Construction Managers salary in Santa Cruz, CA
Median pay for construction managers in Santa Cruz, CA: $113,630/yr
Typical range (10th–90th percentile): $61,990 – $175,370 · about 180 employed locally
Above the typical metro median ($100,035) by +$13,595 (+14%).
What it's really worth in Santa Cruz
With Santa Cruz's cost of living at 113 (US=100), that $113,630 has the buying power of about $100,759 in an average-cost US metro.
Local context: median household income $104,409 · median home $1,157,157 · median rent $3,599/mo.
How Santa Cruz ranks for this job
On raw pay, Santa Cruz, CA is 22nd of the 186 metros we hold construction managers wages for. Once Santa Cruz's cost of living is applied, it ranks 125th.
The headline number flatters Santa Cruz. Once housing and everyday costs are taken into account, construction managers here keep less of what they earn than the raw salary implies.
What that salary buys in Santa Cruz
A median home in Santa Cruz, CA costs $1,157,157 — about 10.2× this salary, against a typical US metro figure of 4.7×. Buying is harder here than in the average metro on this income.
Median rent of $3,599/mo works out at 38% of gross pay — above the conventional 30% affordability ceiling, so renting would stretch this salary.
Where construction managers earn more
Pay on its own is only half the picture, so each row shows what rent costs there relative to Santa Cruz.
| Metro | Median pay | vs Santa Cruz | Rent vs Santa Cruz |
|---|---|---|---|
| New York, NY | $158,380 | +39% | 1× |
| San Jose, CA | $141,640 | +25% | 1× |
| Anchorage, AK | $135,530 | +19% | 0.5× |
| San Francisco, CA | $134,670 | +19% | 0.9× |
Same job elsewhere in CA
| Metro | Median pay | vs Santa Cruz | Rent vs Santa Cruz |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Jose, CA | $141,640 | +25% | 1× |
| San Francisco, CA | $134,670 | +19% | 0.9× |
| Los Angeles, CA | $128,090 | +13% | 0.8× |
| Vallejo, CA | $125,890 | +11% | 0.7× |
Staying in CA keeps state income tax and licensing the same, which makes these the most directly comparable moves.
Other jobs in Santa Cruz
Source: US BLS OEWS (May 2023) median annual wage; cost of living from BEA; home price and rent from Zillow; household income from US Census ACS. Rankings are across the 186 metros we hold wage data for in this occupation. Estimates for guidance only. See methodology.