Air Traffic Controller salary in San Francisco, CA: $193,360 median.
BLS reports occupational wages for the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA metropolitan statistical area (CBSA 41860), which includes San Francisco, Oakland and Fremont and surrounding communities. Figures describe that whole area, not San Francisco city limits.
Air Traffic Controllers in the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA metropolitan area earned a median annual wage of $193,360 in May 2025, according to BLS (OEWS, SOC 53-2021); the OEWS mean annual wage was $179,320. That median is 31% above the U.S. median of $148,080. BLS estimates about 430 people work in this occupation across the metro.
Data This metro's estimate does not meet TryHired's reliability rule for rankings (500+ jobs, employment PRSE ≤ 20%, mean-wage PRSE ≤ 10%, a non-degenerate wage distribution), so no rank is shown; the published figures still are.
Data Separately, BEA puts 2024 price levels across the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA metropolitan area at 115.6 (U.S. = 100): prices for the average consumer are about 16% above the national level. That is context, not an adjusted salary. Cost of living in San Francisco, CA.
What area these numbers cover
Data The BLS geography behind every figure on this page.
- Search label
- San Francisco, CA
- BLS source geography
- San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA
- Geography type
- Metropolitan Statistical Area
- CBSA code
- 41860
- States
- California
- Delineation
- OMB Bulletin 23-01, as used by BLS OEWS May 2025
Local, state and national pay
Data Same occupation (SOC 53-2021), same BLS release (May 2025).
| Geography | Median annual wage | Mean annual wage | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA (metro, CBSA 41860) | $193,360 | $179,320 | 430 |
| California (state) | $160,080 | $156,910 | 2,290 |
| United States | $148,080 | $146,490 | 22,510 |
Air Traffic Controller salary in California · National Air Traffic Controller salary · Careers in San Francisco, CA.
Data Nationally, BLS projects employment in this occupation to change +1.7% from 2025 to 2035. BLS does not publish metro projections in this dataset, so that is national context, not a local forecast.
Use the local number
Advice Uses only what you type. A local, sourced median is easier to agree to than a national one.
How this page is built
BLS OEWS May 2025 estimates for the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA metropolitan statistical area (CBSA 41860) and SOC 53-2021 (Air Traffic Controllers). San Francisco, CA is the search label for that area; BLS does not publish city-limit wages. Employment is the number of people working in the occupation (excluding the self-employed), not job openings. Ranks use only metro estimates that pass the reliability rule (500+ jobs, employment PRSE ≤ 20%, mean-wage PRSE ≤ 10%, non-degenerate distribution); suppressed values are never imputed. Searches this page answers include “air traffic controller salary san francisco”, “air traffic controller salary bay area” (Ahrefs, U.S.).
- Cost of living: wages are not adjusted for local prices.
- Pay at a specific employer, in one city's limits, or for self-employed workers.
- Local outlook: BLS projections here are national.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 metropolitan-area estimates (2018 SOC; metropolitan statistical areas per OMB Bulletin 23-01), public domain.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 estimates (public domain).
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections program, national occupational projections 2025–35 (no metro projections are published in this dataset).
- U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024 (released February 19, 2026).
More for Air Traffic Controllers
What the job is, skills, tools, pay and related roles.
Open →SalaryAir Traffic Controller salaryPay by percentile, state and metro, with a negotiation script.
Open →How to becomeAir Traffic Controller how to becomeEducation, training and the skills to build first.
Open →Free toolCheck your resumeParsed text, evidence per bullet, fixes first.
Open →