Physician Assistants salary in San Jose, CA
Median pay for physician assistants in San Jose, CA: $208,000/yr
Typical range (10th–90th percentile): $92,690 – $210,120 · about 900 employed locally
Above the typical metro median ($125,700) by +$82,300 (+65%).
What it's really worth in San Jose
With San Jose's cost of living at 113 (US=100), that $208,000 has the buying power of about $183,975 in an average-cost US metro.
Local context: median household income $151,713 · median home $1,610,466 · median rent $3,625/mo.
How San Jose ranks for this job
On raw pay, San Jose, CA is 1st of the 180 metros we hold physician assistants wages for. Once San Jose's cost of living is applied, it ranks 1st.
Pay and living costs are roughly in step here, so San Jose sits in much the same place whether you look at raw salary or spending power.
What that salary buys in San Jose
A median home in San Jose, CA costs $1,610,466 — about 7.7× 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 $3,625/mo works out at 21% of gross pay — inside the conventional 30% affordability ceiling.
Where physician assistants earn more
Pay on its own is only half the picture, so each row shows what rent costs there relative to San Jose.
| Metro | Median pay | vs San Jose | Rent vs San Jose |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vallejo, CA | $174,670 | −16% | 0.7× |
| Modesto, CA | $171,600 | −17% | 0.6× |
| San Francisco, CA | $171,470 | −18% | 0.9× |
| Santa Rosa, CA | $168,030 | −19% | 0.7× |
Same job elsewhere in CA
| Metro | Median pay | vs San Jose | Rent vs San Jose |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vallejo, CA | $174,670 | −16% | 0.7× |
| Modesto, CA | $171,600 | −17% | 0.6× |
| San Francisco, CA | $171,470 | −18% | 0.9× |
| Santa Rosa, CA | $168,030 | −19% | 0.7× |
Staying in CA keeps state income tax and licensing the same, which makes these the most directly comparable moves.
Other jobs in San Jose
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 180 metros we hold wage data for in this occupation. Estimates for guidance only. See methodology.