Trades

HVAC Technician Salary in Rhode Island (2026)

The average HVAC Technician in Rhode Island earns around $65,000/year. After taxes, your estimated take-home is $52,574/year ($4,381/month).

Take-Home Pay Breakdown

CategoryAmount
Annual Take-Home Pay
$52,574
Monthly Take-Home Pay
$4,381
Biweekly Take-Home Pay
$2,022
Hourly Take-Home Pay

based on 2,080 hrs/year

$25/hr
Federal Tax
$5,620
State Tax
$1,834
FICA Taxes
$4,973
Effective Tax Rate

total taxes ÷ gross salary

19.12%
Estimates only — not tax advice. · Full disclaimer →

Want to model 401(k), HSA, or pre-tax contributions against your full salary? Open the salary calculator

Working overtime? The 2025 OBBBA deduction may save you up to $12,500 on federal tax. Open the No Tax on Overtime calculator

1099 contract work or side gigs? Self-employment tax adds 15.3% on top. Open the 1099 tax calculator

Key terms:···

HVAC Technician Salary Ranges in Rhode Island

Entry Level (0–3 yrs)

$44,000

/year

See tax breakdown →

Mid Level (3–7 yrs)

$66,000

/year

See tax breakdown →

Senior Level (7+ yrs)

$130,000

/year

See tax breakdown →

Not all HVAC Technicians earn the same — not even close

Rhode Island's HVAC technician market is anchored by the Providence metro residential + commercial HVAC cluster (Providence + Warwick + Cranston + Pawtucket + East Providence + the substantial Providence Brown University + Citizens Financial + Hasbro + Textron + FM Global + the substantial CVS Woonsocket HQ + the substantial RI humid Atlantic coastal climate + the substantial RI cross-border MA market), Newport + Middletown + Portsmouth HVAC (the substantial Naval Station Newport + Naval War College + NUWC + Raytheon/RTX Portsmouth + the substantial Newport mansion luxury residential + the substantial post-2020 Newport UHNW migration), Woonsocket + Lincoln + Cumberland HVAC (the substantial CVS Health Woonsocket HQ + Amica Mutual Lincoln + the substantial Toray Plastics North Kingstown), North Kingstown + Quonset Point HVAC (the substantial GD Electric Boat Quonset Point submarine module + the substantial Quonset Business Park industrial), Westerly + Watch Hill + Charlestown HVAC (the substantial Watch Hill Taylor Swift + UHNW + the substantial Ocean House), Bristol + Warren + Barrington HVAC, plus substantial RI industrial HVAC + chiller + cleanroom specialty at GD Electric Boat Quonset Point + North Kingstown (the substantial GD Electric Boat Virginia-class + Columbia-class submarine module cleared cleanroom HVAC + cleared facility + the substantial GD Electric Boat MTC Marine Trades Council collective bargaining) + Naval Station Newport (the substantial Naval Station Newport ~16K personnel + Naval War College + NUWC + the substantial Naval Station Newport cleared facility) + Raytheon/RTX Portsmouth + Middletown (the substantial Raytheon Integrated Defense Systems naval combat systems cleared cleanroom HVAC) + CVS Health Woonsocket HQ (the substantial CVS Woonsocket campus + the substantial CVS post-2018 Aetna integration + the substantial CVS HQ data center cooling) + Toray Plastics North Kingstown (the substantial Toray composite materials cleanroom) + the substantial Brown University Health + Rhode Island Hospital + Hasbro Children + Newport Hospital + Kent Memorial + South County hospital HVAC.

Senior Commercial HVAC Tech (NATE)

$62,000–$95,000+ OT

Senior commercial tech · NATE Master + EPA 608 Universal · Providence + Warwick + Newport + Woonsocket

Naval Cleared HVAC (GD Electric Boat Quonset)

$78,000–$125,000+ OT

GD Electric Boat Quonset Point · Virginia-class + Columbia-class submarine module cleared cleanroom + MTC

Defense Cleared HVAC (Raytheon RTX Portsmouth)

$72,000–$118,000+ OT

Raytheon/RTX Portsmouth + Middletown · Integrated Defense Systems naval combat systems cleared cleanroom

Aerospace Cleared HVAC (Naval Station Newport)

$68,000–$108,000+ OT

Naval Station Newport · Naval War College + NUWC + Surface Warfare Officers School cleared facility

Data Center HVAC Specialist (CVS Health Woonsocket)

$68,000–$105,000+ OT

CVS Health Woonsocket HQ + Citizens Financial Providence data center cooling · CRAC + CRAH + chilled water

VRF / Heat Pump Specialist

$65,000–$98,000+ OT

VRF + heat pump specialty · commercial + multifamily + IRA 25C heat pump + RI Energy rebate + post-2024 RI Act on Climate

HVAC Controls Technician (BACnet)

