 |
| Connecticut | $22.62 | $47,050 | 5,200 |
| Hawaii | $22.48 | $46,760 | 1,540 |
| Illinois | $22.43 | $46,650 | 21,340 |
| New Mexico | $22.42 | $46,630 | 2,550 |
| Nebraska | $22.41 | $46,610 | 2,660 |
| Massachusetts | $22.34 | $46,470 | 10,150 |
| Delaware | $22.32 | $46,430 | 1,480 |
| Idaho | $22.32 | $46,420 | 2,950 |
| South Dakota | $22.20 | $46,170 | 1,230 |
| Wisconsin | $22.10 | $45,970 | 9,540 |
| Texas | $22.07 | $45,900 | 41,740 |
| Maine | $21.83 | $45,400 | 2,070 |
| Maryland | $21.69 | $45,120 | 7,990 |
| Iowa | $21.57 | $44,860 | 4,630 |
| Virginia | $21.45 | $44,610 | 10,720 |
| Indiana | $21.42 | $44,560 | 10,790 |
| North Carolina | $21.41 | $44,530 | 17,260 |
| Louisiana | $21.35 | $44,410 | 6,700 |
| Rhode Island | $21.34 | $44,380 | 1,540 |
| Michigan | $21.32 | $44,340 | 14,240 |
| New York | $21.12 | $43,930 | 24,400 |
| Florida | $20.96 | $43,590 | 38,460 |
| Kansas | $20.82 | $43,310 | 4,270 |
| South Carolina | $20.25 | $42,120 | 8,070 |
| Georgia | $20.15 | $41,910 | 14,680 |
| Tennessee | $20.15 | $41,920 | 11,870 |
| Ohio | $19.55 | $40,650 | 17,820 |
| Oklahoma | $19.47 | $40,500 | 5,500 |
| Missouri | $19.28 | $40,100 | 12,610 |
| Pennsylvania | $19.25 | $40,040 | 18,880 |
| New Jersey | $19.04 | $39,610 | 14,020 |
| Kentucky | $18.84 | $39,200 | 8,870 |
| Alabama | $18.77 | $39,030 | 8,510 |
| Mississippi | $18.77 | $39,040 | 4,040 |
| Arkansas | $18.60 | $38,680 | 4,560 |
| West Virginia | $18.37 | $38,210 | 3,560 |
Where you work matters more than for most jobs here. Hospital technicians earn a median of $50,760 and ambulatory healthcare $48,860; pharmacies inside general merchandise stores pay $48,150 and grocery stores $41,430. Pharmacies and drug retailers, which employ 51% of technicians, have the lowest median, $39,240 (BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook).
| Industry | Median annual wage |
|---|---|
| Hospitals; state, local, and private | $50,760 |
| Ambulatory healthcare services | $48,860 |
| General merchandise retailers | $48,150 |
| Grocery and specialty food retailers | $41,430 |
| Pharmacies and drug retailers | $39,240 |
Most pharmacy technicians work full time, but part-time work is common, and because pharmacies may be open at all hours, nights and weekends come with the job (BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook). For part-timers the hourly rate is the figure to compare: BLS's annual number assumes 2,080 paid hours a year, so set the hours field to what you actually work.
Pharmacy is one of the learned professions in the federal overtime rules, but the exemption needs knowledge normally gained through a prolonged course of specialized study (29 CFR 541.301), and technicians typically start with a high school diploma (BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook). So technicians are generally hourly and owed time and a half after 40 hours in a workweek. The FLSA doesn't require extra pay for weekends or holidays as such, only for hours over 40 (U.S. Department of Labor).
Many technicians learn on the job, usually in less than a year; others complete a pharmacy technology program at a vocational school or community college, often a certificate in a year or less. Most states regulate technicians, which can mean an exam, a formal training program, fees, continuing education, a background check or a minimum age, and some states and employers require certification. Experienced technicians can move into sterile compounding, nuclear pharmacy or medication-history roles (BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook).
More ways to work with your pharmacy technician pay:
$22.00 an hour ($45,750 a year) at the BLS median for May 2025. The middle half earned $18.20 to $24.04 an hour.
Washington ($28.32 an hour, $58,900 a year), then California and Oregon; West Virginia pays least among the 51 states where BLS released a figure (BLS, May 2025).
Yes. In the Occupational Outlook Handbook's industry table, hospital pharmacy technicians have the highest median and pharmacies and drug retailers — which employ about half of all technicians — the lowest. The table on this page has the figures.
Multiply your hourly rate by the hours you actually work. BLS's annual figure assumes 2,080 hours, which a part-timer doesn't work; the calculator does the arithmetic for your hours and weeks.
Tax rules, limits and pay data change. Check the current figures with the primary source before acting on them.