The average labor rate for automotive repair shops was the highest in Mississippi and the lowest in Vermont in 2020, according to data from CarMD.
The diagnostic solutions and services company analyzed data from more than 13.9 million cars, trucks, vans and SUVs whose drivers sought guidance for a check engine light problem in 2020. This is the fifth consecutive year that Vermont had the lowest average labor cost. This is not surprising, CarMD said, since the most common cause of a check engine light on Vermont cars and trucks remains a loose or missing gas cap, accounting for 7.5 percent of repairs in Vermont.
For the third year in a row, drivers in Mississippi paid the most on average for labor ($152.63), where the most common repair was to replace ignition coils and spark plugs.
RELATED:
Top 5 states with the highest car repair costs
8 ways automotive shops can succeed in 2022
Inflation putting pressure on shops to either raise parts prices or labor rates
"The type of repair, how long the repair will take, and whether you opt to do it yourself or have it repaired by a professional automotive technician, all factor into average labor costs for a car repair," CarMD said.
State average labor cost for check engine light-related car repairs in 2020
1. Mississippi $152.63
2. Montana $150.48
3. Louisiana $149.87
4. Nevada $149.69
5. Arkansas $149.57
6. Colorado $149.43
7. Oklahoma $149.38
8. Alabama $149.25
9. North Dakota $149.23
10. Wyoming $149.03
11. South Dakota $148.61
12. Kansas $148.35
13. Kentucky $148.15
14. Tennessee $147.43
15. Missouri $147.11
16. Nebraska $147.11
17. Iowa $146.73
18. Texas $146.64
19. South Carolina $146.37
20. New Mexico $146.36
21. Georgia $145.72
22. Michigan $145.66
23. California $145.16
24. Minnesota $144.87
25. West Virginia $144.54
26. North Carolina $144.53
27. Alaska $144.30
28. Idaho $144.08
29. Indiana $143.21
30. Washington $143.00
31. Virginia $142.23
32. Delaware $141.71
33. Utah $141.28
34. Illinois $141.26
35. District of Columbia $140.71
36. Oregon $140.07
37. Pennsylvania $139.77
38. Maryland $139.75
39. Arizona $138.74
40. Florida $138.70
41. Wisconsin $138.12
42. New Jersey $138.09
43. Connecticut $137.79
44. Maine $136.30
45. Ohio $136.00
46. New York $134.42
47. Massachusetts $132.85
48. Rhode Island $131.36
49. New Hampshire $130.43
50. Hawaii $127.59
51. Vermont $125.95
To see more of CarMD's data, including the total average repair costs with both parts and labor factored in, click here.
