Quick answer: To become a landscaper in 2026, you can start working on a crew with no formal schooling and learn the trade on the job. There is no national landscaping license, but many states require a license to apply pesticides commercially, and some require a contractor license to run a landscaping business, so check your state. Landscaping and groundskeeping workers earn a median of about $18.82 an hour (BLS, May 2025). Here is the full path and how to start earning.
Landscaping is one of the easiest skilled outdoor trades to break into and one of the most satisfying to build a business in. You do not need a degree. You can be hired onto a crew with no experience, learn as you go, and over time grow from mowing and maintenance into design, installation, and running your own operation.
It is also a trade with a clear ladder. The person mowing lawns this season can be leading installs in a couple of years and running a crew after that. The work rewards reliability, an eye for detail, and the willingness to be outside in all weather.
This guide walks the path in plain order: how you get in, the skills and certifications that raise your pay, what you can earn, and how to keep steady work coming.
State-by-state note: there is no single national landscaping license. Many states require a separate license or certification to apply pesticides or fertilizers commercially, and some require a contractor license to run a landscaping business. These rules vary and change. Treat the steps below as the general path, and confirm the specifics with your state's agriculture department and contractor or licensing board where you live.
What a landscaper actually does
Landscaping and groundskeeping workers care for and improve outdoor spaces. That ranges from routine maintenance to building entirely new landscapes. Most landscapers specialize over time:
- Maintenance workers mow, trim, edge, mulch, prune, and keep lawns and grounds healthy.
- Installation and design landscapers build the hardscape and plantings: patios, retaining walls, irrigation, sod, and garden beds.
- Specialty roles include irrigation technicians, arborists and tree care, and commercial grounds management.
You do not have to choose on day one. Most people start in maintenance and move toward installation, design, or a specialty they enjoy and are good at.
The step-by-step path to becoming a landscaper
Step 1: Finish high school or get a GED (helpful, not always required)
You can be hired onto many landscaping crews without a diploma. That said, a high school diploma or GED helps, especially if you later want certifications, a contractor license, or your own business. Basic math for measuring areas, estimating materials, and quoting jobs is genuinely useful.
Step 2: Get hired on as a crew member
This is the most common way in. A landscaping crew member mows, trims, hauls material, plants, and learns the rhythm of the work. You are paid from the start and learn by doing the work alongside experienced crew members.
- How to land it: apply directly to local landscaping companies, or use a free jobs platform to find crews hiring near you. Spring and summer are peak hiring seasons. Many landscapers started with no experience.
- What gets you hired: showing up on time, being willing to work outdoors in heat and cold, and being careful with equipment and customers' property.
Step 3: Learn the trade on the job (and consider training)
Landscaping is mostly learned hands-on. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics notes that most grounds maintenance workers learn their skills on the job, with short-term training that picks up as you go.
- On-the-job training is the typical route: you advance from mowing and maintenance to planting, irrigation, hardscape, and design as you build skill.
- Optional schooling in horticulture, turf management, or landscape design (a certificate or associate program) is not required, but it can speed your move into design and higher-paid specialties.
Step 4: Get the certifications and licenses that pay more
The difference between a crew member and a sought-after landscaper is often a few credentials:
- Pesticide and fertilizer applicator license. Holding one makes you more valuable and lets a crew offer more services. Pesticide applicators are certified by their state (or territory or tribe) under an EPA-approved program, generally by passing a written and a performance-based exam. Federal law requires certification to apply restricted-use pesticides, and many state agencies require certification to apply any pesticide commercially, so the exact rule depends on where you work. Check your state's lead agency (often the agriculture department) for its commercial applicator requirements.
- Industry certifications. Professional groups offer credentials in landscape, irrigation, and lawn care that some employers and clients value. For example, the National Association of Landscape Professionals (NALP) offers the Landscape Industry Certified credential (an online exam across specialties such as installation, maintenance, and irrigation), and the Irrigation Association offers irrigation certifications. Check the association's certification page for current requirements and fees.
- Equipment and safety training. Comfort and safety with mowers, trimmers, chainsaws, and skid steers makes you more hireable, and an OSHA card is widely expected on commercial sites. The OSHA 10-hour course is part of OSHA's voluntary Outreach Training Program, is aimed at entry-level workers, and is issued by an OSHA-authorized trainer; OSHA notes it does not by itself meet any OSHA standard, but some states or employers require it, so check what your site demands.
Step 5: Build your tool kit
You can start with very little, since crews supply the big equipment. Over time landscapers own a personal set:
- Hand tools: pruners, loppers, a hand trowel, a sturdy rake, and gloves.
- A string trimmer and a quality mower come as you take on your own work, often supplied by the employer at first.
- Bigger gear (zero-turn mowers, skid steers, trailers) comes later, when you run your own jobs.
- The basics that protect you: eye and ear protection, sun protection, and sturdy boots.
Step 6: Decide whether to run your own jobs
Once you can run maintenance and basic installs, you have a choice. You can stay on a crew for a steady wage, or start taking your own lawn and yard jobs, where your earning ceiling is higher and recurring maintenance accounts build predictable income.
