Manicurists and Pedicurists in California
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$31,011
after federal, FICA and California tax
Tax takes
$5,619
15.3% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$27,546
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
$36,630
Kept after tax
$31,011
Worth in national money
$27,546
State rank
20
of 49 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Neither high nor low. California is 20 of 49 states for manicurists and pedicurists, with a middle wage of $36,630. What that is worth is the question the rest of this page answers.
- Within California this is lower-paid work. Of 492 occupations the state publishes figures for, manicurists and pedicurists ranks 486. That is the bottom quarter locally, whatever the national comparison says.
- The wage here flatters the reality. From $36,630 the take-home is $31,011. But California costs more than the national average, so that money behaves more like $27,546 would elsewhere. Worth knowing before comparing offers across states. The average is higher, $39,730, because the best-paid pull it up.
- California ranks 20 of 49 for manicurists and pedicurists at $36,630. The nominal figure is unremarkable; the adjusted figures are where the state's actual position for this occupation is determined.
- Against every occupation California reports, manicurists and pedicurists ranks 486 of 492, in the lowest quartile of the state's distribution. That position is set by the local labor market and is independent of how the state compares nationally for this work.
- Retained pay after federal, FICA and California income tax is $31,011 for manicurists and pedicurists, from $36,630. The state's price level exceeds the national average, so the price-adjusted equivalent is $27,546. ⚠️ 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 $39,730 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Manicurists and Pedicurists
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $34,840 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $36,630 |
| Top tenth earn over | $47,260 |
| This salary | $36,630 |
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 | $31,011 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $31,612 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$4,985 |
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 | $35,882 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$6,029 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 113 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in California earn less than $36,630. The published range is $34,840 up to $47,260, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- In California the take-home figure of $31,011, from $36,630, assumes one filer, no dependants, and nothing paid into a pension before tax. Each of those lowers the bill, so treat it as the plain case. City and school-district income taxes are not included either, and in a few states those are real money. It ranks 486 of 492 occupations here.
- One number stands for prices across all of California, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $27,546, the adjusted value of that $36,630 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 486 of 492 in the state.
- Reported values are medians; for manicurists and pedicurists in California the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $34,840 to $47,260. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Take-home for California is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $31,011 from $36,630. Each omitted item reduces taxable income, so the figure is a lower bound on retained pay for this household shape. Municipal and school-district income taxes are excluded, which understates the burden materially in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Maryland. The occupation ranks 486 of 492 locally.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for California, so $27,546 — the adjusted value of that $36,630 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 486 of 492 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
Half earn more than this and half earn less. The average sits at $39,730 because a long tail of high pay lifts it, so the two answer different questions.
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $34,840 and the top tenth $47,260, so most people doing this work in California sit within a fairly tight band.
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 $27,546 of national purchasing power.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Three of them are federal and one is not. After income tax, Social Security, Medicare and California's own levy, $31,011 remains.
Why is this job missing from some states?
The survey withholds small samples rather than publish an unreliable number. Pay appears for 49 states here, and a missing state means too few reports, not no jobs.
How does the published median differ from the mean for this occupation?
The median is the midpoint of the distribution; the mean for this occupation in California is $39,730. Wage distributions are right-skewed, so the mean exceeds the median wherever a minority earn substantially more. BLS publishes both because substituting one for the other misstates a typical worker's pay.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($34,840 to $47,260) 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 $27,546 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 $31,011 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 49 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.