Commercial landscaping recruiters serving Raleigh.
Corporate and institutional campus maintenance for the Triangle's expanding life-sciences footprint, plus Hub RTP's large mixed-use development, drive real demand here.
A $2B mixed-use district, and a pharma manufacturing boom.
Metro pay for every role we recruit is in the table below. What the hub does name: corporate and institutional campus maintenance for the Triangle's expanding life-sciences footprint, plus Hub RTP's large mixed-use development, with stormwater management a real consideration on the new industrial-scale pads.
We recruit across the full org chart for commercial landscaping contractors in Raleigh against that documented context.
A 100-acre downtown Research Triangle Park district.
$2B, phased over multiple years.
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A 100-acre downtown Research Triangle Park district delivering 1.5M+ sq ft of office/lab space plus 1,200 residential units - conventional commercial and mixed-use landscape work at scale alongside the life-sciences building boom.
What commercial landscaping roles pay in Raleigh.
In the Raleigh 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, Raleigh ranks 55th on pay. Most of the market sits between $34,910 and $47,370. Of the other field roles, landscape designer / architect pays the most locally, at a $83,420 median. National benchmarks by role are in the 2026 Commercial Landscaping Salary Guide.
| Role | Raleigh median | Typical range | National median | vs. national | Employed locally |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Landscape / Grounds Crew MemberLandscaping and Groundskeeping Workers (37-3011) | $38,500 | $34,910–$47,370 | $39,150 | −2% | 5,710 |
| Grounds Crew SupervisorFirst-Line Supervisors of Landscaping, Lawn Service, and Groundskeeping Workers (37-1012) | $57,950 | $46,360–$77,980 | $58,430 | −1% | 930 |
| Tree Trimmer / ArboristTree Trimmers and Pruners (37-3013) | $50,040 | $36,840–$85,790 | $50,960 | −2% | 260 |
| Licensed Pesticide ApplicatorPesticide Handlers, Sprayers, and Applicators, Vegetation (37-3012) | $49,060 | $42,170–$55,680 | $46,340 | +6% | 90 |
| Landscape Designer / ArchitectLandscape Architects (17-1012) | $83,420 | $57,940–$118,990 | $79,870 | +4% | 250 |
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, Raleigh 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 Raleigh commercial landscaping hiring actually plays out in 2026.
Why stormwater management on industrial-scale pads is a specific, named concern
The hub names stormwater management directly for the new industrial-scale pads - functional site drainage for pharma manufacturing footprints, distinct from Hub RTP's mixed-use grounds work.
Why the life-sciences footprint and Hub RTP are two distinct demand streams
The hub separates the Triangle's expanding life-sciences campus maintenance from Hub RTP's mixed-use development - two different landscape scopes requiring different design approaches in the same market.
What this means for sourcing
We source against verified mixed-use campus and pharma-manufacturing-pad stormwater project history, 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 Raleigh commercial landscaping clients, these are the highest-volume roles we've recruited for in the last 24 months.
- Mixed-use campus landscape designer
- Industrial-pad stormwater management crew lead
- Landscape crew foreman
- Grounds maintenance manager
For the broader picture across every commercial trade in Raleigh, see the Raleigh 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 Raleigh, plainly.
Same approach we use in every market - but tuned for what works in Raleigh's commercial landscaping segment specifically:
- Same-day intake call. We get the role, the project context, the budget, your dealbreakers. For Raleigh landscaping work, we also confirm whether the role sits within Hub RTP mixed-use scope or pharma-pad stormwater scope.
- Candidate sourcing within 48 hours. We pull from our existing Raleigh commercial landscaping candidate network, filtered for verified mixed-use campus and industrial-pad credentials.
- Vetted short list (week one to several weeks). Three to five candidates. We verify real project history in the relevant scope 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 Raleigh documented general context.
