Bakers in California
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$35,966
after federal, FICA and California tax
Tax takes
$7,154
16.6% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$31,947
California costs more than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in California — roughly, since only five points along the band are published.
One filer, standard deduction, no dependants and nothing paid in before tax — the same household the rest of this page uses, so the comparison holds. City and school-district income taxes are not included.
Median here
$43,120
Kept after tax
$35,966
Worth in national money
$31,947
State rank
4
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Pay for bakers is strong here. California's middle earner gets $43,120, putting the state 4 of 51 — about 16.04% ahead of the national figure.
- Measured against other jobs in California, this one sits low: 445 of 492 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- The wage here flatters the reality. From $43,120 the take-home is $35,966. But California costs more than the national average, so that money behaves more like $31,947 would elsewhere. Worth knowing before comparing offers across states. The average is higher, $44,130, because the best-paid pull it up.
- For bakers, California sits in the upper band nationally: a median of $43,120, ranking 4 of 51 and running about 16.04% above the national midpoint. Nominal advantage of this size is usually, though not always, large enough to survive the state's own tax and price levels.
- Bakers occupies position 445 of 492 in California's occupational wage distribution, in the bottom quartile. National ranking and local ranking answer different questions and frequently disagree; this is the one a resident experiences.
- Retained pay after federal, FICA and California income tax is $35,966 for bakers, from $43,120. The state's price level exceeds the national average, so the price-adjusted equivalent is $31,947. ⚠️ This is purchasing power and not a wage; cross-state offer comparisons that stop at the nominal figure systematically overvalue high-cost states. The mean of $44,130 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
Choose your filing status and local taxes, compare pay, and keep a shortlist.Compare wage and personal-pay outcomes by state, with selected resident local taxes and saved career choices.
Pay band: Bakers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $36,510 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $43,120 |
| Top tenth earn over | $54,960 |
| This salary | $43,120 |
Positions between the published tenth, quarter, half, three-quarter and ninetieth points are estimated by straight line.
The same pay, somewhere else
The state median for this job
| Take-home in California | $35,966 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $36,827 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$5,950 |
State income tax and state price levels only. No city income tax, and no housing market.
What you would need there
The state median for this job
| To match take-home only | $42,049 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$7,196 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 113 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $43,120 as a midpoint for California, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $36,510 and the ninetieth is $54,960 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- That $35,966 take-home in California comes from $43,120. It is the no-frills case: single filer, standard deduction, nothing set aside before tax. Real circumstances almost always reduce the tax. City and school-district taxes are not counted at all. Locally the work ranks 445 of 492.
- Two cautions on $31,947, the adjusted value of that $43,120 median. It levels out prices with a single number for all of California. No actual address matches that. The wage figures and price figures are also from different years. Each is published on its own timetable. This work sits at 445 of 492 locally.
- The California median of $43,120 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $36,510 to $54,960. Because that spread is typically larger than the interstate spread, a state median is a weak predictor for any individual worker in this occupation.
- Retained pay of $35,966, from $43,120, assumes a single California filer with the standard deduction and no elective deferrals. Pre-tax retirement or HSA contributions, dependants and itemized deductions all reduce it further; local income taxes, excluded here, would increase it in the states that levy them. This occupation ranks 445 of 492 locally, and the state ranks 4 of 51 for it.
- This $31,947 adjusted figure, worked from $43,120, rests on a state-level price parity averaging over within-state dispersion larger than much of the between-state dispersion. Wage and price vintages differ by publication schedule. The result is directionally sound and not address-specific, for work at 445 of 492 in the state. The occupation ranks 445 of 492 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $36,510 and the top tenth $54,960, so most people doing this work in California sit within a fairly tight band.
Does a bigger number here mean I am better off?
The number and the value are different things. California costs more than the national average, so this take-home stretches like $31,947 rather than its face figure.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Four deductions, stacked. The federal layer and the two payroll taxes apply wherever you work; California then takes its own share, leaving $35,966.
Can I compare this job across every state?
All 51 jurisdictions report this work, which makes the ranking a like-for-like one.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($36,510 to $54,960) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to California rather than a national figure.
How does the state price level affect real compensation?
California's regional price parity sits above the national average, so nominal wages overstate purchasing power. Deflating take-home by the state price level gives $31,947 in national-average terms. ⚠️ RPPs are an all-items index; housing parities vary far more widely than the headline figure.
What accounts for the gap between gross wage and take-home here?
Take-home of $35,966 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and California income tax for a single filer with no adjustments. The state layer is levied in addition to the federal one; only its rate and base differ between states.
Is this occupation's state coverage complete?
State-level estimates are published for all 51 jurisdictions for this occupation, so cross-state comparison is not confounded by suppression. ⚠️ Estimates remain survey-based and carry sampling error; small differences between adjacent states should not be over-read.