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Optometrist salary in California

Open optometrist jobs in California post a median of $95.75 an hour, the middle half $92.25–$98 (about $199,200 a year full time), $3.50 above the national posted median. From 8 jobs at 5 employers that state their pay.

$95.75
Median posted /hr
$92–$98
Middle half /hr
$199,200
A year, full time
estimate, 2,080 hours
$65.53
BLS median in CA
May 2025

The jobs themselves: Optometrist jobs in California · Optometrist pay nationwide

What optometrists are paid in California

Each bar counts the open jobs posting an hourly rate in its step of pay (a range at its midpoint).

Posted hourly rates of 8 open jobs in California. Lowest posted $70.17, highest $122.78.

Posted on open jobs in California

$92.25–$98/hr

Middle half of 7 employer rates (each employer's advertised range once), median $95.75. 9% of the 86 open optometrist jobs in California state an hourly rate.

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Optometrist in California: new openings every week

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Optometrist pay by employer in California

What each employer posts for optometrists here, the employers with the most jobs stating pay first.

EmployerMedian postedPosted rangeJobs stating pay
Kaiser Permanente$105.50$76.20–$122.784
Alameda Health System$96.75$72.52–$120.881
Providence$95.75$74.17–$117.101
UCSF Health$93.75$79.99–$107.671
Salud Para la Gente$78$70.17–$861

Median of each employer's jobs in California (a range at its midpoint), and its lowest and highest rate here. An employer's name opens its pay for optometrists nationwide when it has such a page.

Jobs that state a yearly salary

Measured on their own, never converted to hourly.

7 open jobs in California state a yearly salary: a median of $161,300, the middle half $141,900 to $178,800.

Best-paid open optometrist jobs in California

The open jobs posting the highest hourly rates tonight, at most two from one employer.

What BLS measures in California

What people employed in the occupation earned in the state, at every level of experience, from the BLS survey. A posting advertises what a new hire is offered.

Hourly wages, BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, California. Each figure opens its BLS page.
BLS occupation10th pct25th pctMedian75th pct90th pctEmployed
Optometrists (29-1041)$48.02 (source: BLS OEWS, Optometrists, opens in a new tab)$59.12 (source: BLS OEWS, Optometrists, opens in a new tab)$65.53 (source: BLS OEWS, Optometrists, opens in a new tab)$79.95 (source: BLS OEWS, Optometrists, opens in a new tab)$102.74 (source: BLS OEWS, Optometrists, opens in a new tab)6,890 (source: BLS OEWS, Optometrists, opens in a new tab)

BLS median by metro area

Optometrist salary in California: common questions

How much does an optometrist make in California?

Open optometrist jobs in California that state an hourly rate post a median of $95.75, the middle half $92.25–$98 (8 jobs from 5 employers). Full time that is about $199,200 a year. BLS measured a median of $65.53/hr ($136,300 a year) for people employed in the occupation in California (May 2025).

How does California compare with the rest of the country?

The posted median in California ($95.75) is $3.50 above the national posted median of $92.25. In the BLS survey California ranks 22 of 52 by median wage.

Where do these figures come from?

From the pay open jobs state, read every night from each employer's own job board: 8 of 86 open optometrist jobs in California (9%) state an hourly rate. No pay is estimated for a job that states none; "up to" ceilings and weekly travel rates are left out.

Optometrist pay in other states

Optometrist salary nationwide →Every healthcare salary →

Sources and method

Only pay a job states is used, a range at its midpoint. In the state's median and middle half each employer's advertised range counts once, so an employer posting one range in many towns does not set the figure; a town's median follows the same rule. "Up to" ceilings, weekly travel rates and rates far from the occupation's median are left out. A state has a page while at least 8 jobs from 3 employers state a rate there. The yearly estimate is the hourly rate times 2,080 hours. BLS figures are as published.
  1. CareJobs.Now job board: the pay open jobs state, read nightly from each employer's own careers site, published October 24, 2026
  2. BLS OEWS May 2025: Optometrists (SOC 29-1041), every state, published May 15, 2026
  3. BLS OEWS May 2025: Optometrists, national, published May 15, 2026
  4. BLS OEWS May 2025: Optometrists by metropolitan area, published May 15, 2026

Cite this page

CareJobs.Now. (2026). Optometrist salary in California. Data as of October 24, 2026. https://carejobs.now/salaries/optometrist/california

How the board counts