Santa Clara County · California
San Jose, CA jobs and wages
Who works here, what they earn, and which industries carry the local economy — Census ACS estimates for the city itself, not the wider metro.
Quick answer
Workers in San Jose, CA earn a median of $61,675 a year, 38% above the national median of $44,587. Unemployment is 4.7% against 5.2% nationally, and professional, scientific & management is the largest employer at 20.3% of jobs.
- Median earnings
- $61,675#4 of 94 metros
- Unemployment rate
- 4.7%US 5.2%
- Labor force participation
- 67.8%US 63.5%
- People employed
- 522,185Civilian employed, age 16+
What San Jose does for a living
Share of the civilian employed population by industry, largest first.
- Professional, scientific & management20.3%
- Education, health care & social assistance18.8%
- Manufacturing16.8%
- Retail trade8.9%
- Arts, entertainment, recreation, accommodation & food8.3%
- Construction5.9%
- Information4.3%
- Finance, insurance & real estate4.2%
- Other services, except public administration4.2%
- Transportation, warehousing & utilities3.6%
- Public administration2.8%
- Wholesale trade1.5%
- Agriculture, forestry, fishing, hunting & mining0.4%
Related data for San Jose
Earnings only mean something next to what things cost.
Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates
Tables B23025, B20002 and C24030, 2019-2023 ACS 5-year. Industry shares combine the male and female columns of C24030 and are rounded, so they may not total exactly 100%.