- Running your own work may require a contractor license in your state, an applicator license if you apply chemicals, and insurance. Check your state boards before you bid.
- Either way, a free platform like Qiggz helps you find local landscaping jobs and gigs without paying to apply, so you are not idle between projects. Browse landscaping jobs or create your free profile.
How long it takes
Landscaping is one of the quickest trades to enter and to earn in.
| Stage | Typical time | You earn? |
|---|---|---|
| High school / GED | varies (helpful, not always required) | no |
| Crew member | start within days to weeks of being hired | yes |
| Skilled landscaper | commonly built over months on the job | yes (more) |
| Crew lead / specialist | a few years of steady work | yes (more) |
| Your own landscaping business | after gaining skill + any required state license | yes (highest ceiling) |
The headline: you can be earning on a crew almost immediately, and your pay grows as your skill and certifications grow. There is little to no schooling debt on this path.
What landscapers earn
Landscaping and groundskeeping workers earn a median of about $18.82 an hour (BLS, May 2025), which works out to roughly $39,150 a year. The lowest 10 percent earn under about $14.98 an hour, while the top 10 percent earn more than $27.28 an hour. Pay rises as you move from maintenance into installation, design, and specialties such as irrigation and tree care, and running your own jobs (especially recurring maintenance accounts) raises the ceiling further.
Demand is steady and large. BLS projects employment of grounds maintenance workers to grow 4 percent from 2024 to 2034, about as fast as the average for all occupations, with roughly 171,600 openings per year over the decade, one of the higher openings counts of any field. For the full pay picture, see our guide on [how much landscapers make] and where the highest-paying trades rank.
How to find landscaping work
Skill is only half the job. Keeping steady work coming is the other half. A few ways to stay busy:
- Apply directly to local landscaping companies. Spring and summer are peak hiring seasons, and many will train a reliable worker from scratch.
- List your skills on a free jobs platform. Browse landscaping jobs on Qiggz and apply with no fee. One profile covers both company jobs and homeowner yard gigs.
- Take on recurring maintenance. A single mowing client can become a weekly account, and weekly accounts are the backbone of a landscaping income.
- Show your work. Before-and-after photos of a tidy yard or a finished install win jobs faster than words.
- Build your reputation. Show up on time, leave the site clean, respect the property, and let happy clients refer you.
The bottom line
Becoming a landscaper in 2026 is one of the easiest, lowest-debt ways into an outdoor trade. Get hired onto a crew, learn the work on the job, add the licenses and certifications that raise your pay, and your earnings climb with your skill. Demand is steady and the openings are plentiful, and there is a clear path from crew member to crew lead to running your own business with recurring income.
When you are ready to work, Qiggz helps landscapers find local jobs and gigs for free, with no fees to apply. Find landscaping work near you or create your free profile.
Frequently asked questions
How long does it take to become a landscaper?
You can start working on a crew within days to weeks of being hired, with no formal schooling required. Becoming a skilled landscaper is typically built over months on the job, and moving up to crew lead, design, or a specialty usually takes a few years. You earn the whole time you are learning.
Do you need a license to be a landscaper?
There is no single national landscaping license to work on a crew. However, many states require a separate license to apply pesticides or fertilizers commercially, and some require a contractor license to run a landscaping business. Requirements are set at the state level and change, so check your state's agriculture department and contractor board.
Do you need experience to start landscaping?
No. Many landscapers start with no experience on maintenance crews and learn the trade on the job. Employers look most for reliability, willingness to work outdoors in all weather, and care with equipment and property. Certifications such as a pesticide applicator license can raise your pay later.
Is landscaping a good career?
It can be. Landscaping offers fast entry, steady demand with a high number of annual openings, and a clear path to running your own business with recurring maintenance income. The work is physical and seasonal in many regions, but the skill is durable and builds toward ownership.
How do landscapers find work?
By applying directly to local companies, especially in spring and summer, and by listing their skills on free jobs platforms. Qiggz helps landscapers find local landscaping and yard-work jobs and gigs free, with no fees to apply, so you can keep a steady pipeline of work. Browse landscaping jobs.
Sources
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Grounds Maintenance Workers, Occupational Outlook Handbook (median hourly wage $18.82, lowest 10% under $14.98, top 10% over $27.28, May 2025; projected 4% growth 2024 to 2034; about 171,600 annual openings; most workers learn on the job).
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Overview of May 2025 occupational employment and wages (all-occupations median wage context, May 2025).
- U.S. Department of Labor, Apprenticeship.gov (registered apprenticeship structure: paid on-the-job training plus related classroom instruction, where programs exist).
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Certification Standards for Pesticide Applicators and How to Get Certified as a Pesticide Applicator (applicators are certified by their state, territory, or tribe under an EPA-approved program, generally by written and performance-based exam; federal law requires certification for restricted-use pesticides, and many states require it for all commercial pesticide use).
- U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration, Outreach Training Program and The Facts About Obtaining an OSHA Card (10-hour course for entry-level workers; voluntary program that does not by itself meet OSHA standards; completion card issued by an OSHA-authorized trainer).
