Median pay · California
$79,040A year. BLS publishes no hourly wage for this occupation.| Percentile | Annual | Hourly |
|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile1 in 10 earn less | $40,120 | At or above the top code |
| 25th percentile | $65,780 | At or above the top code |
| MedianHalf earn more, half less | $79,040 | At or above the top code |
| 75th percentile | $149,490 | At or above the top code |
| 90th percentile1 in 10 earn more | At or above the top code | At or above the top code |
| MeanAll pay divided by all jobs | $294,080 | At or above the top code |
Wage survey · BLS May 2025
How we got this
- Median wage in CaliforniaBLS OEWS May 2025. Half of the people in this job were paid more than this, half less.$79,040
- Take-home after federal, state and FICA tax$5,111 a month at an effective rate of 22.4%.$61,329 a year
- Worth at national average pricesPrices in California sit at 110.7 against a national 100 (BEA, 2024).$71,387
- Against the national medianThe national median is $66,710.18.5% above
- Jobs countedA concentration of 0.47 against the nation's 1.00.830
What we assumed
- Wages are BLS OEWS survey estimates for May 2025, not job postings or offers.
- OEWS surveys wage and salary workers. The self-employed and business owners are outside it.
- Take-home assumes one 2026 filer, filing single, taking the standard deduction, with no dependents, pre-tax retirement contributions or local income tax.
- BLS publishes only an annual wage for this occupation, because a standard 2,080-hour year would misdescribe it.
- At least one figure was published only as "at or above $239,200 a year", which is the survey's top code rather than the real wage.
- Regional price parities compare price levels between places in one year. They are not inflation, and they do not adjust for what a household actually buys.
Technical details
Method occupation-wage-v1Data bls-oews-2025-05-v1, us-tax-2026-v1, bea-rpp-2024-v1, census-acs5-2024-v1
What lands in the bank
Tax year 2026 · InteractiveEstimated on the median salary of $79,040 in California, for a single filer taking the standard deduction in 2026. Explore other wage levels and filing statuses below.
Run the numbers on your own pay
Same U.S. tax tables as the rest of the site. Change the salary, state, or filing status.
What $79,040 is worth in California
Prices in California sit at 110.7 against a national average of 100, so $79,040 earned here buys what $71,387 buys at national average prices.
- Rents. 154.3 against 100, the component that moves most between states.
- Against local households. The median household in California takes in $99,122, so this occupation's median is 0.8 times that, on one income.
- How common the job is here. 53% less concentrated in California than in the country as a whole.
Reading the numbers
What stands out for athletes and sports competitors in California
BLS does not publish exact figures above $239,200 a year ($115.00 an hour). At least one percentile in California reaches that cap, so the top of the range is higher than the table can show.
Rents in California index at 154.3 (U.S. = 100) while prices overall index at 110.7, a gap of +43.6 pts. For a renter, housing moves the local cost of living more than anything else.
Prices in California index at 110.7 (U.S. = 100), so the $79,040 median buys roughly what $71,387 would at national prices, $7,653 less.
The average here is $294,080, well above the median of $79,040. A smaller group of high earners lifts the average, so the median is the better guide to what most athletes and sports competitors in California are paid.
Common questions
Athletes and Sports Competitors pay in California, answered
How much do athletes and sports competitors make in California?
The median wage for athletes and sports competitors in California is $79,040 a year.
Half earn more than that and half earn less. The figure comes from the Bureau of Labor Statistics occupational wage survey for May 2025.
What is the average Athletes and Sports Competitors salary in California?
BLS’s mean (average) wage for athletes and sports competitors in California is $294,080 a year. The median is $79,040.
The mean sits higher when a smaller group of high earners pulls the average up. For a typical paycheck, the median is the better middle.
What is the starting salary for athletes and sports competitors in California?
BLS does not publish starting pay. The closest figure it does publish is the low end of the range: in California, the lowest-paid 10% of athletes and sports competitors earn under $40,120 a year and a quarter earn under $65,780.
New hires often start somewhere in that band, but the May 2025 survey does not record experience, so read it as a floor to compare an offer against rather than a typical first salary.
What is the take-home pay for athletes and sports competitors in California?
On the median wage of $79,040, a single filer taking the 2026 standard deduction keeps an estimated $61,329 a year, or roughly $5,111 a month.
That is after federal, state and FICA tax, an effective rate of 22.4%.
California takes $3,106 of it in state income tax.
How much does athletes and sports competitors make a month in California?
On the median annual salary of $79,040, estimated take-home pay is roughly $5,111 a month after federal, state, and FICA taxes.
For workers paid on a standard biweekly schedule (26 pay periods per year), each paycheck is approximately $2,359 net.
Do athletes and sports competitors earn more in California than in the rest of the country?
Yes. The median in California is 18.5% above the national median of $66,710.
Nominal pay is only half the comparison: prices in California sit at 110.7 against a national 100, so the gap in what the money buys is different from the gap in the salary.
Is $79,040 a good salary in California?
It is 0.8 times the median household income of $99,122. A household often has more than one earner, so a single salary at this level goes further than the ratio alone suggests.
Prices in California run at 110.7 against a national average of 100, with rents at 154.3, so $79,040 here buys about what $71,387 buys at national average prices.
What do the highest-paid athletes and sports competitors earn in California?
BLS reports the top of this occupation only as "at or above the survey's top code", so the highest wages are not published as a number.
An at-or-above value is a reporting threshold, not an exact salary. It does not establish the highest salary someone can earn.
How many athletes and sports competitors are there in California?
The survey counted 830 of these jobs in California for May 2025.
That makes the occupation 53% less concentrated here than in the country as a whole. It counts wage and salary jobs, so the self-employed are outside it.