Project Management Specialists salary in San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA
Official BLS OEWS May 2025 pay for Project Management Specialists in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA metro area — and the estimated take-home pay on the median wage under 2026 California tax rules.
The figures
The median Project Management Specialists in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA metro area earns $117,460 a year ($56.47 an hour), according to the BLS OEWS May 2025 estimates (full citation in Sources). The middle half of Project Management Specialists in San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA earn between $86,370 and $139,940 a year. At the ends of the distribution, the lowest-paid 10 percent earn $69,660 or less and the top 10 percent earn $171,400 or more. BLS estimates 10,740 Project Management Specialists jobs in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA area — 6.981 of every 1,000 jobs in the area, a location quotient of 1.02 (about the same concentration as the nation). That is 1.0% of all Project Management Specialists employment in the United States (1,066,670 jobs nationally). By employment, San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA is the #23 largest of the 25 covered metro areas for Project Management Specialists. In aggregate, Project Management Specialists in San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA earn about $1.29 billion a year (BLS employment multiplied by the mean wage). At the mean wage, the engine's take-home is $84,996.98 a year, so the aggregate take-home of San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA Project Management Specialists is about $0.91 billion. BLS reports a relative standard error of 5.8% for this employment estimate. Ranked by median pay, San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA stands #5 of the 25 metro areas covered on this site for Project Management Specialists. By employment, Project Management Specialists is the #24 largest of the 30 covered occupations in San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA. Placed against the national distribution for Project Management Specialists, the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA median of $117,460 falls between the national median ($102,320) and the national 75th percentile ($133,100). Across all occupations, the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA median is $58,690 a year — Project Management Specialists pay is 100.1% above the area's overall median.
Wages in detail
| Wage level | Hourly | Annual |
|---|---|---|
| Mean | $57.76 | $120,130 |
| 10th percentile | $33.49 | $69,660 |
| 25th percentile | $41.52 | $86,370 |
| Median (50th percentile) | $56.47 | $117,460 |
| 75th percentile | $67.28 | $139,940 |
| 90th percentile | $82.40 | $171,400 |
What the wage distribution says
The top 10 percent of Project Management Specialists in San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA earn 2.5 times what the bottom 10 percent earn ($171,400 against $69,660). The middle half spans $53,570 — from $86,370 to $139,940. Hourly, the 90th percentile ($82.40) is 2.46 times the 10th ($33.49). In the upper half of the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA distribution, the 75th percentile wage of $139,940 takes home $96,470.60 and the 90th percentile wage of $171,400 takes home $114,638.62 — $18,168.02 more net for $31,460 more gross. Against the median take-home of $83,401.30, the top decile keeps 1.37 times as much. The mean wage of $120,130 sits 2.3% above the median: higher-paid Project Management Specialists pull the average up in San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA. Among the 30 covered occupations in San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA, Project Management Specialists ranks #4 by median pay. In the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA wage ladder of covered occupations, Project Management Specialists sits between General and Operations Managers at $119,600 and Business Operations Specialists, All Other at $96,580. Project Management Specialists accounts for 0.7% of all employment in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA metro area. The average covered metro employs 21,846 Project Management Specialists; San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA employs 0.5 times that.
Take-home pay on the median wage in California
Single filer, no dependents, no pre-tax contributions, paid biweekly, a full year of W-2 wages in California; city and local taxes are not included:
| Gross pay (annual) | $117,460.00 |
|---|---|
| Federal income tax | $17,011.20 |
| Social Security (FICA) | $7,282.52 |
| Medicare (FICA) | $1,703.17 |
| California income tax | $6,534.64 |
| California SDI (State Disability Insurance) | $1,526.98 |
| Total deductions | $34,058.70 |
| Net pay (annual) | $83,401.30 |
| Net pay per biweekly paycheck | $3,207.74 |
| Total deduction rate | 29.00% of gross |
At the median, $83,401.30 of the $117,460 gross is kept ($3,207.74 per paycheck) — a deduction rate of 29.00%. The deduction rate moves with pay: 21.49% at the 10th percentile, 24.95% at the 25th percentile, 31.06% at the 75th percentile, 33.12% at the 90th percentile. Between the 25th and 75th percentile wages, annual take-home rises by $31,645.76 on a gross rise of $53,570.
