Chico, CA
Across all occupations in the Chico, CA metropolitan area, the median wage is $48,050 a year ($23.10 an hour) and the mean $65,420, May 2025. That median is −6% against the US median of $50,980 and −17% against California's $58,240. BLS counts 78,220 jobs in the area. The highest-paying occupation is physicians, all other; the largest is home health and personal care aides.
All occupations: Chico, CA vs California and the United States
| Area | Basis | Percentile wage | Mean | Employment | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th | ||||
| Chico, CA | Hourly | $16.50 | $17.87 | $23.10 | $36.53 | $59.75 | $31.45 | 78,220 |
| Annual | $34,320 | $37,180 | $48,050 | $75,970 | $124,290 | $65,420 | ||
| California | Hourly | $17.28 | $20.00 | $28.00 | $47.06 | $76.48 | $38.79 | 18,213,700 |
| Annual | $35,950 | $41,600 | $58,240 | $97,880 | $159,080 | $80,690 | ||
| United States | Hourly | $15.00 | $18.07 | $24.51 | $38.71 | $61.81 | $33.54 | 155,495,730 |
| Annual | $31,200 | $37,590 | $50,980 | $80,520 | $128,560 | $69,770 | ||
286 detailed occupations publish a median in this area. State profile: California. Compare any occupation across every area in the wage explorer.
20 highest-paying occupations in Chico, CA
| Rank | Occupation | Median annual | Median hourly | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Physicians, All Other | $334,980 | $161.05 | 50 |
| 2 | Family Medicine Physicians | $274,800 | $132.12 | 90 |
| 3 | Chief Executives | $176,750 | $84.98 | 130 |
| 4 | Nurse Practitioners | $167,080 | $80.33 | 140 |
| 5 | Physician Assistants | $164,780 | $79.22 | 130 |
| 6 | Dentists, General | $163,520 | $78.62 | 50 |
| 7 | Career/Technical Education Teachers, Postsecondary | $162,300 | $78.03 | 50 |
| 8 | Pharmacists | $161,410 | $77.60 | 160 |
| 9 | Veterinarians | $160,180 | $77.01 | 60 |
| 10 | Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists | $155,470 | $74.74 | 70 |
| 11 | Optometrists | $139,890 | $67.26 | 30 |
| 12 | Marketing Managers | $139,830 | $67.23 | 60 |
| 12 | Human Resources Managers | $139,830 | $67.23 | 60 |
| 14 | Education Administrators, Kindergarten through Secondary | $139,600 | * | 170 |
| 15 | Computer and Information Systems Managers in California | $137,890 | $66.29 | 120 |
| 16 | Managers, All Other in California | $136,090 | $65.43 | 210 |
| 17 | Physical Therapists | $134,970 | $64.89 | 180 |
| 18 | Lawyers in California | $131,710 | $63.32 | 140 |
| 19 | Engineers, All Other | $131,660 | $63.30 | 40 |
| 20 | Medical and Health Services Managers | $131,520 | $63.23 | 400 |
Ranked by median; an occupation whose median BLS withholds or top-codes in this area cannot appear here, however well it pays.
20 largest occupations in Chico, CA
Most concentrated occupations in Chico, CA
The 10 occupations with the highest location quotient among those employing at least 100 people in the area. A quotient of 2.00 means the occupation's share of local jobs is twice its national share.
| Rank | Occupation | Location quotient | Employment | Jobs per 1,000 | Median annual |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Educational Instruction and Library Workers, All Other | 7.39 | 440 | 5.63 | $60,850 |
| 2 | Health Education Specialists | 6.28 | 210 | 2.65 | $59,120 |
| 3 | Medical Transcriptionists | 5.94 | 120 | 1.59 | $50,020 |
| 4 | Protective Service Workers, All Other | 3.69 | 150 | 1.93 | $38,460 |
| 5 | Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop, Nursery, and Greenhouse | 3.24 | 430 | 5.54 | $34,320 |
| 6 | Interviewers, Except Eligibility and Loan | 3.18 | 240 | 3.03 | $46,140 |
| 7 | Food Preparation and Serving Related Workers, All Other | 3.06 | 130 | 1.67 | $34,950 |
| 8 | Home Health and Personal Care Aides in California | 2.74 | 5,940 | 75.96 | $34,320 |
| 9 | Cooks, Short Order | 2.70 | 190 | 2.41 | $37,700 |
| 10 | Recreation Workers | 2.58 | 430 | 5.51 | $35,320 |
Occupation groups in Chico, CA
| Group | Median annual | Mean annual | Employment | Jobs per 1,000 | Location quotient |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Healthcare Practitioners and Technical | $126,030 | $120,340 | 5,690 | 72.79 | 1.15 |
| Management | $107,790 | $124,690 | 4,560 | 58.28 | 0.81 |
| Architecture and Engineering | $102,280 | $108,940 | 610 | 7.83 | 0.47 |
| Computer and Mathematical | $83,540 | $94,410 | 1,080 | 13.75 | 0.41 |
| Legal | $82,260 | $107,090 | 300 | 3.78 | 0.45 |
| Life, Physical, and Social Science | $79,000 | $86,280 | 960 | 12.25 | 1.29 |
| Business and Financial Operations | $76,400 | $86,100 | 3,560 | 45.57 | 0.67 |
| Educational Instruction and Library | $68,590 | $79,340 | 6,510 | 83.26 | 1.42 |
| Construction and Extraction | $61,420 | $69,890 | 3,040 | 38.84 | 0.94 |
| Installation, Maintenance, and Repair | $60,870 | $68,050 | 2,710 | 34.69 | 0.89 |
| Protective Service | $59,680 | $67,700 | 1,570 | 20.04 | 0.83 |
| Community and Social Service | $59,120 | $66,900 | 2,280 | 29.12 | 1.70 |
| Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media | $52,990 | $64,630 | 670 | 8.51 | 0.65 |
| Office and Administrative Support | $47,880 | $52,200 | 8,420 | 107.69 | 0.94 |
| Production | $46,280 | $53,060 | 2,500 | 31.96 | 0.58 |
| Transportation and Material Moving | $43,360 | $49,790 | 4,960 | 63.36 | 0.72 |
| Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance | $42,430 | $45,940 | 2,400 | 30.63 | 1.05 |
| Sales and Related | $38,940 | $49,220 | 6,790 | 86.87 | 1.01 |
| Food Preparation and Serving Related | $37,600 | $40,430 | 7,910 | 101.19 | 1.15 |
| Farming, Fishing, and Forestry | $36,670 | $41,750 | 890 | 11.33 | 4.05 |
| Personal Care and Service | $36,000 | $41,630 | 2,160 | 27.68 | 1.32 |
| Healthcare Support | $35,470 | $40,210 | 8,650 | 110.60 | 2.18 |
Every occupation in California, and the area's place among the state's metros, is on the state profile. All 286 published occupations for this area are in the wage explorer; other metros are on the metros hub.
Source and notes
Data: BLS OEWS May 2025, released 2026-05-15. Cross-industry estimates, all ownerships. BLS page: OEWS Chico, CA estimates (area 17020).
*- Wage estimate not available.
- Annual wages assume 2,080 hours a year at the hourly rate; occupations BLS publishes on one basis only show an en dash (–) on the other.
- Employment is rounded to the nearest 10 by BLS. Where BLS withholds a cell, nothing is estimated in its place.
- Jobs per 1,000 is the occupation's employment per 1,000 jobs in the Chico, CA area; the location quotient is that share divided by the national share.
- The concentration table keeps only occupations with employment of 100 or more in the area, so a quotient built on a handful of rounded jobs cannot top it.