What auto glass technicians make
Median
$56,000
Lower end
$38,000
Upper end
$83,000
Job Bank's national median is $27 an hour, about $56,000 a year full time.
Auto Glass Technician
Windshields, side glass and the cameras behind them. Trained in months, in demand every winter.
- Typical pay
- $56,000a year
- Time to qualify
- 1 to 2 yearspaid while you train, from day one
- Demand
- Moderate
- Licence needed
- Nono licence to hold
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Pay, the path, pros and cons and the facts on one printable page. Counsellors: send it to a student from your own email in one click.
How to start as an auto glass technician in Ontario
An apprenticeship: you are hired by a sponsor, paid while you learn on the job, and go to class for a few weeks at a time. Every fact here is from Skilled Trades Ontario (STO) and the Ontario government. See every Ontario trade side by side
Automotive Glass Technician (trade 274L)
Licence to work
Not needed, but the certificate helps
Red Seal
No: a Ontario certificate
Training
4,000 hours, about 240 in class
To start
Grade 12, age 16 or older
You are paid from your first day. Over the 3,760 hours on the job, even at the minimum wage you would earn at least $67,492 before tax while you train, and most sponsors pay more as your skills grow.
The trade on Skilled Trades Ontario's site(opens in a new tab)
The steps
- Check you can start: you are at least 16, allowed to work in Canada, and have the school grade the trade asks for.
- Find a sponsor: an employer, or a group of employers such as a union, that will train you. This is the step most people find hardest.
- Apply to Skilled Trades Ontario: online if you are 18 or older, on a paper form a parent signs if you are 16 or 17. Your sponsor signs too.
- Sign your training agreement. You get a wallet card to carry at work, and your skills are signed off in a logbook as you learn them.
- Work and go to class. Most of the time is paid work; every year or so you spend 8 to 12 weeks in class at a college. Where the trade has an exam, you write it at the end.
Where sponsors come from
- Your guidance counsellor, and the youth apprenticeship, Specialist High Skills Major (SHSM) or dual credit programs at your school. Source (opens in a new tab)
- Employment Ontario: over 700 offices with free one-on-one help, and it matches apprentices with sponsors (1-800-387-5656). Source (opens in a new tab)
- Job Bank's apprenticeship job search for Ontario. Source (opens in a new tab)
- Unions and trade associations for the trade, college career centres and local companies. Source (opens in a new tab)
Still in high school? In Grade 11 or 12, with at least 14 credits and age 15 or older, you can start an apprenticeship through co-op placements and earn credits at the same time. Ask your school's OYAP recruiter, guidance counsellor or co-op teacher. Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Program (OYAP)(opens in a new tab)
Not ready to find a sponsor? Free pre-apprenticeship programs (up to a year at a college or community agency, tools and books covered, with a work placement) get you ready and in front of employers. Employment Ontario helps you apply. Pre-apprenticeship training(opens in a new tab)
The money
Ontario sets no percentage of full pay for apprentices. Your sponsor agrees your wage with you, and it can never be below the minimum wage: $17.95 an hour from 1 October 2026. Source (opens in a new tab)
- Employment Insurance (EI) in class (opens in a new tab): You may get EI while you are away from work in class. Your college seat letter gives you the EI reference code to apply. Government of Canada page (opens in a new tab)
- Apprentice Development Benefit (opens in a new tab): Up to $500 a week while in class if you do not get EI or it is below $500, plus travel and childcare help.
- Ontario Tools Grant (opens in a new tab): $400 to $1,000, depending on the trade, after your first level of class and a year registered.
- Ontario Apprenticeship Completion Bonus (opens in a new tab): $2,000 when you finish a trade that is not Red Seal.
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Quick answers
How much does an auto glass technician make in Canada?
The median pay is about $56,000 a year. Across everyone in the job it runs from about $38,000 at the lower end to about $83,000 at the upper end. The source is listed under Sources at the end of this page.
How long does it take to become an auto glass technician in Canada?
1 to 2 years, on the usual route, and you are paid while you train from the first day.
What does it cost to become an auto glass technician?
From nothing up to about $3,000, depending on the route, for tuition, fees, exams and kit. Living costs are not counted.
Do you need a licence to work as an auto glass technician in Canada?
No. There is no licence to hold, though many employers still ask for training or a certificate.
What is the job outlook for an auto glass technician in Canada?
Moderate demand nationally, from government outlook data. Demand varies by region, so check your area.
Or read the whole thing here
Auto Glass Technician salary in Canada
What you earn and what it costs to get there.