The same engine at the other published points of the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA wage distribution:
| Wage point | Net per year | Net per paycheck | Deduction rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile ($69,660) | $54,692.32 | $2,103.55 | 21.49% |
| 25th percentile ($86,370) | $64,824.84 | $2,493.26 | 24.95% |
| Median ($117,460) | $83,401.30 | $3,207.74 | 29.00% |
| 75th percentile ($139,940) | $96,470.60 | $3,710.41 | 31.06% |
| 90th percentile ($171,400) | $114,638.62 | $4,409.18 | 33.12% |
Across the published distribution, take-home pay runs from $54,692.32 a year at the 10th percentile to $114,638.62 at the 90th — a spread of $59,946.30 of net pay inside one occupation and one metro area.
For scale: across all occupations, the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA median wage of $58,690 takes home $47,079.96 a year ($1,810.77 per paycheck, deduction rate 19.78%). The Project Management Specialists median take-home of $83,401.30 sits $36,321.34 (above that area-wide figure.
Run your own numbers
Your own withholding depends on your Form W-4, your benefits and your other income — run your exact figures through the calculator:
Against the national median
Nationally, the median Project Management Specialists earns $102,320 a year ($49.19 an hour). The San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA median of $117,460 is $15,140 (14.8%) above the national median.
The means rank the area the same way: $120,130 a year in San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA against $110,740 nationally, a gap of $9,390 (8.5%).
Set against the whole local market, the Project Management Specialists 90th percentile of $171,400 is 112% of the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA all-occupations 90th percentile ($152,580), and its 10th percentile of $69,660 is 192% of the area-wide 10th ($36,250).
| Median annual | Median hourly | Mean annual | |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA | $117,460 | $56.47 | $120,130 |
| United States | $102,320 | $49.19 | $110,740 |
Frequently asked questions
What is the median salary for Project Management Specialists in San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA?
$117,460 a year ($56.47 an hour), per the BLS OEWS May 2025 estimates. The mean is $120,130 a year. Ranked by median pay, San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA stands #5 of the 25 covered metro areas for this occupation.
What is the take-home pay on $117,460 in California?
About $83,401.30 a year ($3,207.74 per biweekly paycheck) for a single filer with no dependents and no pre-tax contributions, under 2026 rules — a total deduction rate of 29.00% of gross. At the 75th percentile wage of $139,940, take-home is $96,470.60.
How does pay in San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA compare with the national median for Project Management Specialists?
The San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA median of $117,460 is $15,140 (14.8%) above the national median of $102,320 a year. At the top of the distribution, the local 90th percentile is $171,400, against a national 90th percentile of $167,970.
How much do the top 10% of Project Management Specialists earn in San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA?
$171,400 a year or more ($82.40 an hour or more), per the BLS OEWS May 2025 estimates.
What is the take-home pay at the 90th percentile for Project Management Specialists in San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA?
On $171,400 a year, the engine gives a take-home of $114,638.62 a year ($4,409.18 per biweekly paycheck) in California under the same assumptions — a deduction rate of 33.12%.
How many Project Management Specialists jobs are there in San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA?
BLS estimates 10,740 Project Management Specialists jobs in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA metro area — 6.981 of every 1,000 jobs in the area.
How concentrated are Project Management Specialists jobs in San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA?
The location quotient is 1.02 — about the same concentration as the nation. A quotient of 1.0 means the occupation's share of local employment equals its national share.
How much does take-home pay vary for Project Management Specialists in San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA?
From $54,692.32 a year at the 10th percentile wage ($69,660) to $114,638.62 at the 90th ($171,400), under the same single-filer assumptions in California.
What is the total wage bill for Project Management Specialists in San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA?
About $1.29 billion a year — the BLS employment estimate of 10,740 multiplied by the mean wage of $120,130.
Sources and method
Wage data: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 estimates (released May 15, 2026), retrieved October 27, 2026 — bls.gov/oes. OEWS figures are survey estimates for May 2025, not job offers. Take-home pay is computed by this site's paycheck engine with 2026 federal and state rules; the method, and what the engine does not model, is documented in the paycheck methodology guide. Estimates only — not tax advice.