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The median salary for Cost Estimators in California is $85,467 per year ($41.09/hr). This is 8.5% higher than the national median of $78,749.
About This Role
BLS Standard Occupational Classification 2018
Prepare cost estimates for product manufacturing, construction projects, or services to aid management in bidding on or determining price of product or service. May specialize according to particular service performed or type of product manufactured.
Wage Percentiles: California
Hourly & annualized (2,080 hours) · National adjusted
Percentile
Hourly Rate
Annual Salary
vs National
P10Entry level
$24.88
$51,750
+6.6%
P25
$31.58
$65,686
+7.4%
P50MEDIAN
$41.09
$85,467
+8.5%
P75
$56.76
$118,061
+15.9%
P90Top earners
$72.50
$150,800
+15.3%
Get the full percentile report
P10–P90 breakdown, career outlook, industry wages, and JOLTS market signal for Cost Estimators
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Career Outlook
BLS Employment Projections · 2024-2034
10-year growth
-4.2%
Slower than average
Annual openings
17K
per year, on avg
Workforce today
221K
as of 2024
Why those openings exist
0% from new growth100% from people leaving the role
Most openings come from replacement, not growth. Retention matters more than recruiting here.
Typical entry requirements
Education
Bachelor's degree
Experience
None
On-the-job training
Moderate-term on-the-job training
Industry Wage Breakdown
Top 2 industries by employment · median annual wage, sector-specific
Industry
Workforce
Median Pay
Building Equipment Contractors
NAICS 238200
30K
$85,720
Nonresidential Building Construction
NAICS 236200
21K
$96,780
Wage range across top 5 industries: $85,720 to $96,780 (13% spread)
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Full percentile breakdown · JOLTS market signals · Geographic comparison · AI analyst briefs
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is the median cost estimators salary in California?
The median (P50) annual salary for Cost Estimators in California is approximately $85,467, based on BLS OEWS May 2025 data. This is 8.5% higher than the national median of $78,749. For the full P10–P90 breakdown and market context, open CompSignal.
Wage figures on this page come from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2025 release. OEWS surveys roughly 1.1 million establishments annually. It is the most comprehensive employer-reported wage dataset in the United States.
P10 through P90 percentiles represent the wage distribution across all surveyed employers (not self-reported by workers). Geographic adjustments use BLS-derived cost multipliers calibrated from regional wage variation.
Wages are estimates. Individual compensation depends on experience, education, employer size, industry, and negotiation. Use this as benchmark context, not absolute ground truth.
CompSignal is a free labor market intelligence tool built for HR, compensation, and talent acquisition teams. We make BLS data, the same primary source Mercer and Radford cross-reference in their paid surveys, searchable and actionable without an enterprise subscription.
Built and maintained by Falcon Incentives, a compensation strategy and incentive design consultancy.