Skilled Wages

Crane operator salary in California

Median $38.25 an hour for 2,130 crane and tower operators, May 2025, with the union scale by county and the trend since 1999.

$38.25/hrMedian hourly wageCalifornia, May data
$79,570/yrMedian annual payfull-time equivalent
$24.30 – $65.3010th to 90th percentilehourly range
2,130Jobs countedemployer survey

Data compiled by Skilled WagesBLS OEWS May 2025; prevailing wage as of 2026-09-28

Crane operator pay in California: the full range

Wage percentiles, CaliforniaMarket wage, 10th-90th pctU.S. reference$0$20$40$60$80/hrCalifornia: 10th $24.30 · 25th $32.03 · median $38.25 · 75th $48.49 · 90th $65.30California$38.25$24.30$65.30United States: 10th $20.50 · 25th $25.29 · median $32.73 · 75th $40.00 · 90th $49.79United States$32.73
Hourly wage percentiles for crane and tower operators: California vs United States, May 2025.

California ranks 15th of 50 states for median crane operator pay, and 24th once adjusted for cost of living (the cost-of-living-adjusted median is $34.55). 2,130 crane and tower operators work in the state.

Career stage (approximate)HourlyAnnualWhere it sits in the distribution
Apprentice / entry$24.30 – $32.03$50,550 – $66,620roughly the 10th–25th percentile
Journeyman$32.03 – $48.49$66,620 – $100,860the middle half, around the median
Master / foreman / specialist$48.49 – $65.30$100,860 – $135,820the 75th–90th percentile and above

Where does your pay fall?



Crane operator pay by metro in California

Ranked median wages$0$20$40$60/hrSan Francisco: $47.31San Francisco$47.31Los Angeles: $39.18Los Angeles$39.18San Diego: $38.33San Diego$38.33Oxnard: $37.65Oxnard$37.65Riverside: $37.57Riverside$37.57Fresno: $37.18Fresno$37.18Vallejo: $37.17Vallejo$37.17Stockton: $37.08Stockton$37.08Bakersfield: $34.06Bakersfield$34.06Sacramento: $31.01Sacramento$31.01
Median hourly wage for crane and tower operators by metro area in California, May 2025.
Metro10thMedian $/hr90thJobsvs state
San Francisco$24.30$47.31$74.2824024% above
Los Angeles$23.76$39.18$65.305902% above
San Diego$32.37$38.33$59.66210about the same as
Oxnard$21.26$37.65$41.55502% below
Riverside$24.12$37.57$43.472602% below
Fresno$31.01$37.18$64.74503% below
Vallejo$32.24$37.17$60.75303% below
Stockton$20.83$37.08$63.65503% below
Bakersfield$29.49$34.06$55.6716011% below
Sacramento$21.61$31.01$46.3817019% below

Crane operator wages in California over time

California, 1999-2025CaliforniaUnited StatesSOC 2010SOC 2018 / Method changeExact wages$10$20$30$40$50200020052010201520202025$38.25California$32.73United States
Median hourly wage for crane and tower operators, California vs United States, 1999–2025, nominal dollars.
Table
YearCalifornia $/hrIn 2025 $US $/hrJobs
1999$17.07$32.99$15.291,590
2000$25.93$48.48$15.893,270
2001$25.55$46.45$16.643,190
2002$29.99$53.67$17.473,310
2003$30.25$52.93$17.863,360
2004$25.50$43.46$17.992,080
2005$25.18$41.51$18.692,530
2006$27.86$44.49$18.772,580
2007$22.37$34.73$19.363,000
2008$28.51$42.63$20.133,470
2009$28.99$43.50$21.223,320
2010$34.82$51.41$22.233,260
2011$35.43$50.71$22.342,540
2012$32.33$45.33$22.732,870
2013$35.97$49.71$23.383,140
2014$36.05$49.03$24.393,660
2015$33.41$45.38$24.833,620
2016$28.51$38.24$25.082,900
2017$27.50$36.12$25.103,270
2018$30.43$39.01$26.033,310
2019$32.99$41.54$27.263,530
2020$41.24$51.30$28.712,970
2021$36.63$43.52$29.923,710
2022$26.90$29.59$29.496,550
2023$28.82$30.45$31.102,720
2024$33.64$34.53$31.912,010
2025$38.25$38.25$32.732,130

In today's dollars, the median crane operator wage in California changed by -15.7% over the last ten years of data.

