Montana Landscaping Workers Comp Rates (2026)
Montana 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 Montana figure.
No official Montana figure is available online, so the numbers below use the US median of the states that publish one.
Montana 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 Montana
The Bureau of Labor Statistics counts 4,270 landscaping and groundskeeping workers on payrolls in Montana (May 2025), the 42nd largest workforce among the 50 states and DC. The median wage is $21.80 an hour, 16% above the US median of $18.82.
This trade is a bigger part of the Montana job market than it is nationally: landscaping and groundskeeping workers hold 1.4 times their national share of jobs there.
At the US median of $3.30 per $100 of payroll (Montana does not publish its figure online), comp on one worker at that wage costs about $0.72 for every hour worked, or $1,496 a year full time. A 3-person crew comes to roughly $4,489 a year in premium before any experience mod.
Because premium is charged on payroll, who you hire moves the bill. Montana pay runs from $15.47 an hour at the 10th percentile to $28.53 at the 90th, so the same rate costs $0.51 an hour on a new hire and $0.94 on a senior hand.
Workers comp requirements in Montana
- Coverage required: 1 employee; out-of-state policies are not accepted for construction work
- Owners and sole proprietors: Excluded by default; construction independent contractors need an Exemption Certificate (ICEC)
- State fund: Competitive state fund (Montana State Fund)
- Waiting period: 4 days (or 32 work hours); retroactive if disability lasts more than 21 days
- Penalty for going without: Double the premium owed (minimum $200), up to $1,000 plus $100 per day, escalating to $50,000
Montana does not accept out-of-state workers comp policies for construction work performed in the state.
Montana vs neighboring states
- Idaho: about $4.21 per $100 of payroll
- North Dakota: about $1.05 per $100 of payroll
Montana does not publish its figure, so the first row is the US median. Among neighbors that publish, North Dakota is the cheapest for landscaping comp at about $1.05 and Idaho the most expensive at about $4.21 per $100 of payroll.
Working across the line into North Dakota needs separate coverage from that state's fund. A private policy's other-states coverage (item 3.C) does not reach monopolistic states.
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.