SALARY · CIVIL ENGINEERS · CALIFORNIA

Civil Engineers salary in California

Averages can hide a lot. Medians hide less. That is why this page leads with the median for civil engineers in California: $122,500 a year. The mean is listed too, so you can see when a small group of high earners pulls the average upward.

MEDIAN ANNUAL SALARY

$122,500

$59 per hour at the median · That is $21,660 (21.5 percent) above the national median of $100,840 for this occupation.

$124,540Mean annual salary
$60Mean hourly wage
$55,180People employed in this job in California

Salary range

25th: $96,590Median: $122,50075th: $149,350
MeasureAnnual
25th percentile$96,590
Median (50th percentile)$122,500
75th percentile$149,350
Mean$124,540

The middle half of workers earned from $96,590 to $149,350 a year. Do not read the percentile range as good versus bad jobs. It mostly reflects experience, hours, employer type and local demand. A new starter near the 25th percentile and a veteran near the 75th can both be fairly paid for their stage.

What stays in your pocket on the median salary

ESTIMATED TAKE-HOME PAY

$87,991 a year
$7,333 a month
Federal tax $18,134 · FICA $9,371 · State tax $7,003
Read this before you use the take-home figure. It is a single-filer estimate using the 2026 standard deduction. It leaves out credits, other deductions, local taxes, and retirement or health deductions. Your actual paycheck can differ, and for states without a verified 2026 table in this build, state tax is still to be added once its table is verified.

Same job, other states

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