Where pay is highest
$36.46 an hour
The median in Yukon, the highest in Canada
Among the provinces, British Columbia is highest at $31.82 and Ontario next at $29.00. Quebec and the Atlantic provinces sit lowest, at $25.00. Job Bank counts this trade with auto body technicians.
Paid per job at some shops
Speed pays
Some shops pay per installation once you work on your own
Most shops hire trainees with no experience and train you in a few months. Calibrating the driver-assistance cameras behind modern windshields is a skill shops look for.
What it costs to get there
- On-the-job training
- No cost, you are paid
- Ontario apprenticeship school blocks (optional)
- $400 to $800 per block. Ontario pays the Level 1 classroom fee for classes from January 2026
- Auto Glass Safety Council certification test
- About $39 per test through a member shop
- Hand tools
- $500 to $1,500; shops supply the big equipment
Roughly, all in
Nothing to $3,000
Tuition, fees, exams and kit. Not rent, food or travel
This is one of the cheapest trades in the country to enter. The low end is zero: you learn in the shop, you are paid from the first day, the shop owns the big equipment and the certification test costs about thirty nine dollars through a member shop. The high end is somebody who also pays for the optional apprenticeship school blocks and buys a good set of their own hand tools. Nothing here needs a student loan.
One of the cheapest trades to enter. Nearly everyone learns in the shop with no tuition.
Benefits
Company van
Mobile technicians get a stocked van.
Health and dental
At national chains and dealerships.
Per-job bonuses
Common at busy shops.
Steady winter work
Cold snaps crack windshields. Business rises when other trades slow.
How to become an auto glass technician in Canada
The exact path from high school to qualified.
The path to becoming an auto glass technician, step by step
Hired and trained on the job. Ontario has a voluntary apprenticeship, most provinces do not.
- 1
High school diploma
Grade 12
Shop and any automotive course. A driver's licence is essential.
- 2
Get hired as a trainee
Weeks
Glass chains, independents, dealerships and body shops hire and train. Show you are careful and quick with your hands.
- 3
Learn to install
3 to 12 months
Windshields, side and back glass, moulding, urethane adhesives and safe drive-away times. Then chip repair and mobile calls.
- 4
Optional Ontario apprenticeship
1 to 2 years
Skilled Trades Ontario lists Automotive Glass Technician (274L). There is no certifying exam; you finish with a Certificate of Apprenticeship.
- 5
Camera calibration
Ongoing
Learn the calibration rigs for driver-assistance cameras. This is where the trade is going.
High school courses that help you become an auto glass technician
Shop or transportation technology
Working around cars without damaging them.
Math
Measurements and cure times.
Computer courses
Calibration tools are software driven.
English
Insurance paperwork on almost every job.
Time and money, at a glance
- Years to fully qualified
- 1 to 2
- Total out of pocket
- $0 to about $3,000
- Paid while training?
- Yes, from your first day
- Exam required
- No. Industry certification is optional
Not regulated
No province requires a licence to replace auto glass. Ontario offers a voluntary apprenticeship (code 274L) that ends in a Certificate of Apprenticeship with no exam, and it is not a Red Seal trade. The industry's own standard is the Auto Glass Safety Council certification, which member shops require of their installers. Insurance companies increasingly want certified technicians on the jobs they pay for.
Quebec route. In Quebec? The route is different. 1 more card.
The path in Quebec
Quebec has no apprenticeship for auto glass, and its one school program is not running, so most people learn the work after being hired.
- 1
Finish Secondary V
Secondary V
Get your high school diploma and a driver's licence. Mechanics or bodywork experience helps, since Quebec's windshield course is open only to people with some.
- 2
Get hired as a trainee
Weeks to months
Glass shops, dealerships and body shops hire trainees and teach installation, adhesives and chip repair on the job.
- 3
Windshield course
1 day
The CPA (comité paritaire, the joint committee for the auto service industry) of the Quebec City region runs a 7 hour course on windshield adhesion and replacement, in French, for $316.18. You need 6 months of mechanics or bodywork experience.
- 4
The school program, if it returns
480 hours
Quebec has an AEP (Attestation of Vocational Studies) in Installation of Add-on Systems and Windshields (4226), 480 hours. No centre is offering it at the moment.
What helps you get ahead as an auto glass technician
Things you don't need, but that help.
Skills that raise your rate
ADAS (advanced driver assistance systems) calibration
Lane cameras and sensors must be recalibrated after a windshield swap. Shops charge hundreds per calibration.
Auto Glass Safety Council certification
The industry standard for safe installation, recognized by insurers.
Heavy truck and bus glass
Fleet work, bigger glass, higher rates.
Glazier (a second trade)
Building and storefront glass. Broader work, Red Seal ticket.
