Commercial landscaping recruiters serving Atlanta.
Corporate campus development and data center grounds - acoustic and visual screening - drive high-end demand, with a hot-humid climate plant palette specialty layered on top.
Data center screening, and a hot-humid climate specialty.
Metro pay for every role we recruit is in the table below. What the hub does name: corporate campus development and data center grounds work requiring acoustic and visual screening, plus a hot-humid climate plant palette specialty.
We recruit across the full org chart for commercial landscaping contractors in Atlanta against that documented context.
A top-2 US data center market, and a $5B downtown development.
$11B+ combined, driving two distinct landscaping specialties.
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Atlanta is a top-2 US data center market alongside Northern Virginia. Data center grounds require acoustic and visual screening landscape design, a distinct scope from conventional corporate campus work.
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A massive downtown commercial, residential, and entertainment mixed-use development phased through 2030, requiring sustained corporate campus grounds work.
What commercial landscaping roles pay in Atlanta.
In the Atlanta metro, BLS puts the median for landscaping and groundskeeping workers at $38,500 a year, in line with the $39,150 national median. Among the 112 metros BLS publishes for this occupation, Atlanta ranks 55th on pay. Most of the market sits between $30,200 and $48,040. Of the other field roles, landscape designer / architect pays the most locally, at a $75,980 median. National benchmarks by role are in the 2026 Commercial Landscaping Salary Guide.
| Role | Atlanta median | Typical range | National median | vs. national | Employed locally |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Landscape / Grounds Crew MemberLandscaping and Groundskeeping Workers (37-3011) | $38,500 | $30,200–$48,040 | $39,150 | −2% | 15,300 |
| Grounds Crew SupervisorFirst-Line Supervisors of Landscaping, Lawn Service, and Groundskeeping Workers (37-1012) | $58,960 | $42,260–$78,810 | $58,430 | +1% | 2,800 |
| Tree Trimmer / ArboristTree Trimmers and Pruners (37-3013) | $50,280 | $26,210–$63,270 | $50,960 | −1% | 450 |
| Licensed Pesticide ApplicatorPesticide Handlers, Sprayers, and Applicators, Vegetation (37-3012) | $40,390 | $36,520–$56,420 | $46,340 | −13% | – |
| Landscape Designer / ArchitectLandscape Architects (17-1012) | $75,980 | $55,690–$131,450 | $79,870 | −5% | 300 |
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, Atlanta metro. Range is 10th to 90th percentile. Headcount is shown for field occupations only; management, estimating and supervisory codes are counted across every industry in the metro.
What candidates expect. What credentials matter. What kills offers.
We don't tell prospective clients who their competitors are hiring - that's a discipline our clients value, and we'll honor it on a call. What we will share publicly: how Atlanta commercial landscaping hiring actually plays out in 2026.
Why data center screening is a distinct landscaping specialty
The hub names acoustic and visual screening for data center grounds specifically - a functional design requirement, not decorative landscaping, tied directly to the region's top-2 US data center market status.
Why hot-humid climate plant selection is a real skill differentiator
The hub names hot-humid climate plant palette work as its own specialty - a designer without Southeast-specific experience will select plants that fail in Atlanta's climate.
What this means for sourcing
We source against verified data-center-screening and hot-humid-climate design experience, not resume claims, given the specific scope named by the hub.
Realistic timelines
Standard commercial landscaping roles: 4-6 weeks intake to signed offer, consistent with the region's broader hiring timeline. First slate of vetted candidates within 48 hours regardless.
The commercial landscaping positions we fill, most often.
Across all Atlanta commercial landscaping clients, these are the highest-volume roles we've recruited for in the last 24 months.
- Commercial landscape designer (data center screening)
- Hot-humid climate plant specialist
- Landscape crew foreman
- Grounds maintenance manager
For the broader picture across every commercial trade in Atlanta, see the Atlanta metro overview. To learn more about commercial landscaping generally (across all 100+ markets we serve), see our Commercial Landscaping industry page.
How we recruit commercial landscaping in Atlanta, plainly.
Same approach we use in every market - but tuned for what works in Atlanta's commercial landscaping segment specifically:
- Same-day intake call. We get the role, the project context, the budget, your dealbreakers. For Atlanta landscaping work, we also confirm whether the role sits within data center screening scope or standard commercial grounds work.
- Candidate sourcing within 48 hours. We pull from our existing Atlanta commercial landscaping candidate network, filtered for verified data-center-screening and hot-humid-climate design experience.
- Vetted short list (week one to several weeks). Three to five candidates. We verify real design portfolios and climate-specific project history rather than a line on a resume - timeline depends on the project scope involved.
- Offer and close. Standard roles close in 4-6 weeks. We help with offer math against Atlanta documented general context.
Atlanta runs 14% fewer commercial landscaping workers per job than the country as a whole — below the national concentration. Fewer per job means the people you want are already working, and usually for someone who would rather keep them.
Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 , Landscaping and Groundskeeping Workers. Metro-wide figures for the base occupation; the wage table above is role-specific and commercial.
