Veterinary Technician Salary in Washington
Veterinary technologists and technicians in Washington earned a median annual wage of $59,740 in the Bureau of Labor Statistics' May 2025 estimates — $12,360, or 26%, above the national median of $47,380, the 3rd-highest median among the 51 jurisdictions that publish one.
The distinctive shape is at the floor: Washington's 10th and 25th percentiles both sit 30% above their national counterparts, the widest gaps in the distribution.
Washington employed an estimated 2,290 technicians, 20th among the 51 jurisdictions.
10th percentile
$46,390
25th percentile
$50,700
75th percentile
$64,480
90th percentile
$77,300
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 state estimates — Washington, SOC 29-2056 (Veterinary Technologists and Technicians). Retrieved 2026-09-16 from the BLS Public Data API.
How to read these figures
Washington vs. the national figures
The Washington median is above the national median by 26%. Among the 51 jurisdictions (states plus DC) where BLS publishes a veterinary technician median for May 2025, it ranks 3rd, and 20th by estimated employment.
Differences are whole percentages, rounded half away from zero, computed from the figures shown.
A high floor and a squeezed middle, not a flat premium
At the median, Washington technicians earned $59,740 against the national $47,380 — $12,360 more, a 26% premium, and the hourly figures show the same gap: $28.72 against $22.78, also 26% higher.
The premium is not flat across the range.
The 10th percentile is $46,390, 30% above the national $35,710, and the 25th percentile is $50,700, also 30% above the national $38,910 — the widest gaps in the distribution.
The premium narrows sharply at the 75th percentile, $64,480 against $57,650, just 12% higher, before widening again at the 90th percentile, $77,300 against $63,180, a 22% gap.
National figures understate Washington pay least at the 75th percentile — a mid-to-upper offer held against the national numbers there looks more competitive than it actually is against the Washington distribution.
A narrower middle band inside a wider overall span
The 25th-to-75th percentile band in Washington runs from $50,700 to $64,480, a $13,780 span.
Nationally the same band runs from $38,910 to $57,650, $18,740 wide — Washington's middle half is more tightly clustered even though every figure in it sits above the national one.
The full 10th-to-90th span tells a different story: Washington runs $46,390 to $77,300, a $30,910 span, wider than the national $27,470.
The median also sits closer to the 75th percentile ($4,740 away) than to the 25th ($9,040 away), the opposite of the national distribution, where the median sits closer to the 25th ($8,470 away) than the 75th ($10,270 away).
OEWS does not explain why a distribution takes this shape, so this page does not assign it a cause.
Reading an hourly rate against a $28.72 median
The data set behind this page carries Washington's hourly wage only at the median: $28.72, against $22.78 nationally, a 26% gap that matches the gap in the annual median almost exactly.
That consistency makes the hourly median a reliable figure to hold a posted hourly rate against.
For the rest of the range the annual percentiles are the only guide here, so before comparing a posted rate with them, ask the employer to confirm the hours a week the role is scheduled for.
A real license, with an open question about who must hold it
Washington licenses veterinary technicians through the Veterinary Board of Governors within the Department of Health, and the credential is a real license rather than a voluntary title.
Applicants qualify through one of five education routes — including graduation from an AVMA- or CVMA-accredited program — and pass the VTNE; the state's jurisprudence exam was removed from initial licensing requirements effective July 28, 2025 and folded into first-year continuing education instead.
Continuing education runs 20 hours every two years, and the license itself renews annually.
What Washington's own statute does not settle is whether working at technician level without the license is independently sanctionable — the chapter's penalty sections are written around unlicensed practice of veterinary medicine, surgery, or dentistry, not the technician title specifically.
The full Washington requirements page on this site covers that open question and every fee.
Washington Veterinary Board of Governors (Department of Health)
The statute calls the credential a veterinary technician license
The VTNE. The Washington State Jurisprudence Examination was removed from initial licensing requirements effective July 28, 2025 and is now a continuing-education requirement during the first year of licensure.
Twenty hours of continuing education every two years plus a one-time three-hour board-approved suicide-prevention training; the license itself renews annually, expiring on the holder's birthday and renewable within 90 days of that date.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the median vet tech salary in Washington?
The Bureau of Labor Statistics' May 2025 estimate puts the Washington median annual wage for veterinary technologists and technicians at $59,740, or $28.72 an hour.
Half of those counted earned more and half earned less.
The national median in the same release is $47,380, so Washington sits 26% above it — the 3rd-highest median among the 51 jurisdictions that publish one.
How much do the top-paid vet techs in Washington earn?
The Washington 90th percentile is $77,300, meaning one in ten technicians counted earned more than that — 22% above the national 90th percentile of $63,180.
The gap is smaller just below it: the 75th percentile is $64,480 against a national $57,650, only 12% higher, the narrowest premium anywhere in the Washington distribution.
Do you need a license to work as a vet tech in Washington?
Washington licenses veterinary technicians through its Veterinary Board of Governors, and the credential is a real license, not a voluntary title.
Applicants complete one of five education routes and pass the VTNE.
What Washington's own materials leave open is whether working at technician level without the license is independently punishable — the chapter's penalty language targets unlicensed veterinary medicine, surgery, and dentistry, not the technician title by name.
The Washington requirements page on this site covers the open question in full.
How many vet techs work in Washington?
BLS estimates that 2,290 veterinary technologists and technicians were employed in Washington, 20th 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.
How does the low end of the Washington range compare nationally?
The Washington 10th percentile is $46,390, meaning nine in ten technicians counted earned more than that — 30% above the national 10th percentile of $35,710.
The 25th percentile shows the same 30% premium, $50,700 against a national $38,910.
Those two percentiles share the widest gap in the distribution, so the floor of the Washington range sits well above the national one.
More Washington Veterinary Technician Resources
Sources
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 state estimates — Washington, 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)
- Washington State Department of Health, Veterinary Technician — Licensing Information, as summarised on the Washington requirements page (retrieved 2026-09-16)
- Revised Code of Washington, Chapter 18.92 — Veterinary societies and licensees (§§ 18.92.015, .051, .128, .240), as summarised on the Washington 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.