Commercial trade rates in Washington, D.C..
Estimated commercial rates for all 8 trades tracked in Washington, D.C., built from O*NET OnLine (U.S. Dept. of Labor/ETA), from BLS OEWS metropolitan area wage estimates wage data, for facility and property teams benchmarking vendor invoices.
Rates by trade
Plumbing (estimated)$95/hr median · $67–$136 range
Source: O*NET OnLine (U.S. Dept. of Labor/ETA), from BLS OEWS metropolitan area wage estimates, using a documented service multiplier.
Electrical (estimated)$100/hr median · $71–$149 range
Source: O*NET OnLine (U.S. Dept. of Labor/ETA), from BLS OEWS metropolitan area wage estimates, using a documented service multiplier.
HVAC and Refrigeration (estimated)$95/hr median · $69–$129 range
Source: O*NET OnLine (U.S. Dept. of Labor/ETA), from BLS OEWS metropolitan area wage estimates, using a documented service multiplier.
General Maintenance (estimated)$76/hr median · $55–$100 range
Source: O*NET OnLine (U.S. Dept. of Labor/ETA), from BLS OEWS metropolitan area wage estimates, using a documented service multiplier.
Janitorial and Cleaning (estimated)$50/hr median · $43–$61 range
Source: O*NET OnLine (U.S. Dept. of Labor/ETA), from BLS OEWS metropolitan area wage estimates, using a documented service multiplier.
Landscaping and Grounds (estimated)$56/hr median · $46–$67 range
Source: O*NET OnLine (U.S. Dept. of Labor/ETA), from BLS OEWS metropolitan area wage estimates, using a documented service multiplier.
Roofing (estimated)$77/hr median · $60–$107 range
Source: O*NET OnLine (U.S. Dept. of Labor/ETA), from BLS OEWS metropolitan area wage estimates, using a documented service multiplier.
Carpentry (estimated)$80/hr median · $67–$107 range
Source: O*NET OnLine (U.S. Dept. of Labor/ETA), from BLS OEWS metropolitan area wage estimates, using a documented service multiplier.
What's different in Washington, D.C.
- Labour market: The DC metro combines a large federal-government facilities segment (GSA-managed buildings, agency leases) with a dense private commercial office market, and comparatively strong union presence for a mid-Atlantic market.
- Climate and seasonality: Four-season climate with cold winters and humid summers drives year-round plumbing, roofing, and HVAC demand.
- Code and licensing: Licensing and code enforcement differ by jurisdiction across the metro (DC, Northern Virginia, and suburban Maryland each license separately); federal buildings carry additional GSA/PBS facilities requirements on top of local permitting.
Frequently asked questions
- What do commercial trade rates cost in Washington, D.C.?
- Across the 8 trades tracked here, the median commercial hourly rate in Washington, D.C. runs around $79/hr, though it varies significantly by trade: see the table above for each one.
- Is this a real measured rate, or an estimate?
- Every rate on this page is currently an estimate: each trade's Washington, D.C. wage, multiplied by a documented service multiplier that converts an employee wage into a billed commercial rate. It is not drawn from actual invoices or job records. The full model is on the methodology page.
- Why a range instead of a single number?
- A single average hides the real spread: in the underlying wage data for estimated trades, and between emergency/scheduled and contract/ad-hoc work for measured ones. We show low, median, and high so the range reflects that honestly.
- Is this a residential or commercial rate?
- Commercial. These figures track facility-side trade work for businesses, property managers, and multi-site operators in Washington, D.C.. Commercial rates typically run above residential rates for the same trade, reflecting insurance, code compliance, and scheduling requirements that residential work doesn't carry.
- What's driving trade rates in Washington, D.C. specifically?
- The DC metro combines a large federal-government facilities segment (GSA-managed buildings, agency leases) with a dense private commercial office market, and comparatively strong union presence for a mid-Atlantic market.
Methodology
These figures are built from regional wage data multiplied by a documented service multiplier, or, where enough real job records exist, measured directly from vendor work logged in Evalystar. See the full model, sources, and what upgrades an estimate to a measured rate on the methodology page.
Nearby cities
Cite this data
These Washington, D.C. benchmarks are published under CC BY 4.0: reuse them anywhere, including commercially, as long as you attribute Evalystar. The machine-readable version is at /api/rates/us/washington-dc.json.
Evalystar (2025). Commercial facility trade rate benchmarks, Washington, D.C.. Retrieved from https://evalystar.com/rates/us/washington-dc. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.