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Commercial Pilots in California

Is California a good place for you to work as a Commercial Pilot?

12.2% Jobs Projection

$81,940 Median Salary

450 Job Openings

You’re in luck! Jobs for Commercial Pilots in California are projected to grow and these jobs tend to pay higher than average.

Projected employment for Commercial Pilots in California is growing faster than average.
Commercial Pilots in California earn higher salaries than the typical U.S. wage earner.

What Major Will Prepare You For a Commercial Pilot Career?

How Many Commercial Pilots Work in California?

3,380 people worked as Commercial Pilots in 2018 in this state.

There were 3,890 Commercial Pilots employed in this state in 2017.

That’s a decline of 510 jobs between 2017 and 2018.

The typical state has 390 Commercial Pilots working in it, which means California has more Commercial Pilots than average.

Job Projections for California

Jobs for Commercial Pilots in this state are growing at a rate of 12.2% which is faster than the nationwide estimated projection of 3.7%.

California Annual Job Openings

The BLS estimates there will be 450 annual job openings, and 4,600 total jobs in 2026 for Commercial Pilots in this state.

Nationwide, the prediction is 4,000 annual jobs and 42,300 total jobs in 2026.

What do Commercial Pilots Make in California?

In 2018 wages for Commercial Pilots ranged from $47,020 to $166,330 with $81,940 being the median annual salary.

The median salary in California is higher than the nationwide median salary.

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Top California Metros for Commercial Pilots

The table below shows some of the metros in this state with the most Commercial Pilots.

Metro	Number Employed	Annual Median Salary
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA	1,510	$85,980
San Diego-Carlsbad, CA	280	$77,660
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA	210	$87,420
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA	200	$62,940
Sacramento–Roseville–Arden-Arcade, CA	190	$92,760
Bakersfield, CA	100	$101,110
Fresno, CA	90	$58,600
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA	70	$58,390
Redding, CA	50	n/a
Chico, CA	40	$44,590
Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA	40	$63,700

Top States for Commercial Pilots Employment

View the list below to see where most Commercial Pilots work.

State	Number Employed	Annual Median Salary
Texas	4,800	$92,720
Florida	4,170	$77,430
California	3,380	$81,940
Ohio	1,740	$81,050
Arizona	1,410	$75,720
North Carolina	1,380	$74,150
Michigan	1,250	$75,600
Washington	1,160	$92,140
Alabama	1,150	$89,730
Georgia	1,030	$101,600
New York	1,020	$101,230
Colorado	870	$81,480
Louisiana	830	$68,740
Arkansas	710	$70,170
Alaska	690	$77,720
Nevada	660	$92,530
Indiana	660	$65,510
Oregon	570	$65,820
Illinois	550	$89,520
Pennsylvania	510	$83,020

Below are the states where Commercial Pilots get paid the most:

State	Annual Median Salary
South Carolina	$114,210
Connecticut	$110,870
Massachusetts	$104,830
Georgia	$101,600
New York	$101,230
Maryland	$97,100
Kansas	$93,250
Kentucky	$93,160
Texas	$92,720
Nevada	$92,530

Discover similar careers:

Occupation	California Employment Total
Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers	9,330

References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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