Texas Landscaping Workers Comp Rates (2026)
The published Texas loss cost for landscaping workers comp, class 0042 (Landscape Gardening & Drivers), is $0.916 per $100 of payroll (effective July 1, 2026). Carriers multiply it by their own filed multiplier, so a typical premium is about $1.37.
A loss cost covers expected claims only. Each carrier files its own multiplier for expenses; in the states that publish the full list, the median is about 1.5, which is what the typical premium here uses. Your quote can be lower or higher. Source.
Texas class code for landscaping
- 0042: Landscape Gardening & Drivers
Texas uses NCCI's separate Basic Manual for Texas, which still has Texas-specific codes (for example 5536 HVAC, 5200 concrete flatwork, 5102 carpet and resilient floor covering) that NCCI is gradually replacing with multistate codes, and workers' comp is optional for most private employers (nonsubscribers must report to DWC that they have no coverage).
Landscaping carries equipment, lifting, heat and pesticide exposure risks. Tree pruning and trimming is a separate class (0106).
What comp costs per landscaper in Texas
The Bureau of Labor Statistics counts 63,430 landscaping and groundskeeping workers on payrolls in Texas (May 2025), the 3rd largest workforce among the 50 states and DC. The median wage is $17.66 an hour, 6% below the US median of $18.82.
This trade is a smaller part of the Texas job market than it is nationally: landscaping and groundskeeping workers hold 0.74 times their national share of jobs there.
At a typical Texas premium of about $1.37 per $100 of payroll (the published loss cost of $0.92 for class 0042 times a 1.5 carrier multiplier), comp on one worker at that wage costs about $0.24 for every hour worked, or $503 a year full time. A 3-person crew comes to roughly $1,510 a year in premium before any experience mod.
Because premium is charged on payroll, who you hire moves the bill. Texas pay runs from $13.85 an hour at the 10th percentile to $23.03 at the 90th, so the same rate costs $0.19 an hour on a new hire and $0.32 on a senior hand.
Workers comp requirements in Texas
- Coverage required: Elective for most private employers (South Dakota is also elective)
- Owners and sole proprietors: Included by default but may elect out
- State fund: Private market (Texas Mutual is the largest writer and insurer of last resort)
- Waiting period: 7 days; the waiting week is paid retroactively if off work more than 14 days
- Penalty for going without: Non-subscribers must file a notice; failure to file draws administrative penalties up to $25,000 per day
Texas is the only state where private employers can opt out entirely, trading coverage for the loss of common-law negligence defenses as a non-subscriber.
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.