Retail Salespersons salary in San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA
Official BLS OEWS May 2025 pay for Retail Salespersons in the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA metro area — and the estimated take-home pay on the median wage under 2026 California tax rules.
The figures
The median Retail Salespersons in the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA metro area earns $43,850 a year ($21.08 an hour), according to the BLS OEWS May 2025 estimates (full citation in Sources). The middle half of Retail Salespersons in San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA earn between $40,010 and $47,900 a year. At the ends of the distribution, the lowest-paid 10 percent earn $38,270 or less and the top 10 percent earn $58,960 or more. BLS estimates 39,460 Retail Salespersons jobs in the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA area — 16.622 of every 1,000 jobs in the area, a location quotient of 0.66 (well below the national concentration). That is 1.0% of all Retail Salespersons employment in the United States (3,897,860 jobs nationally). By employment, San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA is the #20 largest of the 25 covered metro areas for Retail Salespersons. In aggregate, Retail Salespersons in San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA earn about $1.87 billion a year (BLS employment multiplied by the mean wage). At the mean wage, the engine's take-home is $38,723.00 a year, so the aggregate take-home of San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA Retail Salespersons is about $1.53 billion. BLS reports a relative standard error of 1.8% for this employment estimate. Ranked by median pay, San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA stands #1 of the 25 metro areas covered on this site for Retail Salespersons. By employment, Retail Salespersons is the #6 largest of the 30 covered occupations in San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA. Placed against the national distribution for Retail Salespersons, the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA median of $43,850 falls above the national 75th percentile of $38,670. Across all occupations, the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA median is $74,260 a year — Retail Salespersons pay is 41.0% below the area's overall median.
Wages in detail
| Wage level | Hourly | Annual |
|---|---|---|
| Mean | $22.73 | $47,290 |
| 10th percentile | $18.40 | $38,270 |
| 25th percentile | $19.24 | $40,010 |
| Median (50th percentile) | $21.08 | $43,850 |
| 75th percentile | $23.03 | $47,900 |
| 90th percentile | $28.35 | $58,960 |
What the wage distribution says
The top 10 percent of Retail Salespersons in San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA earn 1.5 times what the bottom 10 percent earn ($58,960 against $38,270). The middle half spans $7,890 — from $40,010 to $47,900. Hourly, the 90th percentile ($28.35) is 1.54 times the 10th ($18.40). In the upper half of the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA distribution, the 75th percentile wage of $47,900 takes home $39,180.90 and the 90th percentile wage of $58,960 takes home $47,277.16 — $8,096.26 more net for $11,060 more gross. Against the median take-home of $36,141.26, the top decile keeps 1.31 times as much. The mean wage of $47,290 sits 7.8% above the median: higher-paid Retail Salespersons pull the average up in San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA. Among the 30 covered occupations in San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA, Retail Salespersons ranks #27 by median pay. In the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA wage ladder of covered occupations, Retail Salespersons sits between Fast Food and Counter Workers at $43,870 and Cashiers at $41,270. Retail Salespersons accounts for 1.7% of all employment in the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA metro area. The average covered metro employs 64,365 Retail Salespersons; San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA employs 0.6 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) | $43,850.00 |
|---|---|
| Federal income tax | $3,082.00 |
| Social Security (FICA) | $2,718.70 |
| Medicare (FICA) | $635.82 |
| California income tax | $702.30 |
| California SDI (State Disability Insurance) | $570.05 |
| Total deductions | $7,708.74 |
| Net pay (annual) | $36,141.26 |
| Net pay per biweekly paycheck | $1,390.05 |
| Total deduction rate | 17.58% of gross |
At the median, $36,141.26 of the $43,850 gross is kept ($1,390.05 per paycheck) — a deduction rate of 17.58%. The deduction rate moves with pay: 16.51% at the 10th percentile, 16.87% at the 25th percentile, 18.20% at the 75th percentile, 19.81% at the 90th percentile. Between the 25th and 75th percentile wages, annual take-home rises by $5,921.54 on a gross rise of $7,890.
The same engine at the other published points of the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA wage distribution:
| Wage point | Net per year | Net per paycheck | Deduction rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile ($38,270) | $31,953.30 | $1,228.97 | 16.51% |
| 25th percentile ($40,010) | $33,259.36 | $1,279.21 | 16.87% |
| Median ($43,850) | $36,141.26 | $1,390.05 | 17.58% |
| 75th percentile ($47,900) | $39,180.90 | $1,506.96 | 18.20% |
| 90th percentile ($58,960) | $47,277.16 | $1,818.35 | 19.81% |
Across the published distribution, take-home pay runs from $31,953.30 a year at the 10th percentile to $47,277.16 at the 90th — a spread of $15,323.86 of net pay inside one occupation and one metro area.
For scale: across all occupations, the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA median wage of $74,260 takes home $57,500.66 a year ($2,211.56 per paycheck, deduction rate 22.57%). The Retail Salespersons median take-home of $36,141.26 sits $21,359.40 (below 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 Retail Salespersons earns $35,410 a year ($17.03 an hour). The San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA median of $43,850 is $8,440 (23.8%) above the national median.
The means rank the area the same way: $47,290 a year in San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA against $37,310 nationally, a gap of $9,980 (26.7%).
Set against the whole local market, the Retail Salespersons 90th percentile of $58,960 is 29% of the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA all-occupations 90th percentile ($203,570), and its 10th percentile of $38,270 is 97% of the area-wide 10th ($39,260).
| Median annual | Median hourly | Mean annual | |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | $43,850 | $21.08 | $47,290 |
| United States | $35,410 | $17.03 | $37,310 |
Frequently asked questions
What is the median salary for Retail Salespersons in San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA?
$43,850 a year ($21.08 an hour), per the BLS OEWS May 2025 estimates. The mean is $47,290 a year. Ranked by median pay, San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA stands #1 of the 25 covered metro areas for this occupation.
What is the take-home pay on $43,850 in California?
About $36,141.26 a year ($1,390.05 per biweekly paycheck) for a single filer with no dependents and no pre-tax contributions, under 2026 rules — a total deduction rate of 17.58% of gross. At the 75th percentile wage of $47,900, take-home is $39,180.90.
How does pay in San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA compare with the national median for Retail Salespersons?
The San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA median of $43,850 is $8,440 (23.8%) above the national median of $35,410 a year. At the top of the distribution, the local 90th percentile is $58,960, against a national 90th percentile of $47,890.
How much do the top 10% of Retail Salespersons earn in San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA?
$58,960 a year or more ($28.35 an hour or more), per the BLS OEWS May 2025 estimates.
What is the take-home pay at the 90th percentile for Retail Salespersons in San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA?
On $58,960 a year, the engine gives a take-home of $47,277.16 a year ($1,818.35 per biweekly paycheck) in California under the same assumptions — a deduction rate of 19.81%.
How many Retail Salespersons jobs are there in San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA?
BLS estimates 39,460 Retail Salespersons jobs in the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA metro area — 16.622 of every 1,000 jobs in the area.
How concentrated are Retail Salespersons jobs in San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA?
The location quotient is 0.66 — well below the national concentration. 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 Retail Salespersons in San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA?
From $31,953.30 a year at the 10th percentile wage ($38,270) to $47,277.16 at the 90th ($58,960), under the same single-filer assumptions in California.
What is the total wage bill for Retail Salespersons in San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA?
About $1.87 billion a year — the BLS employment estimate of 39,460 multiplied by the mean wage of $47,290.
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.