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California · Occupational wage benchmark

Financial and Investment Analysts Salary in California

What Financial and Investment Analysts actually earn in California — the published BLS median, what it is worth after local costs, and how it ranks against every other state.

Direct answer
Financial and Investment Analysts in California earn a median of $109,110 per year (+6.2% vs national, #6 of 51 states). Because California's price level is 110.7 against a U.S. average of 100, that salary carries roughly the purchasing power of $98,546 nationally. These are BLS occupational wage benchmarks across all workers in the occupation — not MBA-graduate-specific outcomes.

Sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) (May 2024 estimates (published April 2025)), California state estimates for SOC 13-2051; cost-of-living adjustment derived from U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis — Regional Price Parities (RPP) (2024). Occupational wage benchmarks across all workers, not MBA-specific outcomes.

Median annual wage
$109,110
Financial and Investment Analysts in California
Adjusted for cost of living
$98,546
California price level 110.7 (U.S. = 100)
Rank among states
#6 of 51
#29 after cost of living
Workers employed
45,380
in California

What Financial and Investment Analysts earn in California, adjusted for what it costs to live there

A headline wage only means something next to local prices. Once local prices are accounted for, California drops 23 places — a higher headline wage is partly consumed by a higher cost of living.

StateMedian (nominal)Adjusted for cost of living
Wyoming$187,090$201,843
New York$127,930$118,540
Oregon$120,590$116,669
Massachusetts$111,040$104,995
Connecticut$109,500$105,685
California$109,110$98,546
New Jersey$108,610$99,821
Washington$107,210$100,184
District of Columbia$105,780$96,250
Virginia$105,490$104,338
Colorado$103,850$100,774
Minnesota$102,990$104,430
North Carolina$102,390$108,549
Alaska$102,240$99,884
Delaware$101,800$101,996
Illinois$101,180$101,223
Idaho$100,830$105,588
Rhode Island$100,550$98,309
Maryland$100,370$95,628
Georgia$99,420$103,247
Montana$99,190$104,802
South Dakota$99,150$111,925
Texas$99,150$102,156
Vermont$99,090$101,156
Missouri$98,420$108,372
Wisconsin$95,570$101,568
Michigan$95,420$99,172
Hawaii$94,640$86,075
Florida$94,490$91,371
Ohio$94,280$101,623
South Carolina$93,670$99,916
Arizona$93,540$92,911
Tennessee$92,990$101,219
Iowa$92,370$105,251
Utah$91,370$92,420
Alabama$91,290$102,777
Maine$88,320$91,005
New Mexico$87,630$95,031
Nebraska$85,320$94,692
Kansas$84,860$94,218
Pennsylvania$84,460$86,562
Nevada$83,430$83,448
New Hampshire$82,520$79,220
Indiana$81,760$87,604
Kentucky$81,660$90,573
Arkansas$81,110$93,297
Oklahoma$79,640$90,662
Mississippi$79,580$91,521
North Dakota$78,170$87,872
Louisiana$75,680$85,798
West Virginia$69,030$77,131

Nominal medians: BLS OEWS, May 2024 estimates (published April 2025) — occupational wage benchmarks across all workers, not MBA-specific outcomes. Adjusted column: SalaryMBA estimate, computed as nominal ÷ (state RPP ÷ 100) using BEA RPP 2024 all-items regional price parities. An adjusted figure is a purchasing-power comparison, not a wage anyone is paid.

The national pay range for Financial and Investment Analysts

BLS publishes the full percentile distribution nationally. It shows the spread within the occupation — the gap between the 10th and 90th percentile is usually far wider than the gap between states.

Percentile (national)Annual wageReading
10th percentile$63,720Entry / early-career end
25th percentile$79,290
Median (50th)$102,740
75th percentile$133,340
90th percentile$180,860Senior / top-market end

Other MBA-relevant roles in California

How to read the California number

The $109,110 median means half of Financial and Investment Analysts in California earn less and half earn more. It is measured across everyone in the occupation — every level of experience, every industry, and every level of education. It is not the salary of a recent MBA graduate, and it is not a starting salary.

BLS counts roughly 45,380 people in this role in California. The national percentile spread above is the more useful planning tool: within a single occupation, the distance between the 10th and 90th percentile typically dwarfs the difference between states. Where you land inside that range is driven far more by industry, function, and seniority than by geography.

What this data can and cannot tell you

This page answers “what does this role pay here.” It cannot answer “what will an MBA pay me here.” The BLS surveys establishments about occupations, not degrees, so no MBA premium can be isolated from it. Any site presenting these figures as MBA salaries is overstating what the source supports.

For MBA-specific figures we rely on cited school employment reports and moderated submissions, published only above our sample-size gates — see our methodology. To model your own economics, the MBA ROI calculator turns a target salary, tuition, and debt into a payback estimate.

Frequently asked questions

How much do Financial and Investment Analysts make in California?

Financial and Investment Analysts in California earn a median of $109,110 per year, according to BLS OEWS May 2024 estimates (published April 2025). That is +6.2% vs national, ranking California #6 of 51 states with published data for this role. This is an occupational wage benchmark measured across all workers in the occupation, not an MBA-graduate-specific salary.

Is $109,110 a good salary for Financial and Investment Analysts in California?

It depends on local prices. California's overall price level is 110.7 against a U.S. average of 100, so a $109,110 salary there has roughly the purchasing power of $98,546 nationally — about $10,564 less than the headline number implies. Once local prices are accounted for, California drops 23 places — a higher headline wage is partly consumed by a higher cost of living.

Do Financial and Investment Analysts in California need an MBA?

These BLS figures cover everyone in the occupation regardless of degree, so they cannot tell you what an MBA specifically adds. Financial and Investment Analysts is a role MBA graduates commonly target, and an MBA can affect where you land within the range through network, function, and seniority — but any claim of a precise MBA premium for this role in California would not be supported by this data. Verified MBA-specific outcomes are collected separately and published only once they clear our sample-size gates.

Why is housing cost relevant to Financial and Investment Analysts pay in California?

Housing is the single largest driver of geographic cost differences. California's housing price level is 154.3 against a U.S. average of 100 — substantially above average, which absorbs a large share of any wage premium. Overall prices there sit at 110.7.

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Every figure on SalaryMBA is source-labeled. See our methodology for how we source and gate data.