Union scale and prevailing wage for crane operators in California

On federally funded construction in California, contractors must pay crane operators at least the Davis-Bacon rate for the county. 53 of the 53 counties with a Building rate use a union contract rate (typical package $94.77 an hour including fringe); the rest use a survey rate (typical —). The market median for the state is $38.25.

Union contract rateSurvey rate
Union / prevailing package, $/hr, CAAlameda: $94.77 (union)Alpine: $73.70 (union)Amador: $73.70 (union)Butte: $73.70 (union)Calaveras: $94.77 (union)Colusa: $73.70 (union)Contra Costa: $94.77 (union)Del Norte: —El Dorado: $73.70 (union)Fresno: $94.77 (union)Glenn: $73.70 (union)Humboldt: —Imperial: $103.95 (union)Inyo: $103.95 (union)Kern: $103.95 (union)Kings: $94.77 (union)Lake: —Lassen: $73.70 (union)Los Angeles: $103.95 (union)Madera: $94.77 (union)Marin: $73.70 (union)Mariposa: $94.77 (union)Mendocino: —Merced: $94.77 (union)Modoc: $73.70 (union)Mono: $103.95 (union)Monterey: $94.77 (union)Napa: $73.70 (union)Nevada: $73.70 (union)Orange: $103.95 (union)Placer: $73.70 (union)Plumas: $73.70 (union)Riverside: $103.95 (union)Sacramento: $73.70 (union)San Benito: $94.77 (union)San Bernardino: $103.95 (union)San Diego: $103.95 (union)San Francisco: $94.77 (union)San Joaquin: $94.77 (union)San Luis Obispo: $103.95 (union)San Mateo: $94.77 (union)Santa Barbara: $103.95 (union)Santa Clara: $94.77 (union)Santa Cruz: $94.77 (union)Shasta: $73.70 (union)Sierra: $73.70 (union)Siskiyou: $73.70 (union)Solano: $73.70 (union)Sonoma: $73.70 (union)Stanislaus: $94.77 (union)Sutter: $73.70 (union)Tehama: $73.70 (union)Trinity: $73.70 (union)Tulare: —Tuolumne: $94.77 (union)Ventura: $103.95 (union)Yolo: $73.70 (union)Yuba: $73.70 (union)Union / prevailing package, $/hr$94.77n/a
Davis-Bacon base + fringe for crane operators by county, Building construction. Hatched counties use a survey rate rather than a union contract.
Market median vs prevailing wage by countyMarket medianPrevailing (union)$25$50$75$100$125/hrKern (Bakersfield): market median $34.06, prevailing (union) $103.95, gap +$69.89Kern (Bakersfield)+$69.89Riverside (Riverside): market median $37.57, prevailing (union) $103.95, gap +$66.38Riverside (Riverside)+$66.38Ventura (Oxnard): market median $37.65, prevailing (union) $103.95, gap +$66.30Ventura (Oxnard)+$66.30Imperial (California): market median $38.25, prevailing (union) $103.95, gap +$65.70Imperial (California)+$65.70San Diego (San Diego): market median $38.33, prevailing (union) $103.95, gap +$65.62San Diego (San Diego)+$65.62Los Angeles (Los Angeles): market median $39.18, prevailing (union) $103.95, gap +$64.77Los Angeles (Los Angeles)+$64.77San Joaquin (Stockton): market median $37.08, prevailing (union) $94.77, gap +$57.69San Joaquin (Stockton)+$57.69Fresno (Fresno): market median $37.18, prevailing (union) $94.77, gap +$57.59Fresno (Fresno)+$57.59Alameda (San Francisco): market median $47.31, prevailing (union) $94.77, gap +$47.46Alameda (San Francisco)+$47.46El Dorado (Sacramento): market median $31.01, prevailing (union) $73.70, gap +$42.69El Dorado (Sacramento)+$42.69Solano (Vallejo): market median $37.17, prevailing (union) $73.70, gap +$36.53Solano (Vallejo)+$36.53
Market median (BLS metro wage) vs the Davis-Bacon package (base + fringe) for crane operators, metro counties in California.
CountyRate sourceBaseFringeTotalDetermination
ImperialUnion ENGI0012-024 2025-07-01$70.75$33.20$103.95CA20260002
InyoUnion ENGI0012-024 2025-07-01$70.75$33.20$103.95CA20260020
KernUnion ENGI0012-024 2025-07-01$70.75$33.20$103.95CA20260020
Los AngelesUnion ENGI0012-024 2025-07-01$70.75$33.20$103.95CA20260022
MonoUnion ENGI0012-024 2025-07-01$70.75$33.20$103.95CA20260020
OrangeUnion ENGI0012-024 2025-07-01$70.75$33.20$103.95CA20260024
RiversideUnion ENGI0012-024 2025-07-01$70.75$33.20$103.95CA20260025
San BernardinoUnion ENGI0012-024 2025-07-01$70.75$33.20$103.95CA20260026
San DiegoUnion ENGI0012-024 2025-07-01$70.75$33.20$103.95CA20260001
San Luis ObispoUnion ENGI0012-024 2025-07-01$70.75$33.20$103.95CA20260012
Santa BarbaraUnion ENGI0012-024 2025-07-01$70.75$33.20$103.95CA20260014
VenturaUnion ENGI0012-024 2025-07-01$70.75$33.20$103.95CA20260015
AlamedaUnion ENGI0003-001 2025-06-30$62.24$32.53$94.77CA20260018
CalaverasUnion ENGI0003-001 2025-06-30$62.24$32.53$94.77CA20260018
Contra CostaUnion ENGI0003-001 2025-06-30$62.24$32.53$94.77CA20260018

