Appliance Repair Technicians in the Houston area earn a median of $47,750 a year, 6% below the typical U.S. metro. That ranks #84 of 125 metros nationwide.
Within driving distance, the same work pays more in Austin.
Houston scorecard for appliance repair technicians Our calculation
Grades compare Houston with every other U.S. metro for this trade (A = top 20%).
Pay Government data
Pay range
Shaded: the middle half of workers. Grey line: typical U.S. metro ($50,540).
Compared with nearby metros
What the pay is really worth in Houston Our calculation
Prices in Houston run 1% below the U.S. average. Adjusted for that, a median paycheck here buys what $48,414 would in a typical place, ranking #100 of 125 on real pay.
Two different views, don't combine them. Real pay already accounts for housing, because the price index includes rent. Rent burden shows what share of pay a typical 1-bedroom takes. Use either one, not both together.
What appliance repair technicians do
Repair, adjust, or install all types of electric or gas household appliances, such as refrigerators, washers, dryers, and ovens.
Most important day-to-day tasks
- Bill customers for repair work, and collect payment.
- Observe and examine appliances during operation to detect specific malfunctions such as loose parts or leaking fluid.
- Talk to customers or refer to work orders to establish the nature of appliance malfunctions.
- Refer to schematic drawings, product manuals, and troubleshooting guides to diagnose and repair problems.
- Trace electrical circuits, following diagrams, and conduct tests with circuit testers and other equipment to locate shorts and grounds.
Outlook & getting started
Nationally, appliance repair technician jobs are projected to grow 1.9% from 2025 to 2035 (all jobs: 3.5%), with about 2,800 openings a year. About 20% are self-employed.
On-the-job safety Government data
Nationally, appliance repair technicians have 327 injuries or illnesses serious enough to miss work per 10,000 full-time workers, 3.8× the rate for all jobs (87). The most common cause is overexertion and repetitive strain.
BLS Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses, 2023–2024 (national, cases with days away from work).
Highest-paying TX metros for appliance repair technicians
| Metro | Median | Real pay | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| San AntonioTEXAS · TX | $62,400 | $65,881 | 160 |
| DallasTEXAS · TX | $49,350 | $47,871 | 870 |
| AustinTEXAS · TX | $49,340 | $50,313 | 170 |
| HoustonTEXAS · TX | $47,750 | $48,414 | 430 |
| El PasoTEXAS · TX | $42,500 | $47,268 | 40 |
See every metro in Texas.
How much work is there? Government data
Local job market
The Houston area's unemployment rate was 4.5% in 2025 (all workers, not just appliance repair technicians), above the typical U.S. metro's 4.1%. It was 6.2% in 2021.
BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics, annual averages 2021–2025 (2025 preliminary).
Getting to work
The average commute in the Houston area is 31 minutes each way, longer than the typical metro (24 min). 25% of commuters spend 45 minutes or more. 72% drive alone, 2% take transit and 12% work from home (all workers, not just trades).
Census American Community Survey, 2024 1-year estimates (table S0801).
New construction
New-home permits in Houston are down 6% from 2021 to 2025 (69,263 → 65,075).
In 2025 the Houston area approved permits for 65,075 new homes (46,219 single-family), or 8.7 per 1,000 residents, ranking #39 of 393 metros.
Competition
In 2024 the area had 937 one-person businesses (no employees) in appliance repair, averaging $58,874 a year in revenue before expenses.
They compete with 122 appliance repair companies that have employees (about 393 workers in total). 84% of those companies have fewer than 5 employees.
Employee vs. working for yourself Your scenario
A model, not a market rate. It shows the minimum you'd need to bill to match a $47,750 employee salary once you cover what an employer normally pays for. Change any number.
Minimum billing rate
Billable hours are hours you can charge a customer. Driving, quoting, paperwork and slow weeks aren't billable, which is why 1,400 is a common starting point versus 2,080 paid hours as an employee.
Get appliance repair technician pricing & estimate templates →Compare Houston with another city →
About this data
- Pay: BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics, May 2025, local to this metro.
- Real pay: BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024, local.
- Rent: HUD Fair Market Rents, FY2027, local (county rents weighted by population).
- Job outlook, education, training: BLS Employment Projections 2025–35, national.
- Duties: O*NET 31.0, national.
- Safety: BLS Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses, 2023–2024, national.
- New construction: Census Building Permits, 2021–2025, local.
- Commute: Census American Community Survey, 2024 1-year, local, all workers.
- Unemployment: BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics, 2021–2025 annual averages, local, all workers (2025 preliminary).
- Competition: Census Nonemployer Statistics 2024 and County Business Patterns 2023, local, reported by industry, so related trades can share one figure.
- Jobs are employment estimates, not open positions. Grades rank this metro against all others for the same trade.