Landscaper in New York: licence, certification and what employers require (2026)

New York does not license landscapers: no licence for landscapers; a pesticide applicator licence applies if you spray. This page says what a landscaper licensed or working in another state has to do to work in New York, in the order to do it, and what goes wrong when the order is reversed.

How the transfer works

Landscaping itself is not licensed. Applying pesticides or herbicides commercially requires a state pesticide applicator licence, which transfers by reciprocity between many states through the state department of agriculture; irrigation work is licensed in a few states (Texas, for one). Check New York's rule for the work you actually do.

What to have ready before you move

• Pesticide applicator licence and categories
• Irrigation licence if you hold one
• CDL if you drive the trucks

Start the paperwork before you give notice. There is no New York licence to wait for, so the only clock is the employer's.

What people get wrong

• Spraying without the state licence; fines are per application

Who hires landscapers in New York

Landscapers in New York are hired by landscape contractors, golf courses, municipalities, property managers and tree services. The metros with the most of that work are New York City, Buffalo, Rochester, Yonkers, Syracuse and Albany. Employers who could not hire locally and have filed with the Department of Labor are on the New York openings page.

For the money side: the median landscaper in New York earned $44,690 a year ($21 an hour) in May 2024 across 49,430 jobs, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and New York has a progressive state income tax with a top rate of 10.9%. What that leaves you after tax is its own page.

Everything about New York, on one page

The New York page has the registries and boards, the income tax table, the programs that pay you to come and the openings filed this month. If you know which state you are leaving, the move pages compare the two directly. Creating a free Workmerica profile with your trade and your destination puts you in front of New York employers hiring from out of state.