How Atlanta's commercial landscaping market compares
In 2023 the Atlanta metro had 1,926 landscaping companies (counted by business location), with about 15,496 people on their payrolls. Average pay at those firms was $55,667, 15.3% above the national average of $48,279 for the same kind of employer. Headcount fell 2.2% over the year even as it grew 2.2% nationally, which usually means people leaving the trade or moving to other markets rather than a lack of work. That works out to 31 per 100,000 residents against 37 nationally. Fewer local employers means experienced people are easier to identify, but many work for firms based outside the metro.
Among the 100 metros we cover with published BLS figures, Atlanta ranks 9th for headcount, 50th for median pay and 80th for concentration for landscaping and groundskeeping workers.
| Metro | Employed | Median pay | Concentration | Commercial employers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atlanta | 15,300 | $38,500 | 0.86 | 1,926 |
| Augusta | 1,770 | $36,840 | 1.24 | 193 |
BLS OEWS occupation figures and QCEW business-location counts; a dash means not published.
What this means for hiring:For commercial landscaping employers in Atlanta, the headline number is misleading. About 15,300 landscaping and groundskeeping workers work here, one of the larger workforces we cover, but relative to the size of the local economy the trade is thinner than average, so every other employer is drawing on the same people. Local employers have been shedding headcount, so the experienced people who remain are usually well placed and slow to move. Expect to recruit people who are already employed, and to make the case for moving.
Sources: BLS QCEW 2023 annual averages and BLS OEWS May 2025, Atlanta metro. Employers are counted by business location.
How Atlanta's commercial landscaping market has changed since 2018.
The number of landscaping companies in Atlanta rose from 1,652 in 2018 to 1,926 in 2023, up 17%, ahead of the 13% national rise. Headcount at those firms went up 4%, to about 15,496 people. Average annual pay there went from $42,271 to $55,667 (+32%), in step with the 31% national increase.
| Measure | 2018 | 2023 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Landscaping companies: business locations | 1,652 | 1,926 | +17% |
| Landscaping companies: employment | 14,919 | 15,496 | +4% |
| Landscaping companies: average annual pay | $42,271 | $55,667 | +32% |
BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, private employers, annual averages. A dash means BLS did not publish the figure.
Frequently asked — commercial landscaping hiring in Atlanta.
What is driving commercial landscaping demand in Atlanta right now?
Microsoft's $6B+ data center campus buildout and the $5B Centennial Yards downtown development are the named drivers.
Why does data center grounds work need acoustic and visual screening?
The metro's own data names acoustic and visual screening as a specific landscaping requirement for data center campuses, given Atlanta's status as a top-2 US data center market.
What do landscaping and groundskeeping workers earn in Atlanta?
BLS puts the Atlanta median for landscaping and groundskeeping workers at $38,500 a year, about the same as the $39,150 national median. That ranks 55th of 112 metros with published figures, in the middle of the pack. Pay is bunched together here, $30,200 to $48,040 across the 10th to 90th percentile and only a 1.6x gap, so small differences in an offer are noticed. No other Georgia metro we cover pays more for this work (Augusta: $36,840).
Is it hard to hire landscaping and groundskeeping workers in Atlanta?
It is about average. Landscaping and groundskeeping workers are as common in Atlanta as they are nationally (location quotient 0.86), with about 15,300 in the metro. The 1,926 landscaping companies here average about 8.0 employees per location. With 17% more of those firms than in 2018, more employers are competing for the same crews.
Which commercial landscaping roles pay the most in Atlanta?
Of the roles we recruit for, Landscape Designer / Architect pays the most in Atlanta, a $75,980 median. Landscape / Grounds Crew Member is the lowest-paid field role at $38,500. Licensed Pesticide Applicator trails national pay the most (13% below).
How many landscaping companies operate in Atlanta?
BLS counted 1,926 landscaping companies in Atlanta in 2023, employing about 15,496 people between them. Up from 1,652 in 2018, a 17% increase against 13% growth nationally. That averages 8.0 people per location. They pay an average of $55,667, 15% above the $48,279 national average for the same kind of employer.
Which nearby metros compete with Atlanta for landscaping and groundskeeping workers?
The closest metros we cover with published figures are Chattanooga (104 miles, about 1,460, $36,190 median), Greenville (137 miles, about 2,420, $36,610 median) and Birmingham (140 miles, about 2,880, $36,600 median). Atlanta out-pays Chattanooga, an advantage when recruiting from there.
We have not closed a commercial landscaping search in Atlanta yet. Here is what we have closed.
These are other trades in the same market. We would rather show you the searches we have actually run in Atlanta than imply a record in this trade that we do not have yet.
- Senior Accounting CoordinatorThe back-office hire that keeps a trade business’s books straight.
- Outside Sales RepresentativeA rep who grew a regional product line from $600,000 to $2.5 million.
Hiring commercial landscaping talent in Atlanta?
Tell us the role. We'll tell you timeline and where we'd source the candidate - in under 30 minutes.