Sewing Machine Operators · SOC 51-6031
Sewing Machine Operators Salary in the California
Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025California
Figures describe the state of California as a whole.
Sewing Machine Operators in the California earned a median of $37,940 per year ($18.24 per hour) as of the May 2025 BLS OEWS estimates. Pay ranged from $34,950 at the 10th percentile to $49,040 at the 90th. BLS estimates 13,240 people work in this occupation in the area.
Pay distribution
Half of Sewing Machine Operators in the California earn more than $37,940 per year, half earn less; the middle half earn between $36,380 and $44,280.
| Wage | 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Annual | $34,950 | $36,380 | $37,940 | $44,280 | $49,040 |
| Hourly | $16.80 | $17.49 | $18.24 | $21.29 | $23.58 |
A percentile is a cut point: 25% of workers in this occupation and area earn less than the 25th-percentile wage. The median is the 50th percentile — half earn less, half earn more.
How this area compares
- California$37,940 median for California; middle half earns $36,380 to $44,280
- United Statesnational$36,670 median for United States; middle half earns $31,960 to $42,830
Bars span the 25th–75th percentile (the middle half of workers); the tick marks the median.
The median here is +3% vs the U.S. median for this occupation.
Metro areas in California
Metro areas in the same state with published May 2025 medians for sewing machine operators, highest first. Areas without published estimates are not listed.
- Californiathis page$37,940 median for California; middle half earns $36,380 to $44,280
- $47,220 median for San Jose metro area; middle half earns $42,100 to $50,200
- $44,880 median for San Francisco metro area; middle half earns $39,690 to $47,830
- $44,350 median for Santa Cruz metro area; middle half earns $38,100 to $53,600
- $43,500 median for Stockton metro area; middle half earns $37,490 to $49,620
- $42,550 median for Napa metro area; middle half earns $42,550 to $45,220
- $42,080 median for Sacramento metro area; middle half earns $36,900 to $45,310
Bars span the 25th–75th percentile (the middle half of workers); the tick marks the median.
Keep exploring
Other occupations in the same SOC group with published medians here, largest employment first:
Highest-paying metro areas for sewing machine operatorss · Highest-paying occupations in California
About this estimate
These figures are survey estimates from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program — modeled from employer reports collected over three years and benchmarked to May 2025. They describe what employers in this area currently pay across all industries, not what any individual worker will be offered.
Employment counts wage-and-salary jobs in the occupation (self-employed workers are excluded). Estimates carry sampling error; percentile wages are rounded by BLS. Some values are suppressed by BLS for confidentiality or quality — suppressed values appear here as “not published”, never as zero. Read the full methodology.
About this data. Estimates are from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program, May 2025 release, retrieved from bls.gov/oes/tables.htm on July 24, 2026. OEWS estimates describe metropolitan/nonmetropolitan areas and states — not city limits — and are not designed for year-over-year comparisons. See BLS methodology, our plain-English methodology, and sources. CitySalaryData is independent and not affiliated with BLS.