Building construction type, current revisions as of 2026-09-28. Residential, Heavy and Highway rates differ; look them up on the California prevailing wage page. This is not the official wage determination.

Is construction work growing in California?

898.7kConstruction jobsCalifornia, 2026-08
-1.4%Change over 12 monthsseasonally unadjusted
Construction employment, 1990-2026200k400k600k800k1,000k1,200k19901995200020052010201520202025899kAug 2026
Construction employment in California (thousands), construction supersector, BLS CES, not seasonally adjusted. Grey bands are recessions.

Contractor pay by county

Average pay at specialty trade contractors establishments by county (all employees, not just crane operators), from the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2025 annual averages.

CountyEmployeesAverage annual payAvg weekly wage
Santa Clara County36,245$125,489$2,413
San Francisco County9,262$117,920$2,268
Alameda County30,452$108,326$2,083
San Mateo County9,114$100,601$1,935
Napa County2,507$99,591$1,915
Tehama County591$98,752$1,899
Contra Costa County14,636$93,476$1,798
Marin County3,891$91,182$1,754
Orange County71,320$90,517$1,741
Solano County6,754$86,478$1,663
Yolo County2,809$86,258$1,659
Sonoma County10,718$85,602$1,646

Keep comparing

Crane operator pay in neighbouring states

Other trades in California

Questions this page answers

How much do crane operators make in California?

The median crane operator in California earned $38.25 an hour ($79,570 a year) in May 2025, 17% above the national median of $32.73. The middle half earn $32.03–$48.49; the top 10% earn more than $65.30.

Where does California rank for crane operator pay?

California ranks 15th of 50 states for crane operator pay, with a median of $38.25 an hour, and 24th after adjusting for California's cost of living (BEA price parity 110.7, US = 100).

What is the union crane operator rate in California?

Davis-Bacon determinations list a union contract rate for crane operators in 53 counties, with a typical package of $94.77 an hour including fringe benefits; see the county table above.

How many crane operators work in California?

BLS counted 2,130 crane and tower operators in California in May 2025, 0.1 per 1,000 jobs (location quotient 0.42; 1.0 is the national average concentration).

Sources and notes

  • BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, California and metro areas, SOC 53-7021.
  • BLS Current Employment Statistics, state construction employment through 2026-08.
  • BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2025 annual averages.
  • BEA Regional Price Parities (cost-of-living adjustment).
  • SAM.gov Davis-Bacon wage determinations, current revisions as of 2026-09-28. Not the official determination.