How much do welders make an hour in Merced, CA?

The median hourly wage is $24.20. The middle half earn between $21.83 and $28.05 an hour. (BLS, May 2025.)

What do apprentice welders make in Merced, CA?

BLS doesn't report pay by license level. The 10th-percentile wage, $20.83 an hour ($43,330 a year), is a reasonable estimate of starting pay; the 25th percentile is $21.83.

Do welders make more in Merced or San Francisco?

San Francisco pays more: the median is $50,340 in Merced and $64,320 in San Francisco, a 22% difference.

How does Merced pay compare with the rest of California?

The Merced median of $50,340 is 13% less than the California median of $58,060.

Welder salary in Merced, CA

Updated September 26, 2026 with BLS data from May 2025

Welders in the Merced, CA area earn a median of $50,340 a year, or $24.20 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. The highest-paid 10% make over $62,530 a year. Across all of California, the median is $58,060, so Merced pays 13% less than the state as a whole.

Median yearly pay$50,340

Bottom 10% under$43,330Top 10% over$62,530

Apprentice starting pay (estimate): $20.83/hr
Jobs in this area: 310
After cost of living: $51,220
Median hourly pay: $24.20/hr
vs U.S. median: −6%
vs California median: −13%

Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 (area 32900, Merced, CA). Excludes self-employed welders. Cost of living: BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024. *Starting pay is estimated from the 10th percentile; BLS does not report pay by license level.

Entry-level to top welder pay

Stage	Yearly pay	Hourly pay
Entry level	$43,330–$45,410$20.83–$21.83/hr
Experienced welder	$50,340$24.20/hr
Top earners	$58,340–$62,530$28.05–$30.06/hr

Estimated from BLS percentiles (10th–25th, median, 75th–90th); BLS does not report pay by license level.

How Merced, CA compares

Merced ranks 22nd of 25 California metro areas for welder pay.
Welders are more concentrated in the Merced area than nationally: 3.8 of every 1,000 jobs, 1.4 times the U.S. share.
The 90th-percentile wage, $62,530, is 1.4 times the 10th-percentile wage, $43,330: a measure of how much pay rises with experience and specialty.

Other California metro areas

Other trades in Merced, CA

Electrician HVAC technician Plumber

Questions

How much do welders make in Merced, CA?: Welders in the Merced, CA area earn a median of $50,340 a year, or $24.20 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. The highest-paid 10% make over $62,530 a year.
How much do welders make an hour in Merced, CA?: The median hourly wage is $24.20. The middle half earn between $21.83 and $28.05 an hour. (BLS, May 2025.)
What do apprentice welders make in Merced, CA?: BLS doesn't report pay by license level. The 10th-percentile wage, $20.83 an hour ($43,330 a year), is a reasonable estimate of starting pay; the 25th percentile is $21.83.
Do welders make more in Merced or San Francisco?: San Francisco pays more: the median is $50,340 in Merced and $64,320 in San Francisco, a 22% difference.
How does Merced pay compare with the rest of California?: The Merced median of $50,340 is 13% less than the California median of $58,060.

About this data

Wages are from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey for May 2025, occupation 51-4121 (Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers), area code 32900 (Merced, CA). BLS counts wage and salary workers only, so self-employed welders 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 (98.3, where the U.S. average is 100). Page updated September 26, 2026. How we calculate these figures