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California Salary Calculator 2026

Convert hourly ↔ annual salary and benchmark your pay against California-adjusted BLS medians for 20+ trade roles. California is pre-selected; includes overtime.

🧾 California paycheck calculator, see take-home after tax →

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40 hrs
40 hrs × 52 wks = 2,080 base hrs/yr
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We'll break it down by hour, week, month and year, then benchmark it against BLS medians once you pick a role.
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Choose a role under Compare to a role above to see how your pay stacks up against BLS medians and percentiles.

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Hourly ↔ Annual Reference Table

Hourly RateAnnual (2,080 hrs)MonthlyWeekly
$15.00/hr$31,200$2,600$600
$20.00/hr$41,600$3,467$800
$25.00/hr$52,000$4,333$1,000
$30.00/hr$62,400$5,200$1,200
$35.00/hr$72,800$6,067$1,400
$40.00/hr$83,200$6,933$1,600
$45.00/hr$93,600$7,800$1,800
$50.00/hr$104,000$8,667$2,000
$60.00/hr$124,800$10,400$2,400
$75.00/hr$156,000$13,000$3,000
$100.00/hr$208,000$17,333$4,000
$125.00/hr$260,000$21,667$5,000

Salary Calculator FAQ

How do you convert hourly rate to annual salary?

Multiply your hourly rate by 2,080 (40 hours × 52 weeks) for a standard full-time annual salary. Example: $30/hr × 2,080 = $62,400/yr. For overtime weeks, use: (40 hrs × rate) + (OT hrs × rate × 1.5) × number of weeks.

How many working hours are in a year?

Standard full-time: 2,080 hours (40 × 52). Minus 10 federal holidays (80 hrs): 2,000 paid hours. Minus 2 weeks vacation (80 hrs): 1,920 hours actually worked. BLS uses 2,080 for hourly-to-annual conversions. Turnaround and shutdown workers can exceed 3,000 hours/yr with heavy overtime.

What is time-and-a-half overtime?

Under the FLSA, non-exempt employees must receive 1.5× their regular rate for all hours worked beyond 40 in a workweek. Example: $30/hr base · regular week = $1,200 (40 hrs) · one 10-hr OT week = $1,200 + ($30 × 1.5 × 10) = $1,200 + $450 = $1,650. Double time (2×) is not federally required but common in petrochemical and union contracts.

California Salaries

How California salaries compare to the national market

California trade wages run roughly 15% above the national median (BLS OEWS May 2025), and this calculator applies a 1.15 California wage index to national medians. The premium is real, but so are the offsets: state income tax reaches 13.3% at the top and housing costs in coastal metros are among the highest in the country. The Bay Area pays well above the state average, while inland markets like Fresno and Bakersfield sit below it.

California: california salary calculator — California wage index 1.15× national BLS median, Gross vs national ~15% above, State income tax Progressive 1%–13.3% (highest in U.S.). Simplified outline of California, stylised and not to scale.
Simplified outline of California — a stylised shape, not to scale.
1.15× national BLS median
California wage index
~15% above
Gross vs national
Progressive 1%–13.3% (highest in U.S.)
State income tax

California trade salaries at a glance (2026 BLS)

California-adjusted BLS OEWS medians for common skilled trades (national median localised with the 1.15 California wage index). Enter your own pay in the calculator above to benchmark against any role.

TradeCalifornia median / yrNational medianCalifornia / hr
Electrician$78,210$63,190$37.60
Plumber$73,370$63,800$35.27
HVAC Technician$70,160$61,010$33.73
Pipefitter$73,370$63,800$35.27
Ironworker$72,200$62,780$34.71
Carpenter$69,670$60,580$33.50

Trade pay by California metro

Local BLS medians vs the California state average.

MetroMedianvs state
San Francisco Bay Area$87,2001.20× state
Los Angeles$74,1201.02× state
San Diego$71,2200.98× state
Sacramento$69,7600.96× state
Is a higher California salary actually worth more?

It depends where you live and what you earn. The ~15% wage premium is real, but California's progressive income tax (1%–13.3%) and coastal housing costs claw much of it back. A trades salary in Sacramento or the Inland Empire often stretches further than the same nominal pay in San Francisco. Run your offer through the California paycheck calculator to see the net effect.

Why do Bay Area trades pay so much more?

Union density, prevailing-wage public work, and extreme living costs push San Francisco–Oakland–San Jose trade wages roughly 20% above the California state median. Large commercial, data-center and infrastructure projects keep demand high. Journeyman electricians on Bay Area union scale can clear six figures with overtime.

How accurate is the California benchmark in this calculator?

The calculator applies a California wage index (1.15×) to national BLS OEWS medians, a reference estimate, not a quote. Published state figures differ by role and metro, and California's union/non-union split widens the spread; for exact BLS state and city medians with percentiles, use the California salary guide.

What is the median trade salary in California?

It varies by role: the California electrician median is about $72,670, plumbers $73,370, HVAC technicians $70,160, and pipefitters $73,370 (BLS OEWS May 2025, California-adjusted). Enter your own pay in the calculator to see your percentile against any role.

How is the California wage index applied?

National BLS OEWS medians are multiplied by a 1.15 California factor to localise them, reflecting that California gross pay runs about 15% above the national average. Hourly figures assume 2,080 paid hours a year. It is a reference estimate, not an employer offer, union scale in major metros can run well above it.

Which California metros pay trades the most?

The San Francisco Bay Area leads by a wide margin, followed by Los Angeles and San Diego; Sacramento tracks close to the state median while Central Valley markets like Fresno and Bakersfield run below it. Prevailing-wage public projects and union agreements drive most of the metro spread.

Do California trade wages include overtime?

The benchmark medians are base pay. California is stricter than federal law: non-exempt workers earn 1.5× after 8 hours in a day (not just 40 in a week) and 2× after 12 hours. This calculator lets you add overtime hours at 1.5× or 2× to model total annual pay.

Calculate your California take-home payCalifornia trade salary guidesSalary calculator, all states
Sources & methodology

Salary figures are U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS (May 2025) national medians localised with a 1.15 California wage index; hourly rates assume 2,080 paid hours a year. Primary sources: BLS OEWS · California EDD Labor Market Info. Reviewed 2026-07-01 by the GlobalCybers Data Desk · reference estimates, not an offer of pay. Full methodology →

All 50 states + D.C.

Salary calculator by state

Pay for the same role can swing 30% or more between states. Pick a state to convert hourly ↔ annual and benchmark your pay against that state's BLS-adjusted medians.

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