Median pay · California
$58,240A year, or $28 an hour.| Percentile | Annual | Hourly |
|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile1 in 10 earn less | $35,950 | $17 |
| 25th percentile | $41,600 | $20 |
| MedianHalf earn more, half less | $58,240 | $28 |
| 75th percentile | $97,880 | $47 |
| 90th percentile1 in 10 earn more | $159,080 | $76 |
| MeanAll pay divided by all jobs | $80,690 | $39 |
All occupations combined. Individual occupations vary far more than this figure suggests. The tables below show the spread.
How we got this
- Median wage in CaliforniaBLS OEWS May 2025. Half of all wage earners here were paid more than this, half less.$58,240
- Median hourly wagePublished separately by BLS, not divided out of the annual figure.$28.00
- Take-home after federal, state and FICA tax$3,953 a month at an effective rate of 18.5%.$47,442 a year
- Worth at national average pricesPrices in California sit at 110.7 against a national 100 (BEA, 2024).$52,601
- Against the national medianThe national median is $50,980.14.2% above
- Jobs countedWage and salary jobs; the self-employed are not surveyed.18,213,700
What we assumed
- Wages are BLS OEWS survey estimates for May 2025, not job postings or offers.
- OEWS surveys wage and salary workers. The self-employed and business owners are outside it.
- Take-home assumes one 2026 filer, filing single, taking the standard deduction, with no dependents, pre-tax retirement contributions or local income tax.
- Regional price parities compare price levels between places in one year. They are not inflation, and they do not adjust for what a household actually buys.
Technical details
Method occupation-wage-v1Data bls-oews-2025-05-v1, us-tax-2026-v1, bea-rpp-2024-v1, census-acs5-2024-v1
Questions
Pay in California: common questions
What is the average salary in California?
$80,690 a year, or $38.79 an hour, across every job the Bureau of Labor Statistics surveyed in California for May 2025.
The median is lower, $58,240: half of workers earn more and half earn less. The average sits above it because a smaller number of very high salaries pull it up, so the median is closer to what a typical worker makes.
What is a good salary in California?
Anything over $58,240 pays more than half the jobs in California. $97,880 puts you in the top quarter and $159,080 in the top 10%.
A single person on the median keeps about $3,953 a month after federal, state and FICA tax.
What are the highest-paying jobs in California?
By median pay: ophthalmologists ($400,150), neurologists ($357,080), airline pilots, copilots, and flight engineers ($353,900), psychiatrists ($353,500) and internal medicine physicians ($313,890). The table on this page lists the top 25.
What are the most common jobs in California?
By number of jobs: home health or personal care aides ($34,320), fast food or counter workers ($42,280), retail salespersons ($38,440), laborers or material movers ($44,710) and registered nurses ($140,270), with the median pay for each.