Heavy equipment operator salary in San Francisco, CA
Updated September 27, 2026 with BLS data from May 2025
Heavy equipment operators in the San Francisco–Oakland–Fremont, CA area earn a median of $124,750 a year, or $59.97 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. One in ten earns more than $149,260. Across all of California, the median is $87,160, so San Francisco pays 43% more than the state as a whole.
- Apprentice starting pay (estimate)
- $29.29/hr
- Jobs in this area
- 4,080
- After cost of living
- $107,900
- Median hourly pay
- $59.97/hr
- vs U.S. median
- +108%
- vs California median
- +43%
Entry-level to top heavy equipment operator pay
| Stage | Yearly pay | Hourly pay |
|---|---|---|
| Apprentice / entry level | $60,910–$79,200$29.29–$38.08/hr | |
| Experienced operator | $124,750$59.97/hr | |
| Top earners | $133,820–$149,260$64.34–$71.76/hr |
Estimated from BLS percentiles (10th–25th, median, 75th–90th); BLS does not report pay by license level.
How San Francisco, CA compares
- San Francisco has the highest heavy equipment operator median of the 25 California metro areas with published pay.
- Heavy equipment operators are less concentrated in the San Francisco area than nationally: 1.7 of every 1,000 jobs, 0.56 times the U.S. share.
- The 90th-percentile wage, $149,260, is 2.5 times the 10th-percentile wage, $60,910: a measure of how much pay rises with experience and specialty.
Other California metro areas
Other trades in San Francisco, CA
Questions
- How much do heavy equipment operators make in San Francisco, CA?
- Heavy equipment operators in the San Francisco–Oakland–Fremont, CA area earn a median of $124,750 a year, or $59.97 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. One in ten earns more than $149,260.
- How much do heavy equipment operators make an hour in San Francisco, CA?
- The median hourly wage is $59.97. The middle half earn between $38.08 and $64.34 an hour. (BLS, May 2025.)
- What do apprentice heavy equipment operators make in San Francisco, CA?
- BLS doesn't report pay by license level. The 10th-percentile wage, $29.29 an hour ($60,910 a year), is a reasonable estimate of starting pay; the 25th percentile is $38.08.
- Do heavy equipment operators make more in San Francisco or San Jose?
- Pay is about the same: the median is $124,750 in San Francisco and $124,340 in San Jose.
- How does San Francisco pay compare with the rest of California?
- The San Francisco median of $124,750 is 43% more than the California median of $87,160.
About this data
Wages are from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey for May 2025, occupation 47-2073 (Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators), area code 41860 (San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA). BLS counts wage and salary workers only, so self-employed heavy equipment operators and business owners aren't included. The cost-of-living figure divides the median by the Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parity for 2024 (115.6, where the U.S. average is 100). Page updated September 27, 2026. How we calculate these figures