Landscapers in the Helena area earn a median of $45,640 a year, 22% above the typical U.S. metro. That ranks #34 of 390 U.S. metros nationwide.
Within driving distance, the same work pays more in Bozeman, but less in Great Falls.
Helena scorecard for landscapers Our calculation
Grades compare Helena 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 ($37,540).
Compared with nearby metros
What the pay is really worth in Helena Our calculation
Prices in the Helena area run 4% below the U.S. average. Adjusted for that, a median paycheck here buys what $47,703 would in a typical place, ranking #15 of 385 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 landscapers do
Landscape or maintain grounds of property using hand or power tools or equipment. Workers typically perform a variety of tasks, which may include any combination of the following: sod laying, mowing, trimming, planting, watering, fertilizing, digging, raking, sprinkler installation, and installation of mortarless segmental concrete masonry wall units.
Most important day-to-day tasks
- Mow or edge lawns, using power mowers or edgers.
- Operate vehicles or powered equipment, such as mowers, tractors, twin-axle vehicles, snow blowers, chainsaws, electric clippers, sod cutters, or pruning saws.
- Use hand tools, such as shovels, rakes, pruning saws, saws, hedge or brush trimmers, or axes.
- Prune or trim trees, shrubs, or hedges, using shears, pruners, or chain saws.
- Gather and remove litter.
Outlook & getting started
Nationally, landscaper jobs are projected to grow 4.7% from 2025 to 2035 (all jobs: 3.5%), with about 149,500 openings a year. About 20% are self-employed.
On-the-job safety Government data
Nationally, landscapers have 165 injuries or illnesses serious enough to miss work per 10,000 full-time workers, 1.9× the rate for all jobs (87). The most common cause is being struck by or caught in objects and equipment.
BLS Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses, 2023–2024 (national, cases with days away from work).
Highest-paying MT metros for landscapers
| Metro | Median | Real pay | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| BozemanMONTANA · MT | $47,320 | $46,161 | 910 |
| HelenaMONTANA · MT | $45,640 | $47,703 | 300 |
| MissoulaMONTANA · MT | $44,460 | $46,099 | 490 |
| BillingsMONTANA · MT | $44,230 | $47,292 | 630 |
| Great FallsMONTANA · MT | $41,350 | $42,697 | 260 |
See every metro in Montana.
How much work is there? Government data
Local job market
The Helena area's unemployment rate was 3.1% in 2025 (all workers, not just landscapers), below the typical U.S. metro's 4.1%. It was 3.1% in 2021.
BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics, annual averages 2021–2025 (2025 preliminary).
Getting to work
The average commute in the Helena area is 22 minutes each way, shorter than the typical metro (24 min). 8% of commuters spend 45 minutes or more. 72% drive alone, 0% 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 Helena are down 54% from 2024 to 2025 (468 → 216).
In 2025 the Helena area approved permits for 216 new homes (69 single-family), or 2.3 per 1,000 residents, ranking #272 of 393 metros.
Competition
In 2024 the area had 105 one-person businesses (no employees) in landscaping, averaging $32,552 a year in revenue before expenses.
They compete with 45 landscaping companies that have employees (about 210 workers in total). 82% 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 $45,640 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 landscaper pricing & estimate templates →Compare Helena 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.