Waiters and Waitresses Salary in San Diego, CA (2024)
Waiters and Waitresses in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA metro area earn a median of $35,060 per year ($16.85 per hour) based on 24,800 jobs counted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics in 2024. That is +3.9% against the national median of $33,760 for this occupation.
Pay distribution
The median is a single point on a wide curve. The table below shows where waiters and waitresses actually sit across the pay range in San Diego, CA, from the bottom decile to the top.
| Percentile | Hourly | Annual | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $16.13 | $33,550 | |
| 25th percentile | $16.42 | $34,150 | |
| Median | $16.85 | $35,060 | half earn more, half earn less |
| 75th percentile | $17.74 | $36,900 | |
| 90th percentile | $38.24 | $79,530 | |
| Average (mean) | $22.56 | $46,930 |
How San Diego, CA compares
The local median of $35,060 runs +3.9% above the US median of $33,760 for this occupation; it pays 38.0% less than the metro-wide median across all jobs ($56,580); within the metro it ranks 649th of 653 detailed occupations by median pay.
| Benchmark | Median annual | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| San Diego, CA — this occupation | $35,060 | — |
| US median, same occupation (all areas) | $33,760 | +3.9% |
| San Diego, CA — all occupations | $56,580 | -38.0% |
| Highest metro in the US for this job | $48,760 | -28.1% |
The location quotient of 1.08 is close to 1.0: the occupation's share of local employment tracks the national average.
High confidence The relative standard error on this estimate is 4.1%, which is a tight margin — the figure is stable enough to plan around.
Ranked 649th of 653 detailed occupations in the metro by median annual wage.
Highest-paying jobs in San Diego, CA
To put $35,060 in context, these are the best-paid detailed occupations in the same metro area. This occupation sits 649th.
| Occupation | Median annual | Employment |
|---|---|---|
| Dentists, All Other Specialists | $220,840 | 50 |
| Orthopedic Surgeons, Except Pediatric | $215,010 | 170 |
| Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers | $205,650 | 180 |
| Natural Sciences Managers | $199,590 | 2,630 |
| Computer and Information Systems Managers | $193,370 | 7,620 |
| Podiatrists | $187,010 | 60 |
| Architectural and Engineering Managers | $185,550 | 3,690 |
| Dentists, General | $176,970 | 1,950 |
| Marketing Managers | $171,590 | 4,390 |
| Computer Hardware Engineers | $169,230 | 3,200 |
Where waiters and waitresses earn the most
Across the 25 metro areas with released data for this occupation, medians run from $20,270 to $48,760. These are the top markets.
| Metro area | Median annual | Employment |
|---|---|---|
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | $48,760 | 25,860 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ | $45,010 | 135,820 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | $38,440 | 45,170 |
| Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ | $37,650 | 39,140 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | $37,360 | 30,450 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH | $37,040 | 38,520 |
| Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI | $36,120 | 29,410 |
| Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA | $36,060 | 13,920 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD | $35,900 | 43,170 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | $35,060 | 91,020 |
See the full national picture on the Waiters and Waitresses salary by metro page.
Frequently asked questions
What is the median salary for waiters and waitresses in San Diego, CA?
The median annual wage is $35,060, or $17 per hour. That means half of the waiters and waitresses working in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA metro area earn more than this figure and half earn less. The average is $46,930.
What do the highest and lowest paid waiters and waitresses in San Diego, CA earn?
The bottom 10% earn $33,550 or less, while the top 10% earn $79,530 or more — a spread of $45,980 between the two ends of the distribution. The middle half of workers sit between $34,150 and $36,900.
Is waiters and waitresses pay in San Diego, CA above the local average?
Yes, it is 38.0% below the all-occupation median for the metro, which is $56,580. That comparison is the fairer one for judging local purchasing power, because it holds the metro's overall cost and wage level constant.
How does San Diego, CA pay compare with the rest of the US for this job?
At $35,060 the metro median is 3.9% higher than the US median of $33,760 for waiters and waitresses. Across the 25 metro areas covered here, this occupation ranges from $20,270 to $48,760.
How many waiters and waitresses work in San Diego, CA?
BLS counts about 24,800 people in this occupation in the metro area, or 16.18 jobs per 1,000 total jobs. The location quotient of 1.08 is close to 1.0: the occupation's share of local employment tracks the national average.
About these figures
Figures come from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey for 2024 (employment relative standard error 5.3%). OEWS measures what employers pay, not what any individual earns; it excludes self-employed workers, and it does not adjust for local cost of living.
Read the full methodology, or the original data at bls.gov/oes.