Commercial Irrigation recruiters serving Pittsburgh.
About 6,650 landscaping and groundskeeping workers work in the Pittsburgh metro, at a $37,690 median. BLS counts 964 business locations of landscaping companies across the metro. Below: local pay for every role we staff, the state licensing rules that apply and the nearby markets competing for the same people.
Positions we recruit for in Pittsburgh.
BLS counts about 11,070 people working in the occupations behind these roles across the Pittsburgh metro, the largest group being landscaping and groundskeeping workers (about 6,650). Relative to the size of the local economy, landscaping and groundskeeping workers are about as concentrated here as nationally (location quotient 0.97). Local headcount and pay for each role are below; role descriptions are on the Commercial Irrigation hub.
Irrigation Technician / Installer
Pittsburgh: 6,650 employed · $37,690 median, 69th-highest of 112 metros
Certified Irrigation Technician (CIT)
Irrigation System Designer
Pittsburgh: 120 employed · $73,930 median, 60th-highest of 78 metros
Backflow Prevention Specialist
Pittsburgh: 2,910 employed · $70,100 median, 34th-highest of 112 metros
Irrigation Service / Repair Technician
Irrigation Foreman / Crew Lead
Pittsburgh: 1,390 employed · $46,860 median, 105th-highest of 112 metros
Irrigation Project Manager
Pittsburgh: 1,420 employed · $103,420 median, 82nd-highest of 111 metros
Irrigation Estimator
Pittsburgh: 2,000 employed · $77,980 median, 58th-highest of 111 metros
Smart / Controller Systems Technician
Landscape Water Management Auditor
What Commercial Irrigation roles earn in Pittsburgh.
Landscaping and groundskeeping workers in Pittsburgh earn a median $37,690, 4% under the $39,150 national figure, and 69th of 112 metros. Pay runs $29,990 at the tenth percentile to $49,220 at the ninetieth. The best-paid role below is landscape architects, at $73,930 against $79,870 nationally.
| Role | Pittsburgh median | Typical range | National median | vs. national | Employed locally |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Irrigation Technician / Installer · Certified Irrigation Technician (CIT) · Irrigation Service / Repair TechnicianLandscaping and Groundskeeping Workers (37-3011) | $37,690 | $29,990–$49,220 | $39,150 | −4% | 6,650 |
| Irrigation System DesignerLandscape Architects (17-1012) | $73,930 | $57,410–$221,990 | $79,870 | −7% | 120 |
| Backflow Prevention SpecialistPlumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters (47-2152) | $70,100 | $46,910–$107,870 | $63,800 | +10% | 2,910 |
| Irrigation Foreman / Crew LeadFirst-Line Supervisors of Landscaping, Lawn Service, and Groundskeeping Workers (37-1012) | $46,860 | $45,400–$65,700 | $58,430 | −20% | 1,390 |
| Irrigation Project ManagerConstruction Managers (11-9021) | $103,420 | $77,640–$174,200 | $114,990 | −10% | 1,420 |
| Irrigation EstimatorCost Estimators (13-1051) | $77,980 | $48,030–$127,680 | $78,740 | −1% | 2,000 |
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, Pittsburgh metro. Range is 10th to 90th percentile; management and office roles are metro-wide. A metro ranking counts only the metros where BLS publishes that occupation.
How Pittsburgh's commercial irrigation market has changed since 2018.
The number of landscaping companies in Pittsburgh rose from 899 in 2018 to 964 in 2023, up 7%, behind the 13% growth nationally. Headcount and pay for those firms are withheld in Pittsburgh, so the occupation figures above are the better guide to what hiring costs.
| Measure | 2018 | 2023 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Landscaping companies: business locations | 899 | 964 | +7% |
| Landscaping companies: employment | 4,947 | – | – |
| Landscaping companies: average annual pay | $35,186 | – | – |
BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, private employers, annual averages. A dash means BLS did not publish the figure.
Free Commercial Irrigation hiring resources.
Definitive Guide to Commercial Irrigation · 2026 Commercial Irrigation Salary Guide · 3-Step Interview Guide for Commercial Irrigation
Pittsburgh sits at about the national rate for commercial irrigation — neither unusually deep nor unusually thin.
Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, Landscaping and Groundskeeping Workers (nearest published occupation for this trade). Metro-wide figures for the base occupation; the wage table above is role-specific and commercial.
How Pittsburgh's commercial irrigation market compares
Among the 100 metros we cover with published BLS figures, Pittsburgh ranks 32nd for headcount, 63rd for median pay and 54th for concentration for landscaping and groundskeeping workers.
| Metro | Employed | Median pay | Concentration | Commercial employers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Philadelphia | 17,700 | $42,130 | 1.00 | 2,600 |
| Pittsburgh | 6,650 | $37,690 | 0.97 | 964 |
| Allentown-Bethlehem | 2,310 | $39,350 | 1.00 | 361 |
| Lancaster | 1,650 | $39,140 | 1.07 | 234 |
| Harrisburg | 1,630 | $38,700 | 0.79 | 195 |
| Scranton | 1,330 | $37,330 | 0.85 | 205 |
BLS OEWS occupation figures and QCEW business-location counts; a dash means not published.
What this means for hiring:For commercial irrigation employers in Pittsburgh, the pool is about the national norm for its size, so difficulty depends on the role more than the market.
Sources: BLS QCEW 2023 annual averages and BLS OEWS May 2025, Pittsburgh metro. Employers are counted by business location.
Commercial Irrigation licensing in Pennsylvania.