Nice-to-haves
Clean driving record
Mobile work is most of the job.
Attention to detail
A bad seal leaks or, worse, fails in a crash.
Basic auto body skills
Rust around the pinch weld must be handled before glass goes in.
Customer skills
Most customers are dealing with insurance and a bad day.
What being an auto glass technician is really like
Day to day, pros and cons, where you'd work.
What an auto glass technician does day to day
Two windshields in the shop before 10am: cut out the old glass, clean and prime the frame, lay urethane, set the new glass, then run the camera calibration rig. A chip repair walk-in. Then the van: a mobile windshield in a customer's driveway and a side window at a car dealership. Insurance paperwork on every job. Winter mornings are the busiest of the year.
The honest pros and cons of being an auto glass technician
The good
- Hired and productive within months, no tuition
- Steady demand, busiest when other trades slow
- Calibration work is adding real skill and pay
- Cheap to start your own mobile business
The hard parts
- Repetitive, with cuts and sore backs
- Per-job pay can be thin at slow shops
- Not a licensed trade, so pay tops out lower
- Outdoor mobile work in winter
Work life
- Typical hours
- 40 a week, Saturdays common
- Remote work
- None
- Physical demand
- Moderate: lifting glass, bending
- Unionized
- Rarely
Similar paths
- Auto Body RepairerStraighten, weld and rebuild crashed vehicles. Compulsory trade in Ontario, paid by insurance work.
- GlazierInstall the glass on towers, storefronts and homes, from a shower door to a 40-storey curtain wall.
- Automotive Service TechnicianDiagnose and fix cars and light trucks. Paid from day one, but you buy your own tools.
Things nobody tells you about being an auto glass technician
Things people don't tell you.
The windshield holds the roof up
In a rollover, a bonded windshield carries a large part of the roof load, and it is what the passenger airbag pushes against. That is why installers follow strict adhesive cure times before the car can be driven.
There is a camera behind the glass
Most new cars have a forward camera mounted to the windshield for lane keeping and emergency braking. After every windshield replacement it has to be recalibrated, which turned a glass job into a technology job.
How an auto glass technician compares
Every list is built from the same numbers shown above, so you can see where this career sits next to the others.
More skilled trades careers in Canada
Vehicles and equipment first, then the rest of the field. See every career in skilled trades.
- Agricultural Equipment TechnicianFix the combines, tractors and sprayers that feed the country. A Red Seal trade with a Job Bank median of about $77,000 a year.$77kTypical pay3 to 4 yearsTo qualifyModerateDemand
- Aircraft Maintenance EngineerInspect and repair aircraft, then sign them safe to fly. A Transport Canada licence, not a university degree.$81kTypical pay4 to 6 yearsTo qualifyModerateDemand
- Avionics TechnicianThe electronics that fly the plane: radios, navigation, autopilot, wiring. A 2-year diploma and a Job Bank median of about $84,000 a year.$84kTypical pay4 to 5 yearsTo qualifyModerateDemand
- Bicycle MechanicFix, build and tune bikes and e-bikes. No licence, a short course or shop training, and busy summers.$52kTypical payup to 2 yearsTo qualifyModerateDemand
- Heavy-Duty Equipment TechnicianKeep excavators, haul trucks and loaders running at mines and job sites. Job Bank's median is about $77,000 a year.$77kTypical pay4 to 5 yearsTo qualifyModerateDemand
- Marine MechanicOutboards, sterndrives and boat systems. A short apprenticeship and a summer spent at the marina.$62kTypical pay2 to 3 yearsTo qualifyModerateDemand
- Motorcycle MechanicService and repair motorcycles, snowmobiles and all-terrain vehicles. A Red Seal trade with long summers and quiet winters.$62kTypical pay3 to 4 yearsTo qualifyModerateDemand
- Parts TechnicianFind, order, stock and sell the parts that keep vehicles and machines running. A Red Seal trade you can do without getting greasy.$54kTypical pay2 to 3 yearsTo qualifyLimitedDemand
Where these numbers come from
- Job Bank: Automotive glass technician, wages (updated Nov 2025)
- Skilled Trades Ontario: Automotive Glass Technician (274L)
- Auto Glass Safety Council: technician certification
- Inforoute FPT: AEP 4226 Installation of add-on systems and windshields
- CPA Québec: windshield installation course
- Ontario Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development: Level 1 classroom fees covered from January 2026 (memo, PDF)
Last checked October 2026. Pay figures are typical full-time annual amounts in Canadian dollars, based on Government of Canada Job Bank wage data and published salary grids. They vary by province, employer and experience. Tuition is for domestic students. How every figure on this site is sourced and checked.