California has recently been named one of the highest-paying states in the nation for physician assistants. In fact, in 2014 the United States Department of Labor published reports indicating the Santa Rosa-Petaluma region was the fourth highest-paying metropolitan area for physician assistants in the country. At that time, physician assistants working here earned an average annual salary of $133,910 and an average hourly wage of $64.38.
Along with substantial salary offers, California also stood out as one of the largest employers of physician assistants in 2014. For example:
- California held the second highest employment level of physician assistants in the country
- The Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale area held the second highest employment level for physician assistants among all other metropolitan areas in the country
- Yuba City held the fourth highest concentration of physician assistant jobs compared with all other metropolitan areas in the country
Physician assistants can expect an optimistic occupational outlook in the coming years. The federal government predicts that the number of physician assistants working in California will rise from 8,300 in 2012 to 11,100 by 2022. The employment projection shows that the field of physician assisting will experience around 430 annual job openings.
Experience Yields High Salaries for Physician Assistants in California
In 2014, the United States Department of Labor reported that physician assistants employed in California earned an average annual salary of $102,800 and an average hourly wage of $49.43. Physician assistants that aspire to earn more than this state average are advised to gain several years of experience fine-tuning their clinical skills.
In that same year, entry-level physician assistants collected an average annual salary of $51,600 and an average hourly wage of $24.80. Mid-level physician assistants received twice this amount with an average annual salary of $105,000 and an average hourly wage of $50.46, while the most experience physician assistants in California were handsomely paid an average annual salary of $148,600 and an average hourly wage of $71.43.
Regional Physician Assistant Salaries in California
In 2014, the United States Department of Labor reported average salary statistics for physician assistants employed in several of California’s major regions:
- Bakersfield-Delano: $105,430
- Chico: $109,940
- Fresno: $115,570
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale: $89,810
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana: $94,490
- Madera-Chowchilla: $106,460
- Merced: $105,580
- Modesto: $114,540
- Oakland-Fremont-Hayward: $109,490
- Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura: $99,630
- Redding: $108,510
- Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario: $100,950
- Sacramento-Arden-Arcade: $110,420
- Salinas: $104,210
- San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos: $102,920
- San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont: $109,600
- San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City: $109,800
- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara: $116,830
- San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles: $114,460
- Santa Ana-Anaheim-Irvine: $109,910
- Santa Barbara-Santa Maria-Goleta: $91,850
- Santa Cruz-Watsonville: $120,510
- Stockton: $114,590
- Vallejo-Fairfield: $120,850
- Visalia-Porterville: $106,200
- Yuba City: $100,210
- North Coast Region nonmetropolitan area: $93,780
The following data table provides a more detailed analysis of physician assistant salaries throughout California (US Department of Labor, 2014):