Updated · 2026 tax rules · Data: IRS, BLS, BEA, HUD · How we calculate

Inspectors, Testers, Sorters, Samplers, and Weighers Salary in San Jose, CA

Inspectors, Testers, Sorters, Samplers, and Weighers in the San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA metro area earn a median $60,610 a year — 25% more than the national median. After 2026 taxes, that is $48,406 take-home, or $4,034 a month.

Median salary
$60,610
$29.14 per hour
Typical range
$46,080 – $92,670
10th to 90th percentile
Jobs in San Jose, CA
5,080
1.17× national concentration
▲3.7%
Pay trend: The median for inspectors, testers, sorters, samplers, and weighers in San Jose, CA rose from $58,460 (May 2024) to $60,610 (May 2025). That beat inflation (2.4%), a real raise of about 1.3%.

Take-home pay calculator

Pre-filled with the median inspectors, testers, sorters, samplers, and weighers salary in San Jose, CA. Enter your own offer to see your paycheck.

Inspectors, Testers, Sorters, Samplers, and Weighers in San Jose, CA
Deductions, kids & local tax

2026 tax year. Federal brackets from IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32.

Your take-home pay
$48,406
per year · effective tax rate 20.1%
$4,034Monthly
$2,017Twice a month
$1,862Every 2 weeks
$23.27Hourly
  • Federal income tax$5,093
  • Social Security (6.2%)$3,758
  • Medicare (1.45%)$879
  • California income tax$1,686
  • CA State Disability Insurance (SDI)$788
  • Take-home pay$48,406

Marginal rate: 12% federal + 6.00% state

Got an offer somewhere else? Compare it with this one after taxes and rent →

Inspectors, Testers, Sorters, Samplers, and Weighers pay by experience in San Jose, CA

PercentileSalaryHourlyTake-home / yrPer month
10th percentile (entry level)$46,080$22.15$37,774$3,148
25th percentile$49,370$23.74$40,195$3,350
Median (50th)$60,610$29.14$48,406$4,034
75th percentile$77,230$37.13$59,191$4,933
90th percentile (top earners)$92,670$44.55$68,430$5,702

Wages: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. Take-home: single filer, California resident, 2026 tax rules.

What $60,610 buys in San Jose, CA

Prices in San Jose, CA are 10.4% higher than the U.S. average (housing costs are 2.12× the national average). Adjusted for local prices, a median inspectors, testers, sorters, samplers, and weighers's $48,406 take-home pay has the buying power of $43,837 in a typical American city.

1-bedroom rent
$2,957
73% of monthly take-home
2-bedroom rent
$3,464
86% of monthly take-home
Left after 1-BR rent
$1,077
per month for everything else

Rents: HUD Fair Market Rents, FY2026 (40th-percentile gross rent incl. utilities). Price levels: BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024.

Inspectors, Testers, Sorters, Samplers, and Weighers jobs are about as common in San Jose, CA as in the U.S. overall (location quotient 1.17).

Best-paying cities for inspectors, testers, sorters, samplers, and weighers, adjusted for cost of living

San Jose, CA ranks #11 of 45 metro areas once taxes and local prices are taken into account.

#Metro areaMedian salaryTake-homeReal value*
1Seattle, WA $76,800$62,859$56,562
2Wichita, KS $63,030$50,107$56,334
3Kansas City, MO $63,000$50,777$54,868
4Tulsa, OK $56,210$45,361$50,845
5Hartford, CT $60,040$48,645$47,345
6Virginia Beach, VA $57,330$45,762$46,724
7Washington, DC $61,820$49,281$45,260
8Minneapolis, MN $58,900$47,024$44,861
11San Jose, CA$60,610$48,406$43,837

*Take-home pay divided by the BEA price level, so every city is measured in U.S.-average dollars. See all 45 metros →

About the job: inspectors, testers, sorters, samplers, and weighers

Inspect, test, sort, sample, or weigh nonagricultural raw materials or processed, machined, fabricated, or assembled parts or products for defects, wear, and deviations from specifications. May use precision measuring instruments and complex test equipment.

Typical education
High school diploma or equivalent
Work experience
None required
On-the-job training
Moderate-term on-the-job training
Job outlook, 2025–35
+2.5% (about average)

Source: BLS Standard Occupational Classification and Employment Projections, 2025–35.

Inspectors, Testers, Sorters, Samplers, and Weighers salaries elsewhere in California

Frequently asked questions

How much does a inspectors, testers, sorters, samplers, and weighers make in San Jose, CA?

The median inspectors, testers, sorters, samplers, and weighers salary in the San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA metro area is $60,610 a year, or about $29.14 an hour, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (May 2025). The middle half earn between $49,370 and $77,230.

What is a inspectors, testers, sorters, samplers, and weighers’s take-home pay in San Jose, CA?

On the median $60,610 salary, a single filer living in California takes home about $48,406 a year ($4,034 a month) after federal tax, Social Security, Medicare and $2,474 in California taxes in 2026.

Is San Jose, CA a good place to work as a inspectors, testers, sorters, samplers, and weighers?

Pay here is 25% above the national median of $48,570. Local prices are 10.4% above the U.S. average, so the take-home pay buys what $43,837 would in a typical U.S. city. San Jose, CA ranks #11 of 45 metro areas for cost-of-living-adjusted pay in this job.

Can a inspectors, testers, sorters, samplers, and weighers afford rent in San Jose, CA?

HUD’s fair market rent for a one-bedroom in San Jose, CA is $2,957 a month ($3,464 for two bedrooms) — 73% of a median inspectors, testers, sorters, samplers, and weighers’s monthly take-home pay. Financial planners usually suggest keeping rent under about 30%.

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