- Wages
- Landscaping
- Iowa
How much does a landscaper make in Iowa?
In Iowa, landscaping and groundskeeping workers earned an average of $19.84 an hour in May 2025, and the median was $18.71 an hour, per the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
$19.84
$18.71
$20.33
$0.49 less an hour
$41,267
By the hour, the week and the year in Iowa
At 40 hours a week, the average of $19.84 an hour comes to $793.60 a week. Over the 2,080-hour year the BLS uses for its annual figures, it comes to $41,267 a year, and the median of $18.71 to $38,917 a year.
In Iowa, the average is $1.13 above the median (6.0%): a smaller group of higher wages pulls the average up, and half of landscaping and groundskeeping workers earn $18.71 an hour or less.
How does Iowa compare?
The average in Iowa is $0.49 below the national average of $20.33 (2.4% less), about $1,019 less a year at 2,080 hours.
By average wage, Iowa ranks 28 of 51 states and DC with data for this trade (1 pays the most). The national median is $18.82 an hour.
Iowa and its Census division, West North Central
By average wage, Iowa ranks 4 of the 7 states of the division with data for this trade: the highest is Minnesota, $22.21, and the lowest South Dakota, $17.60.
| State | Average per hour | Median per hour | Against Iowa |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minnesota | $22.21 | $22.41 | +$2.37 |
| North Dakota | $21.04 | $19.61 | +$1.20 |
| Nebraska | $20.36 | $18.82 | +$0.52 |
| Iowa | $19.84 | $18.71 | |
| Missouri | $19.56 | $18.52 | -$0.28 |
| Kansas | $19.49 | $18.91 | -$0.35 |
| South Dakota | $17.60 | $17.01 | -$2.24 |
This trade and the others in Iowa
Of the 5 trades this site prices, landscaping and groundskeeping workers rank 4 of the 5 by average wage in Iowa. Among them, the average runs from $15.88 (Cleaning) to $27.80 (Concrete).
| Trade | Average per hour | Median per hour | Against landscaping |
|---|---|---|---|
| Concrete | $27.80 | $27.99 | +$7.96 |
| Drywall | $25.59 | $24.53 | +$5.75 |
| Painting | $25.04 | $23.90 | +$5.20 |
| Landscaping | $19.84 | $18.71 | |
| Cleaning | $15.88 | $15.68 | -$3.96 |
Against the minimum wage in Iowa
In Iowa most employers pay the federal minimum wage, $7.25 an hour. The median of landscaping and groundskeeping workers, $18.71, is $11.46 above it, 2.6 times the minimum. Over 2,080 hours the minimum comes to $15,080 a year.
From wage to rate
This is what an employer pays an employee, not what a contractor bills. Your rate also has to cover your overhead (vehicle, insurance, tools), your profit, and the hours you cannot bill.
If you pay a helper the median wage in Iowa, $18.71 an hour, the 8 hours of the starting job of the landscaping calculator cost $149.68 in wages. With its $55.00 of materials, 10% overhead and 15% profit, the quote comes to $258.92; at the national median, $18.82, the same job comes to $260.04. A wage is only the floor: your own rate also pays your taxes, your unbilled hours and your business.