San Diego, CA Salary Guide (2024)
The median annual wage across all occupations in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA metro area is $56,580, spread over roughly 1,533,290 jobs. This guide breaks that down across 80 detailed occupations with released wage data, from home health and personal care aides down to the smallest job categories BLS can publish.
Salary by occupation in San Diego, CA
Ranked by median annual wage. Every row links to a full page with the local pay distribution, the percentile breakdown, and how the metro compares with the rest of the country.
| Occupation | Hourly | Annual | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home Health and Personal Care Aides | $16.85 | $35,050 | 51,760 |
| Fast Food and Counter Workers | $17.24 | $35,860 | 40,240 |
| Cashiers | $17.36 | $36,110 | 31,630 |
| Retail Salespersons | $17.60 | $36,600 | 31,420 |
| Office Clerks, General | $23.54 | $48,970 | 28,550 |
| Registered Nurses | $63.99 | $133,090 | 27,660 |
| Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand | $18.75 | $39,000 | 24,960 |
| Waiters and Waitresses | $16.86 | $35,060 | 24,800 |
| Janitors and Cleaners, Except Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners | $17.79 | $37,010 | 22,460 |
| Software Developers | $76.56 | $159,240 | 21,080 |
| Stockers and Order Fillers | $18.60 | $38,690 | 21,030 |
| Business Operations Specialists, All Other | $38.96 | $81,030 | 17,790 |
| Customer Service Representatives | $22.57 | $46,940 | 15,680 |
| Cooks, Restaurant | $21.65 | $45,040 | 15,380 |
| Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive | $25.50 | $53,040 | 14,870 |
| Accountants and Auditors | $44.92 | $93,430 | 14,070 |
| First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers | $21.63 | $44,990 | 13,770 |
| First-Line Supervisors of Office and Administrative Support Workers | $34.80 | $72,380 | 13,410 |
| Security Guards | $19.89 | $41,380 | 13,370 |
| Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks | $27.27 | $56,730 | 12,510 |
| Cooks, Fast Food | $17.18 | $35,730 | 12,450 |
| Maintenance and Repair Workers, General | $24.83 | $51,640 | 12,110 |
| Sales Representatives of Services, Except Advertising, Insurance, Financial Services, and Travel | $35.70 | $74,250 | 11,750 |
| Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education | $37.71 | $78,430 | 11,720 |
| Teaching Assistants, Except Postsecondary | $20.68 | $43,010 | 11,530 |
| Project Management Specialists | $51.87 | $107,880 | 11,390 |
| Landscaping and Groundskeeping Workers | $20.81 | $43,290 | 10,580 |
| First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers | $23.81 | $49,520 | 10,560 |
| Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers | $28.60 | $59,480 | 10,490 |
| Medical Secretaries and Administrative Assistants | $24.25 | $50,450 | 10,320 |
| Managers, All Other | $80.29 | $167,000 | 10,130 |
| Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners | $18.71 | $38,920 | 9,940 |
| Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators | $22.05 | $45,870 | 9,920 |
| Nursing Assistants | $22.40 | $46,600 | 9,790 |
| Carpenters | $35.43 | $73,690 | 9,690 |
| Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products | $34.95 | $72,700 | 9,250 |
| Substitute Teachers, Short-Term | $26.80 | $55,740 | 9,240 |
| Management Analysts | $49.20 | $102,340 | 9,040 |
| Lawyers | $79.33 | $165,000 | 8,990 |
| Human Resources Specialists | $38.16 | $79,370 | 8,960 |
| Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers | $16.96 | $35,270 | 8,860 |
| Bartenders | $16.94 | $35,240 | 8,630 |
| Medical Assistants | $22.97 | $47,780 | 8,590 |
| Sales Managers | $60.30 | $125,430 | 8,250 |
| Computer Occupations, All Other | $58.44 | $121,560 | 8,210 |
| Light Truck Drivers | $21.07 | $43,820 | 8,160 |
| Financial Managers | $80.91 | $168,300 | 8,120 |
| Food Preparation Workers | $18.33 | $38,130 | 8,010 |
| Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists | $38.20 | $79,460 | 7,730 |
| First-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers | $45.05 | $93,710 | 7,720 |
Median pay across these occupations runs from $35,050 to $168,300 — a 4.8× spread between the lowest- and highest-paid detailed occupations in the metro. The all-occupation median of $56,580 sits nearer the bottom of that range, because the largest job categories in most metros are also among the lower-paid ones.
Frequently asked questions about San Diego, CA pay
What is the median salary in San Diego, CA?
Across all occupations, the median annual wage in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA metro area is $56,580. Total employment covered by the survey is about 1,533,290 jobs.
Which jobs pay the most in San Diego, CA?
The highest median wage in the metro belongs to home health and personal care aides at $35,050, followed by fast food and counter workers ($35,860) and cashiers ($36,110).
How many occupations are covered for San Diego, CA?
This guide covers 80 detailed occupations with released wage data for the metro area, out of the 800+ detailed occupations the OEWS survey tracks nationally. Occupations with too few workers locally to publish a reliable estimate are excluded by BLS.
Is this enough to live on in San Diego, CA?
These are nominal wages — they are not adjusted for local housing, tax, or transport costs. A median that looks high in San Diego, CA may buy less than a lower median in a cheaper metro. Use the all-occupation median of $56,580 as the local baseline and compare any specific job against that, not against the national number.
About these figures
Data: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), 2024. OEWS surveys employers, so it excludes self-employed workers and independent contractors, and it reports wages rather than total compensation. Occupations with too few workers locally to produce a reliable estimate are suppressed by BLS and therefore absent from this page.
Full detail in the methodology. Original data: bls.gov/oes.