Highest-Paying Jobs Without a College Degree in California (2025 BLS Data)
- The median wage for all jobs in California was $58,240 in May 2025, above the U.S. median of $50,980.
- The best-paid job here that typically needs only a high school diploma or less was first-line supervisors of police and detectives, at a median of $163,960.
- Short training programs and associate’s degrees open another tier, led by radiation therapists at $166,450.
You don’t need a four-year degree to earn well in California. Using the federal government’s most recent occupational wage survey (BLS OEWS May 2025 estimates for California) and the education level BLS lists as typical for entry into each job (BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35), here are the best-paying jobs in the state that don’t require a bachelor’s degree. California had about 18,213,700 wage and salary jobs in the survey.
Top-paying jobs that need a high school diploma or less
Jobs with at least 1,000 positions in the state, ranked by median annual wage. The last column shows the national median for comparison.
| Occupation | California median | Jobs | U.S. median |
|---|---|---|---|
| First-Line Supervisors of Police and Detectives | $163,960 | 13,200 | $106,040 |
| Elevator and Escalator Installers and Repairers | $141,180 | 1,910 | $109,910 |
| First-Line Supervisors of Correctional Officers | $131,210 | 4,550 | $77,970 |
| Electrical Power-Line Installers and Repairers | $129,040 | 8,930 | $95,320 |
| Detectives and Criminal Investigators | $124,840 | 12,610 | $93,790 |
| Transportation, Storage, and Distribution Managers | $123,780 | 30,540 | $107,230 |
| Insulation Workers, Mechanical | $119,690 | 1,310 | $58,340 |
| Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers | $118,880 | 65,940 | $76,210 |
| Farmers, Ranchers, and Other Agricultural Managers | $109,140 | 1,650 | $89,900 |
| Power Plant Operators | $105,210 | 2,610 | $102,040 |
| Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers | $103,250 | 3,360 | $96,710 |
| Construction and Building Inspectors | $101,290 | 13,420 | $74,690 |
Many of these jobs pay well because they come with long on-the-job training, licensing, physical risk or irregular hours. Several are skilled trades that train through paid apprenticeships.
Top-paying jobs that need a certificate or associate’s degree
Jobs where BLS lists a postsecondary certificate, some college or an associate’s degree as the typical entry credential:
| Occupation | California median | Jobs | U.S. median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Radiation Therapists | $166,450 | 1,720 | $105,310 |
| Commercial Pilots | $165,590 | 4,900 | $123,220 |
| Nuclear Medicine Technologists | $162,380 | 1,500 | $101,370 |
| Air Traffic Controllers | $160,080 | 2,290 | $148,080 |
| Diagnostic Medical Sonographers | $128,530 | 10,110 | $96,590 |
| First-Line Supervisors of Firefighting and Prevention Workers | $127,630 | 8,170 | $93,530 |
| Dental Hygienists | $124,930 | 24,500 | $98,100 |
| Magnetic Resonance Imaging Technologists | $124,000 | 3,570 | $95,480 |
The most common jobs in California, for context
The largest occupations by employment, and what they pay locally:
| Occupation | Median | Jobs |
|---|---|---|
| Home Health and Personal Care Aides | $34,320 | 970,150 |
| Fast Food and Counter Workers | $42,280 | 449,840 |
| Retail Salespersons | $38,440 | 376,460 |
| Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand | $44,710 | 355,500 |
| Registered Nurses | $140,270 | 338,940 |
| Cashiers | $37,100 | 336,110 |
| Office Clerks, General | $48,460 | 311,490 |
| Stockers and Order Fillers | $42,870 | 310,870 |
How to use these numbers
- Medians are midpoints. Half of workers in each job earn more and half earn less; new workers usually start well below the median.
- Overtime is not included. BLS wage estimates exclude overtime pay and shift differentials, so jobs with heavy overtime often pay more in practice (see the OEWS technical notes).
- Check the training path. “Typical entry education” is what most new workers have; licenses and apprenticeships may still be required.
Published October 27, 2026. Sources are linked in the text.
Header image: original chart by JobPayRaise.com using BLS OEWS May 2025 data.
Comments (1)
One more data point from the same survey: the occupation most concentrated in California relative to the nation is farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse, with a location quotient of 5.5. That means those jobs make up about 5.5 times as large a share of local employment as they do nationally. There are about 172,260 of them locally, at a median of $35,580. Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 estimates for California.