How Much do Beekeepers Make?
How much of a salary can you expect as a beekeeper? Hmm, that’s a great question. Some beekeepers earn a full-time living managing honey bees, while others make a little extra money selling honey and other hive products. How much you earn depends on the number of hives you manage, your expenses, and how you choose to make money with bees.
While most people who keep bees do not start with the intention of having a true bee farm business, many do hope to make some profit.
How Much Does a Beekeeper Earn Per Year?
How much does a beekeeper earn in a year? There is no single answer. Some beekeepers work for commercial operations and earn an hourly wage or salary.
Others own their hives and earn income from honey, pollination services, or selling bees.
There are many variables in determining income in the beekeeping industry. The area of the country where the hives are located, market conditions, beekeeper experience, and more are all factors.
A beekeeper working in California may have different income opportunities than one working in Alabama. The type of beekeeping operation and local demand for products and services can make a big difference.
If you are interested in working as a beekeeper, check with your state’s Department of Agriculture or local commercial beekeeping operations to learn more about opportunities in your area.
How Many Hives Do You Need to Make a Living?
Most of the beekeepers I know that make a living with bees have over 200 hives. However, the number of hives alone does not guarantee a profit.
A beekeeper with fewer productive colonies and a strong local market may earn more than someone managing a much larger operation with high expenses.
It all depends on how the business is managed and what products or services are offered.
If you hope to make a $50K a year salary, the effort and hive numbers are different than the backyard apiarist hoping to clean an extra $5K for the season.
What are the living expenses in your region? Will you work alone or hope to hire laborers? All of these factor into the total income needed for a year.
You can make a lot of money with bees but you also must be prepared to spend a lot of money. Startup costs of beekeeping are heaviest in the first years.
However, even as time goes on – equipment wears out and must be replaced. The corners of boxes begin to break down, wax foundation needs replaced -all exposed parts of the hive wear over time.
Also, beekeeping is an agriculture adventure and subject to being affected positively and negatively by weather conditions.
You will have good years with nice profits and bad years with little to no extra money. It is wise to have money set aside to see you through those years when profits are low.
Beekeeping Profit Per Hive
Healthy bees in a region with ample nectar sources can bring in several hundred dollars per hive during a good season. But, how much of that money is actual profit?
Honey sales are only part of the equation (will you be good at selling honey from your hive?). You also have to consider feeding costs, mite treatments, equipment, replacement bees, and other expenses.
Some years, a hive may produce very little surplus honey at all. You can not rely on a certain amount of honey per hive for the season. An estimate of expectations is good but not a guarantee.
The amount of money you make per hive depends on colony health, honey production, local market prices, and how well you manage expenses. It is important to know the honey prices in your area.
Working as a Professional Beekeeper
Working as a professional beekeeper involves much more than collecting honey.
Depending on the size and type of operation, the job may include inspecting colonies, managing pests and diseases, feeding bees, moving hives, and preparing colonies for seasonal changes.
There is always something that needs doing. Your salary is determined by the area in which you live, your skill level and the business model of the owner. Some resources quote a beekeeper salary of $12 – $25 per hour.
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If you operate your own business, in addition to maintaining your hives, you have to make business decisions. Should you expand the apiary by getting more beehives?
How many hives are too many in one location? It can be difficult to determine how many hives you can manage on your own.
Do not keep more hives than you can manage. This only leads to unhealthy hives that are poor producers.
Working Conditions in the Apiary
Honey bees are insects that are active during the warm months. In fact, beekeeping can be hot, sticky work-as many of the jobs must be performed during the hottest months of the year.
Here in the South we often say “It’s easy to be a good beekeeper in April, it’s what happens in July and August that separates the beekeepers from the bee-havers”.
Beekeeping in hot weather is not my favorite activity.
What about stings? Honey bees sting for defense? Beekeepers do get stung in spite of protective gear.
The more colonies you have the more likely you are to encounter stinging situations.
However, with experience and proper protective bee clothing, beekeepers learn how to minimize stings.
Beekeeping is not a typical nine-to-five job. During the busy season, there may be long days of working in the heat, lifting heavy boxes, and trying to stay ahead of the bees.
Of course, the bees don’t care much about your schedule!
Ways to Increase Your Beekeeping Income
Can beekeeping be a profitable business? Yes, but making money and making a profit are two different things.
Selling $2,000 worth of honey sounds pretty good until you subtract the expenses of producing, harvesting, bottling, and selling it.
The goal is not just to bring in money but to have something left over at the end of the season.
Maintain healthy colonies to take advantage of peak productivity. Control parasites by using varroa mite treatments (if needed) all through the season to avoid colony loss.
Plan ahead and buy supplies in bulk to reduce costs. Often the mid-level apiarist (beekeeper) can save some money by buying larger quantities of beekeeping equipment such as frames, foundation or even boxes.
Sharing big ticket items such as honey extractors is a good way to reduce costs.
The easiest way to increase profits is to expand your product line. Think beyond honey – this can be done even at the hobby level.
Think Beyond Honey
Selling products like beeswax, making beeswax candles, or harvesting raw bee propolis are great ways to bring in extra income.
Some beekeepers learn how to collect bee pollen to sell.
If you have a larger apiary, you might produce income by catering to local beekeepers who want to buy nuc colonies in the Spring.
Some hobbyist enjoy rearing local queens. Queen rearing is a lot of work but it is a lot of fun and there are always beekeepers nearby who want them.
Also, if you have some carpentry skills – beekeepers often offer the service of removing honey bees from a house or other structures.
Commercial beekeepers may make money by renting bees for pollination (migratory beekeeping).
Bee pollination is very important to modern agriculture. However, pollination beekeeping has expenses of its own to consider. Moving bees from one location to another involves special equipment, time and money.
FAQs
Some beekeepers earn a good income, especially those managing successful commercial operations. However, as with any type of farming, there are financial risks. Weather, colony losses, and market conditions can all affect how much money a beekeeper makes.
If you want to make a living income as a beekeeper, it is possible. However, it is not a get-rich quick scheme but involves a lot of hard work and the effort to learn how to manage your apiary effectively.
Yes, beekeeping can be a great career choice for the individual who is enthralled by the insect world and is willing to put in the time and effort to advance. My apiarist start as a laborer and work their way up to being an apiary manager and enjoying the benefits of the higher position in a large beekeeping operation.
Most beginning beekeepers should not expect to make a profit during their first year. The initial cost of bees, hives, protective clothing, and other equipment can be substantial. It may take several seasons to recover those expenses, especially if your colonies produce little surplus honey.
Final Thoughts
If you desire to try beekeeping as a way to make a living, I do not want to dissuade you. However, I will caution that it might be good to work for a larger beekeeper first. Beekeeping ain’t easy and even the best apiaries lose colonies each year.
Not every hive will be profitable – some will die and some will drag along never reaching their potential. As with any agriculture adventure you will have all the the joys and heartaches that go along with this way of life.
There are much easier ways to make money than keeping bees. To be happy with full-time beekeeper income, you must have a passion for it. For those that do, it is an invigorating way of life with constant new horizons and curves in the road.