Updated · 2026 tax rules · Data: IRS, BLS, BEA, HUD · How we calculate

Heating, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Mechanics and Installers Salary in Los Angeles, CA

Heating, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Mechanics and Installers in the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA metro area earn a median $73,830 a year — 21% more than the national median. After 2026 taxes, that is $57,115 take-home, or $4,760 a month.

Median salary
$73,830
$35.50 per hour
Typical range
$46,590 – $109,010
10th to 90th percentile
Jobs in Los Angeles, CA
10,720
0.65× national concentration
▲13.9%
Pay trend: The median for heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers in Los Angeles, CA rose from $64,820 (May 2024) to $73,830 (May 2025). That beat inflation (2.4%), a real raise of about 11.5%.

Take-home pay calculator

Pre-filled with the median heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers salary in Los Angeles, CA. Enter your own offer to see your paycheck.

Heating, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Mechanics and Installers in Los Angeles, CA
Deductions, kids & local tax

2026 tax year. Federal brackets from IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32.

Your take-home pay
$57,115
per year · effective tax rate 22.6%
$4,760Monthly
$2,380Twice a month
$2,197Every 2 weeks
$27.46Hourly
  • Federal income tax$7,413
  • Social Security (6.2%)$4,577
  • Medicare (1.45%)$1,071
  • California income tax$2,694
  • CA State Disability Insurance (SDI)$960
  • Take-home pay$57,115

Marginal rate: 22% federal + 8.00% state

Got an offer somewhere else? Compare it with this one after taxes and rent →

Heating, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Mechanics and Installers pay by experience in Los Angeles, CA

PercentileSalaryHourlyTake-home / yrPer month
10th percentile (entry level)$46,590$22.40$38,156$3,180
25th percentile$58,220$27.99$46,660$3,888
Median (50th)$73,830$35.50$57,115$4,760
75th percentile$83,490$40.14$62,945$5,245
90th percentile (top earners)$109,010$52.41$78,193$6,516

Wages: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. Take-home: single filer, California resident, 2026 tax rules.

What $73,830 buys in Los Angeles, CA

Prices in Los Angeles, CA are 13.6% higher than the U.S. average (housing costs are 1.70× the national average). Adjusted for local prices, a median heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers's $57,115 take-home pay has the buying power of $50,293 in a typical American city.

1-bedroom rent
$2,245
47% of monthly take-home
2-bedroom rent
$2,755
58% of monthly take-home
Left after 1-BR rent
$2,515
per month for everything else

Rents: HUD Fair Market Rents, FY2026 (40th-percentile gross rent incl. utilities). Price levels: BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024.

Heating, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Mechanics and Installers jobs are less concentrated in Los Angeles, CA than nationally (location quotient 0.65), so openings may be scarcer.

Best-paying cities for heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers, adjusted for cost of living

Los Angeles, CA ranks #23 of 41 metro areas once taxes and local prices are taken into account.

#Metro areaMedian salaryTake-homeReal value*
1Seattle, WA $80,100$65,180$58,651
2Chicago, IL $77,960$59,961$57,880
3Minneapolis, MN $77,490$59,598$56,857
4Boston, MA $78,530$60,369$55,760
5Columbus, OH $64,440$52,968$55,482
6Cleveland, OH $62,790$51,687$55,032
7Kansas City, MO $62,680$50,535$54,607
8Cincinnati, OH $62,240$51,261$53,749
23Los Angeles, CA$73,830$57,115$50,293

*Take-home pay divided by the BEA price level, so every city is measured in U.S.-average dollars. See all 41 metros →

About the job: heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers

Install or repair heating, central air conditioning, HVAC, or refrigeration systems, including oil burners, hot-air furnaces, and heating stoves.

Typical education
Postsecondary nondegree award
Work experience
None required
On-the-job training
Long-term on-the-job training
Job outlook, 2025–35
+10.9% (much faster than average)

Source: BLS Standard Occupational Classification and Employment Projections, 2025–35.

Heating, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Mechanics and Installers salaries elsewhere in California

Frequently asked questions

How much does a heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers make in Los Angeles, CA?

The median heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers salary in the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA metro area is $73,830 a year, or about $35.50 an hour, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (May 2025). The middle half earn between $58,220 and $83,490.

What is a heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers’s take-home pay in Los Angeles, CA?

On the median $73,830 salary, a single filer living in California takes home about $57,115 a year ($4,760 a month) after federal tax, Social Security, Medicare and $3,654 in California taxes in 2026.

Is Los Angeles, CA a good place to work as a heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers?

Pay here is 21% above the national median of $61,010. Local prices are 13.6% above the U.S. average, so the take-home pay buys what $50,293 would in a typical U.S. city. Los Angeles, CA ranks #23 of 41 metro areas for cost-of-living-adjusted pay in this job.

Can a heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers afford rent in Los Angeles, CA?

HUD’s fair market rent for a one-bedroom in Los Angeles, CA is $2,245 a month ($2,755 for two bedrooms) — 47% of a median heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers’s monthly take-home pay. Financial planners usually suggest keeping rent under about 30%.

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