Veterinary Technician Salary in Missouri
Veterinary technologists and technicians in Missouri earned a median annual wage of $43,520 in the Bureau of Labor Statistics' May 2025 estimates — $3,860, or 8%, below the national median of $47,380.
The gap widens higher in the range: the Missouri 75th percentile is 19% below the national one and the 90th percentile is 22% below.
Missouri's workforce is mid-sized, at 2,040 employed, 22nd among 51 jurisdictions, and the state credentials technicians through registration rather than licensure.
10th percentile
$31,940
25th percentile
$37,670
75th percentile
$46,490
90th percentile
$49,260
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 state estimates — Missouri, SOC 29-2056 (Veterinary Technologists and Technicians). Retrieved 2026-09-16 from the BLS Public Data API.
How to read these figures
Missouri vs. the national figures
The Missouri median is below the national median by 8%. Among the 51 jurisdictions (states plus DC) where BLS publishes a veterinary technician median for May 2025, it ranks 36th, and 22nd by estimated employment.
Differences are whole percentages, rounded half away from zero, computed from the figures shown.
Below the matching national percentile across the board, and the gap widens at the top
Missouri's median annual wage of $43,520 sits $3,860 below the national median of $47,380, an 8% gap.
That gap is not steady across the range.
At the 10th percentile Missouri is $3,770, or 11%, below the national floor, but by the 25th percentile the gap narrows to just $1,240, or 3% — the closest Missouri comes to the national figures anywhere in the distribution.
Above the median the gap widens again: the 75th percentile, $46,490, is 19% below the national $57,650, and the 90th percentile, $49,260, is 22% below the national $63,180.
A technician benchmarking an offer against national upper-percentile figures in Missouri would be comparing against numbers the state distribution does not reach.
A narrower band than the national one, and compressed toward the top
Half of Missouri's technicians counted earned between $37,670 and $46,490 — a band $8,820 wide.
Nationally the same middle band runs from $38,910 to $57,650, a span of $18,740.
The full spread from the 10th percentile ($31,940) to the 90th ($49,260) is $17,320 in Missouri, against $27,470 nationally — both Missouri spreads run narrower than the national ones.
Within its own band, Missouri's median sits closer to the 75th percentile than to the 25th — $2,970 below the one and $5,850 above the other — so the upper half of that middle band is compressed relative to the lower half.
OEWS does not explain why a distribution takes this shape, so this page does not assign it a cause.
Holding an hourly posting against these figures
The data set behind this page carries Missouri's hourly wage only at the median: $20.92, against $22.78 nationally, a $1.86 gap, or 8% — matching the gap in the annual median.
That makes it the figure to hold an hourly posting against.
For the rest of the range the annual percentiles are the only guide here, so before comparing a posted hourly rate with them, ask the employer how many hours a week the role is scheduled for.
A registration, not a license — and both exams are required
Missouri credentials technicians through registration rather than licensure: the Missouri Veterinary Medical Board issues the registered veterinary technician (RVT) registration defined in RSMo §340.200(21).
Getting there takes a board-approved or AVMA-accredited college-level education route, then passing scores on both the VTNE (a scaled 425) and the Missouri State Board Examination (a passing score of 70), each offered at least once a year.
Renewal is annual and requires five continuing-education hours a year, at least three of them scientific, signed off by the technician's supervising veterinarian; the certificate goes inactive if the holder is not employed and supervised at renewal.
The full requirements page on this site sets out the reciprocity, temporary-registration and fee rules in more detail.
Missouri Veterinary Medical Board
Registered veterinary technician (RVT) — a registration issued by the Missouri Veterinary Medical Board, defined in RSMo §340.200(21).
Both the VTNE (scaled 425 to pass) and the Missouri State Board Examination (70 percent to pass), each offered at least once a year; scores are valid up to five years and neither exam may be taken more than four times.
Five continuing-education hours per December 1–November 30 year, at least three of them scientific, with annual renewal signed by the supervising veterinarian; the certificate goes inactive if the holder is not employed and supervised at renewal.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the median vet tech salary in Missouri?
The Bureau of Labor Statistics' May 2025 estimate puts the Missouri median annual wage for veterinary technologists and technicians at $43,520, or $20.92 an hour.
Half of those counted earned more and half earned less.
The national median in the same release is $47,380, so Missouri sits 8% below it, and the gap is even wider at the top of the range than at the median.
How much do the top-paid vet techs in Missouri earn?
The Missouri 90th percentile is $49,260, meaning one in ten technicians counted earned more than that.
Nationally the 90th percentile is $63,180, 22% higher.
The gap is nearly as wide at the 75th percentile: $46,490 in Missouri against $57,650 nationally, a 19% difference, which is why Missouri's pay band narrows sharply above the median.
What does the low end of the pay range look like in Missouri?
The Missouri 10th percentile is $31,940, 11% below the national 10th percentile of $35,710.
By the 25th percentile the gap narrows to just 3% — $37,670 in Missouri against $38,910 nationally — the closest Missouri comes to the national figures anywhere in the range.
The floor of the Missouri distribution trails the nation less than the ceiling does.
How many vet techs work in Missouri?
BLS estimates that 2,040 veterinary technologists and technicians were employed in Missouri, 22nd among the 51 jurisdictions that publish a median.
That is a headcount of people in jobs during the survey period, not a count of vacancies, so it describes the size of the occupation in the state rather than how quickly positions are filled.
Do you need a credential to work as a vet tech in Missouri?
Missouri's Veterinary Medical Board issues a registered veterinary technician (RVT) registration under RSMo §340.200(21), reached through board-approved or AVMA-accredited education and passing scores on both the VTNE and the Missouri State Board Examination.
The statute bars practicing as a technician once a certificate goes noncurrent until reinstatement, though whether a never-certified person may work untitled is not settled in the sections read.
The Missouri requirements page on this site has the full route.
More Missouri Veterinary Technician Resources
Sources
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 state estimates — Missouri, SOC 29-2056 Veterinary Technologists and Technicians (BLS Public Data API) (retrieved 2026-09-16)
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 national estimates — SOC 29-2056 (via O*NET OnLine) (retrieved 2026-08-15)
- Missouri Veterinary Medical Board — compiled RSMo Chapter 340 practice act and 20 CSR 2270 board rules, as summarised on the Missouri requirements page (retrieved 2026-09-16)
Wage figures: BLS OEWS May 2025 state and national estimates, SOC 29-2056, retrieved 2026-09-16. Page last updated 2026-09-23.