Welder salary in Santa Maria, CA
Updated September 26, 2026 with BLS data from May 2025
Welders in the Santa Maria–Santa Barbara, CA area earn a median of $52,800 a year, or $25.39 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. The highest-paid 10% make over $80,090 a year. Statewide, welders earn a median of $58,060; Santa Maria is 9% below it.
- Apprentice starting pay (estimate)
- $19.58/hr
- Jobs in this area
- 170
- After cost of living
- $48,530
- Median hourly pay
- $25.39/hr
- vs U.S. median
- −2%
- vs California median
- −9%
Entry-level to top welder pay
| Stage | Yearly pay | Hourly pay |
|---|---|---|
| Entry level | $40,730–$47,160$19.58–$22.67/hr | |
| Experienced welder | $52,800$25.39/hr | |
| Top earners | $66,990–$80,090$32.21–$38.51/hr |
Estimated from BLS percentiles (10th–25th, median, 75th–90th); BLS does not report pay by license level.
How Santa Maria, CA compares
- Santa Maria ranks 14th of 25 California metro areas for welder pay.
- Welders are less concentrated in the Santa Maria area than nationally: 0.9 of every 1,000 jobs, 0.32 times the U.S. share.
- The 90th-percentile wage, $80,090, is 2.0 times the 10th-percentile wage, $40,730: a measure of how much pay rises with experience and specialty.
Other California metro areas
Other trades in Santa Maria, CA
Questions
- How much do welders make in Santa Maria, CA?
- Welders in the Santa Maria–Santa Barbara, CA area earn a median of $52,800 a year, or $25.39 an hour, according to May 2025 BLS data. The highest-paid 10% make over $80,090 a year.
- How much do welders make an hour in Santa Maria, CA?
- The median hourly wage is $25.39. The middle half earn between $22.67 and $32.21 an hour. (BLS, May 2025.)
- What do apprentice welders make in Santa Maria, CA?
- BLS doesn't report pay by license level. The 10th-percentile wage, $19.58 an hour ($40,730 a year), is a reasonable estimate of starting pay; the 25th percentile is $22.67.
- Do welders make more in Santa Maria or San Francisco?
- San Francisco pays more: the median is $52,800 in Santa Maria and $64,320 in San Francisco, a 18% difference.
- How does Santa Maria pay compare with the rest of California?
- The Santa Maria median of $52,800 is 9% 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 42200 (Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, 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 (108.8, where the U.S. average is 100). Page updated September 26, 2026. How we calculate these figures