Structural Metal Fabricators and Fitters in California
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$46,806
after federal, FICA and California tax
Tax takes
$10,784
18.7% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$41,575
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
$57,590
Kept after tax
$46,806
Worth in national money
$41,575
State rank
9
of 47 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Pay for this job is strong here. California's middle earner gets $57,590, putting the state 9 of 47 — about 12.2% ahead of the national figure.
- Middle of the local pack. Of 492 occupations California reports figures for, this is number 320.
- Costs eat into it here. Of $57,590, tax leaves $46,806 — and because California is dearer than average, that stretches only as far as $41,575 would nationally. Averages run higher here, $58,160, since top earners drag the number up.
- For structural metal fabricators and fitters, California sits in the upper band nationally: a median of $57,590, ranking 9 of 47 and running about 12.2% 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.
- In California's occupational distribution, structural metal fabricators and fitters sits at 320 of 492 — neither quartile. This local position is what a resident compares against, and it is determined by the state's own labor market rather than by national patterns for this occupation.
- After tax, $46,806 remains from the California median of $57,590 for this occupation. Applying the state's above-average price parity yields $41,575 in national-average terms — the quantity relevant to a relocation decision, and the one absent from essentially every published wage comparison. Mean pay of $58,160 exceeds the median, so the upper tail is doing the work.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Structural Metal Fabricators and Fitters
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $45,140 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $57,590 |
| Top tenth earn over | $76,110 |
| This salary | $57,590 |
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 | $46,806 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $48,454 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$8,287 |
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 | $55,539 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$10,022 |
| 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 $57,590. The published range is $45,140 up to $76,110, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- One filer, no dependants, no pension contributions — that is the household behind California's $46,806, worked from $57,590. 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 320 of 492.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $41,575 uses one figure for the whole of California. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 492 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 320.
- Reported values are medians; for structural metal fabricators and fitters in California the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $45,140 to $76,110. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- The California take-home of $46,806, on $57,590 for work ranking 320 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 320 of 492 in the state.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $41,575, worked from $57,590, deflates by a statewide parity that conceals substantial intra-state variation, concentrated in housing — so it supports comparison between states rather than the pricing of a move to a particular California address, on work sitting at 320 of 492 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
The range here is narrow. From $45,140 at the bottom tenth to $76,110 at the top, pay for this work clusters rather than spreads.
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 $41,575 rather than its face figure.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Into four separate taxes, not one. Federal income tax, Social Security and Medicare apply everywhere, and California adds its own income tax on top — which is why $46,806 of this wage survives to your account.
Why is this job missing from some states?
The survey withholds small samples rather than publish an unreliable number. Pay appears for 47 states here, and a missing state means too few reports, not no jobs.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($45,140 to $76,110) 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 $41,575 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 $46,806 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 47 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.