Pennsylvania does not license or certify most construction contractors at state level, and there is no irrigation, landscape or general contractor license. The Department of Labor and Industry states plainly that the Commonwealth has no licensure or certification requirement for most construction contractors or their employees, and that individual municipalities set their own requirements, most often for home improvement, electrical and plumbing contractors. The only statewide registration that touches this work is Home Improvement Contractor registration with the Attorney General, which applies to residential jobs rather than commercial ones. For backflow, 25 Pa. Code 109.709 requires public water suppliers to operate cross-connection control programs, so the tester credential a crew needs is whatever the water authority serving the job accepts. The same state rules apply in Philadelphia, Allentown-Bethlehem, Harrisburg, Lancaster and Scranton, so candidates licensed there can work in Pittsburgh without re-qualifying.
Licensing authority: No state license; the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry confirms there is no state contractor licensure and leaves trade licensing to municipalities. Confirm current rules with the agency.
Nearby markets competing for Pittsburgh talent.
The closest metro we cover is Akron, about 90 miles away, with roughly 2,250 landscaping and groundskeeping workers (0.3 times Pittsburgh's 6,650). Buffalo pays the most nearby, a $41,770 median, 11% above Pittsburgh. That is the number any Pittsburgh offer is competing with when experienced people weigh a move.
| Metro | Distance | Employed | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pittsburgh | – | 6,650 | $37,690 |
| Akron | 91 mi | 2,250 | $37,610 |
| Cleveland | 115 mi | 6,910 | $38,230 |
| Columbus | 162 mi | 6,820 | $39,100 |
| Harrisburg | 164 mi | 1,630 | $38,700 |
| Buffalo | 179 mi | 2,870 | $41,770 |
BLS OEWS, May 2025; straight-line miles.
What else is competing for Pittsburgh crews.
Not commercial irrigation work. These are the capital projects big enough to pull the same crews into Pittsburgh in the months you are trying to fill a seat, each with the status its own market page reports.
- Homer City Redevelopment gas-powered data center campus (Indiana County, ~50 mi from Pittsburgh -- outside the core Pittsburgh MSA but commonly described regionally as "near Pittsburgh")$10B initial investmentTurbine deliveries begin 2026; phased build-out
A 3,200+ acre campus on the site of the former Homer City Generating Station, powered by seven GE Vernova 7HA.02 hydrogen-enabled gas turbines. Billed as the largest gas-powered data center campus in the country. Power generation plus data center construction in one program - the most demanding electrical and mechanical scope in the region.
- Robotics and life sciences corridor build-outRolling private investment2025-2029
Strip District and Oakland lab and advanced manufacturing conversions. Specialty exhaust, precision environmental controls, and clean power work in adaptive-reuse buildings - technically harder than ground-up.
- Pittsburgh International Airport terminal programMulti-hundred-millionNew terminal delivered; landside and phased work continuing
The new landside terminal is complete, but concourse, airfield, and support facility work continues. Live-airport experience and night-shift capability remain at a premium.
Showing 3 of 6 projects tracked in this metro. The Pittsburgh market page lists them all.
What credentials matter for commercial irrigation, and what kills offers in Pittsburgh.
The 4 credentials that gate the work and the 4 things that most often end a commercial irrigation offer are the same in every market, kept in one place: Commercial Irrigation credentials and offer risks, each linked to the body that issues it. What is local is the licensing rule above and the pay further up this page.
Frequently asked - Commercial Irrigation hiring in Pittsburgh.
What do landscaping and groundskeeping workers earn in Pittsburgh?
BLS puts the Pittsburgh median for landscaping and groundskeeping workers at $37,690 a year, 4% below the $39,150 national median. That ranks 69th of 112 metros with published figures, in the middle of the pack. Pay is bunched together here, $29,990 to $49,220 across the 10th to 90th percentile and only a 1.6x gap, so small differences in an offer are noticed. Within Pennsylvania, Philadelphia pays more, at $42,130.
Is it hard to hire landscaping and groundskeeping workers in Pittsburgh?
It is about average. Landscaping and groundskeeping workers are as common in Pittsburgh as they are nationally (location quotient 0.97), with about 6,650 in the metro.
Which commercial irrigation roles pay the most in Pittsburgh?
Of the roles we recruit for, Irrigation Project Manager pays the most in Pittsburgh, a $103,420 median (BLS measures that occupation across all industries in the metro). Among field roles the top earner is Irrigation System Designer at $73,930, 29% below it. Irrigation Technician / Installer is the lowest-paid field role at $37,690. Relative to national pay, Backflow Prevention Specialist is the strongest-paying role here (10% above). Irrigation Foreman / Crew Lead trails national pay the most (20% below).
How many landscaping companies operate in Pittsburgh?
BLS counted 964 landscaping companies in Pittsburgh in 2023. Up from 899 in 2018, a 7% increase against 13% growth nationally. BLS withholds their combined headcount and pay here, which it does when a category is small enough that the figures could identify individual employers. BLS counts irrigation contractors under landscaping companies.
Which nearby metros compete with Pittsburgh for landscaping and groundskeeping workers?
The closest metros we cover with published figures are Akron (91 miles, about 2,250, $37,610 median), Cleveland (115 miles, about 6,910, $38,230 median) and Columbus (162 miles, about 6,820, $39,100 median).
The seat is open. The pipeline should not be.
964 landscaping companies in Pittsburgh are drawing on the same 6,650 landscaping and groundskeeping workers. Let's get your next hire lined up first.
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