$62,000–$92,000+

BACnet + Tridium Niagara + building automation · commercial + industrial + hospital + GD Electric Boat + Naval Station

Senior Residential HVAC Tech (Newport UHNW)

$55,000–$82,000+ OT

Senior residential service tech · Newport + Watch Hill + Providence East Side · UHNW smart-home VRF + mansion HVAC

Mid-Career HVAC Tech (3-6 yrs)

$42,000–$60,000+ OT

Mid-career tech transitioning to NATE + EPA 608 Universal · RI HVAC service shops

Entry Helper / Apprentice

$32,000–$48,000+ OT

Entry helper apprentice · CCRI + NEIT + UA Local 51 Providence Plumbers Pipefitters + Boilermakers Local 29 Boston pipeline

Worth knowing: Rhode Island's GD Electric Boat Quonset Point submarine module cleared cleanroom HVAC + Naval Station Newport + Raytheon/RTX naval combat systems + CVS Health Woonsocket HQ + Brown University Health hospital + Newport mansion UHNW residential specialty is a distinctive RI HVAC feature most national HVAC surveys understate. RI's humid Atlantic coastal climate (Providence summer high ~85°F + winter low ~25°F + the substantial RI humid Atlantic summer + the substantial RI Atlantic hurricane season + the substantial RI Narragansett Bay coastal salt + the substantial RI coastal effect snow + the substantial RI Block Island + Newport coastal) drives substantial residential + commercial HVAC service. GD Electric Boat Quonset Point + North Kingstown (the substantial GD Electric Boat as cross-state with Groton CT shipyard + the substantial Quonset Point submarine module construction for Virginia-class fast attack + Columbia-class ballistic missile submarine + the substantial GD Electric Boat ~5,000+ RI Quonset employees + the substantial GD Electric Boat post-2024 Columbia-class production ramp + the substantial GD Electric Boat cleared cleanroom HVAC + cleared facility + the substantial GD Electric Boat MTC Marine Trades Council collective bargaining premium) supports specialized naval cleared cleanroom HVAC tech work — GD Electric Boat Quonset cleared HVAC specialists clear $78-125K + overtime with cleared facility access + MTC collective bargaining. Naval Station Newport (the substantial Naval Station Newport ~16K personnel + the substantial Naval War College as the country's substantial premier US Navy professional military education + the substantial Surface Warfare Officers School + Officer Training Command + the substantial NUWC Naval Undersea Warfare Center torpedo + sonar + undersea systems + the substantial NPS Newport + the substantial Naval Station Newport cleared cleanroom HVAC + cleared facility) + Raytheon/RTX Portsmouth + Middletown (the substantial Raytheon Integrated Defense Systems naval combat systems + the substantial RTX SPY-6 + AN/SPY-7 radar + the substantial RTX Newport County cluster cleared cleanroom HVAC) supports specialized defense cleared cleanroom HVAC tech work. CVS Health Woonsocket HQ (the substantial CVS Health Woonsocket HQ ~3K direct + the substantial CVS Woonsocket campus + the substantial CVS HQ data center + the substantial CVS post-2018 Aetna integration + the substantial Citizens Financial Group Providence HQ data center) supports specialized data center HVAC tech work — CVS + Citizens data center HVAC specialists clear $68-105K. Newport mansion UHNW residential HVAC (the substantial Newport Bellevue Avenue + Ocean Drive mansion + the substantial Newport The Breakers + Marble House + Rosecliff historic mansion HVAC retrofit + the substantial post-2020 Newport UHNW migration smart-home VRF + the substantial Watch Hill Taylor Swift + Ocean House luxury residential) supports specialized historic mansion + UHNW residential HVAC work. The 2025-2026 R-454B refrigerant transition + IRA 25C heat pump credit + RI Energy heat pump rebate + the substantial post-2024 RI Act on Climate 2021 net-zero by 2050 + the substantial RI heat-pump aggressive program drive sustained heat-pump installation. NATE + EPA 608 Universal + commercial chiller cert + cleared facility cert + cleanroom GMP cert + data center cert drive 25-50% wage premium. CCRI + New England Institute of Technology NEIT Warwick + UA Local 51 Providence Plumbers Pipefitters + UA Local 537 Boston cross-border + Boilermakers Local 29 Boston cross-border pipeline. RI progressive 3.75-5.99% + RI 7% state sales tax + RI estate tax $1.775M (2026) + RI NOT a RTW state + RI recognizes public-sector + private-sector collective bargaining + ERSRI public pension anchor the RI HVAC proposition.

Calculate Your Exact Take-Home Pay

Add 401(k) contributions, HSA, dependents, and more to see your personalized take-home.

Open Full Calculator

Frequently Asked Questions

Find answers to common questions about your taxes and our calculator.

Compare Two States

See how income tax, take-home pay, and total tax burden differ between any two US states side by side.

State 1

State 2

HVAC Technician Salary in Other States

More on Rhode Island