Computer Programmers in California
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$84,204
after federal, FICA and California tax
Tax takes
$32,556
27.9% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$74,794
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
$116,760
Kept after tax
$84,204
Worth in national money
$74,794
State rank
7
of 46 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- California is one of the better-paying states for computer programmers. The middle earner takes $116,760, which ranks 7 of 46 states with published figures. That is about 16.31% above the national middle.
- Locally, this pays well. Among 492 occupations California reports, computer programmers comes in at 94 — comfortably in the upper quarter.
- Costs eat into it here. Of $116,760, tax leaves $84,204 — and because California is dearer than average, that stretches only as far as $74,794 would nationally. Averages run higher here, $119,900, since top earners drag the number up.
- California ranks 7 of 46 states publishing a median for computer programmers, at $116,760 — about 16.31% above the national median. A state's position on nominal pay is the figure wage tables report and the least informative of the three on this page, because it survives neither the tax adjustment nor the price adjustment intact for most occupations.
- Computer programmers ranks 94 of 492 occupations by median in California, in the top quartile. Within-state position is largely independent of national position, so this holds regardless of how the state compares to others for the same work.
- After tax, $84,204 remains from the California median of $116,760 for this occupation. Applying the state's above-average price parity yields $74,794 in national-average terms — the quantity relevant to a relocation decision, and the one absent from essentially every published wage comparison. Mean pay of $119,900 exceeds the median, so the upper tail is doing the work.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Computer Programmers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $70,310 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $116,760 |
| Top tenth earn over | $172,300 |
| This salary | $116,760 |
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 | $84,204 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $90,971 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$18,821 |
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 | $107,141 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$25,998 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 113 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- A median is the middle, not an offer. Half of computer programmers in California earn under $116,760 and half over. The published range runs $70,310 at the tenth percentile to $172,300 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- One filer, no dependants, no pension contributions — that is the household behind California's $84,204, worked from $116,760. That is on purpose. It lets states be compared with each other, not with each other's family circumstances. Local city taxes are left out. Locally this work ranks 94 of 492.
- One number stands for prices across all of California, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $74,794, the adjusted value of that $116,760 median, as a way to compare states fairly, not as a quote for any particular place. The two datasets are also from different years. This job sits at 94 of 492 in the state.
- Figures are distribution medians for computer programmers in California, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $70,310 to $172,300; within-state dispersion of that width routinely exceeds the dispersion between states, so tenure, employer and metropolitan area predict an individual's pay better than geography does.
- The California take-home of $84,204, on $116,760 for work ranking 94 of 492 locally, models the simplest household deliberately: holding it constant is what makes the interstate comparison meaningful. It also means the absolute figure overstates liability for most real filers, and municipal income taxes are outside the model entirely. The occupation ranks 94 of 492 in the state.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for California, so $74,794 — the adjusted value of that $116,760 median — establishes comparability between states rather than accuracy within one. The wage and parity series are dated independently, each following its own publication cycle, and neither is projected forward. This occupation sits at 94 of 492 locally.
Questions people ask
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
The label is broader than the work. From $70,310 at the bottom tenth to $172,300 at the top, the same title covers roles that share little beyond a name.
Does a bigger number here mean I am better off?
A larger wage in a dearer place is not automatically more. Adjusted for local prices, this pay behaves like $74,794 of national purchasing power.
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 $84,204.
Why is this job missing from some states?
A blank is a suppression, not a zero. 46 states have a published figure for this work; the others had too few responses to release one.
What drives the percentile dispersion in this occupation?
Dispersion between the tenth percentile ($70,310) and the ninetieth ($172,300) exceeds the family median dispersion. SOC codes aggregate roles differing in seniority, industry and specialisation, and BLS does not disaggregate below the detailed occupation level, so within-title variance is not separable from the published series.
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 $74,794 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 $84,204 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.
Why does this occupation lack published estimates in every state?
BLS suppresses estimates failing disclosure or reliability criteria. This occupation has published state-level estimates in 46 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.