Raleigh runs 25% more commercial landscaping workers per job than the country as a whole — well above the national concentration. More per job means more people to reach, and more employers reaching 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 Raleigh's commercial landscaping market compares
In 2023 the Raleigh metro had 684 landscaping companies (counted by business location), with about 7,251 people on their payrolls. Average pay at those firms was $47,373, in line with the national average of $48,279 for the same kind of employer. Headcount grew 2.6% over the year, faster than the 2.2% national increase, so local employers were adding people quicker than most of the country. The number of these employers rose 4.6%, more firms competing for the same crews. That works out to 46 per 100,000 residents against 37 nationally, a crowded field where experienced people get approached often.
Among the 100 metros we cover with published BLS figures, Raleigh ranks 37th for headcount, 50th for median pay and 16th for concentration for landscaping and groundskeeping workers.
| Metro | Employed | Median pay | Concentration | Commercial employers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Charlotte | 8,400 | $38,630 | 1.01 | 1,223 |
| Raleigh | 5,710 | $38,500 | 1.25 | 684 |
| Winston-Salem | 1,820 | $37,420 | 1.09 | 334 |
| Greensboro | 1,730 | $37,830 | 0.77 | 337 |
| Durham-Chapel Hill | 1,710 | $38,610 | 0.81 | 240 |
BLS OEWS occupation figures and QCEW business-location counts; a dash means not published.
What this means for hiring:For commercial landscaping employers in Raleigh, the pool is deep and still growing, so the constraint is competition rather than supply. Move fast on good candidates, because another local firm is probably talking to them too.
Sources: BLS QCEW 2023 annual averages and BLS OEWS May 2025, Raleigh metro. Employers are counted by business location.
How Raleigh's commercial landscaping market has changed since 2018.
The number of landscaping companies in Raleigh rose from 554 in 2018 to 684 in 2023, up 23%, ahead of the 13% national rise. Headcount at those firms went up 17%, to about 7,251 people. Average annual pay there went from $37,380 to $47,373 (+27%), slower than the 31% national increase.
| Measure | 2018 | 2023 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Landscaping companies: business locations | 554 | 684 | +23% |
| Landscaping companies: employment | 6,200 | 7,251 | +17% |
| Landscaping companies: average annual pay | $37,380 | $47,373 | +27% |
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 Raleigh.
What is Hub RTP?
The metro's own data describes a $2B, 100-acre downtown Research Triangle Park district delivering 1.5M+ sq ft of office/lab space plus 1,200 residential units, phased over multiple years.
What is driving commercial landscaping demand in Raleigh right now?
Hub RTP's $2B mixed-use development is the named driver, alongside the Triangle's expanding life-sciences campus footprint and stormwater management for new industrial-scale pharma pads.
What do landscaping and groundskeeping workers earn in Raleigh?
BLS puts the Raleigh 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, $34,910 to $47,370 across the 10th to 90th percentile and only a 1.4x gap, so small differences in an offer are noticed. No other North Carolina metro we cover pays more for this work.
Is it hard to hire landscaping and groundskeeping workers in Raleigh?
Not by national standards. Landscaping and groundskeeping workers make up 25% more of the Raleigh workforce than they do nationally, about 5,710 people. The 684 landscaping companies here average about 11 employees per location. With 23% more of those firms than in 2018, more employers are competing for the same crews.
Which commercial landscaping roles pay the most in Raleigh?
Of the roles we recruit for, Landscape Designer / Architect pays the most in Raleigh, a $83,420 median. Landscape / Grounds Crew Member is the lowest-paid field role at $38,500. Relative to national pay, Licensed Pesticide Applicator is the strongest-paying role here (6% above).
How many landscaping companies operate in Raleigh?
BLS counted 684 landscaping companies in Raleigh in 2023, employing about 7,251 people between them. Up from 554 in 2018, a 23% increase against 13% growth nationally. That averages 11 people per location. They pay about the national average of $48,279.
Which nearby metros compete with Raleigh for landscaping and groundskeeping workers?
The closest metros we cover with published figures are Durham-Chapel Hill (21 miles, about 1,710, $38,610 median), Greensboro (68 miles, about 1,730, $37,830 median) and Winston-Salem (93 miles, about 1,820, $37,420 median).
Hiring commercial landscaping talent in Raleigh?
Tell us the role. We'll tell you timeline and where we'd source the candidate - in under 30 minutes.