District of Columbia Landscaping Workers Comp Rates (2026)
District of Columbia does not publish its landscaping class figures online. Across the 25 states that do, the median typical premium is about $3.30 per $100 of payroll. Ask a carrier or the state's rating bureau for the current District of Columbia figure.
No official District of Columbia figure is available online, so the numbers below use the US median of the states that publish one.
District of Columbia class code for landscaping
- 0042: Landscape Gardening & Drivers
- 0106 (Tree Pruning, Spraying & Repairing)
- 6217 (Excavation NOC)
Landscaping carries equipment, lifting, heat and pesticide exposure risks. Tree pruning and trimming is a separate class (0106).
What comp costs per landscaper in District of Columbia
The Bureau of Labor Statistics counts 800 landscaping and groundskeeping workers on payrolls in District of Columbia (May 2025), the 51st largest workforce among the 50 states and DC. The median wage is $23.46 an hour, 25% above the US median of $18.82.
This trade is a smaller part of the District of Columbia job market than it is nationally: landscaping and groundskeeping workers hold 0.19 times their national share of jobs there.
At the US median of $3.30 per $100 of payroll (District of Columbia does not publish its figure online), comp on one worker at that wage costs about $0.77 for every hour worked, or $1,610 a year full time. A 3-person crew comes to roughly $4,831 a year in premium before any experience mod.
Because premium is charged on payroll, who you hire moves the bill. District of Columbia pay runs from $18.74 an hour at the 10th percentile to $31.97 at the 90th, so the same rate costs $0.62 an hour on a new hire and $1.06 on a senior hand.
Workers comp requirements in District of Columbia
- Coverage required: 1 employee
- Owners and sole proprietors: Excluded by default; may elect in
- State fund: Private market (no state fund)
- Waiting period: 3 days; retroactive only if disability continues more than 14 days
The District has an unusually long 14-day threshold before the waiting period becomes retroactively payable.
What moves a landscaping comp bill
- Landscape gardening is a high-claim class because of mowers, trimmers, chainsaws, and lifting. Equipment training and guards that stay on the machines lower claims.
- Tree trimming above the ground is usually a separate class with a much higher rate. Keep that payroll apart, or the auditor may rate a whole crew at the tree rate.
- Snow plowing, hardscaping, and irrigation installs can each be classed differently. Tell your carrier what share of payroll goes to each.
- Landscaping payroll swings by season. Report the full-year figure at renewal so the audit does not bring a large bill in the off season.