Pharmacists salary in Santa Maria, CA
Median pay for pharmacists in Santa Maria, CA: $160,690/yr
Typical range (10th–90th percentile): $131,700 – $208,150 · about 290 employed locally
Above the typical metro median ($135,000) by +$25,690 (+19%).
What it's really worth in Santa Maria
With Santa Maria's cost of living at 114 (US=100), that $160,690 has the buying power of about $141,295 in an average-cost US metro.
Local context: median household income $92,332 · median home $1,005,339 · median rent $3,338/mo.
How Santa Maria ranks for this job
On raw pay, Santa Maria, CA is 10th of the 187 metros we hold pharmacists wages for. Once Santa Maria's cost of living is applied, it ranks 115th.
The headline number flatters Santa Maria. Once housing and everyday costs are taken into account, pharmacists here keep less of what they earn than the raw salary implies.
What that salary buys in Santa Maria
A median home in Santa Maria, CA costs $1,005,339 — about 6.3× 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 $3,338/mo works out at 25% of gross pay — inside the conventional 30% affordability ceiling.
Where pharmacists earn more
Pay on its own is only half the picture, so each row shows what rent costs there relative to Santa Maria.
| Metro | Median pay | vs Santa Maria | Rent vs Santa Maria |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Jose, CA | $190,570 | +19% | 1.1× |
| San Francisco, CA | $180,420 | +12% | 1× |
| Vallejo, CA | $179,210 | +12% | 0.7× |
| Santa Rosa, CA | $170,100 | +6% | 0.8× |
Same job elsewhere in CA
| Metro | Median pay | vs Santa Maria | Rent vs Santa Maria |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Jose, CA | $190,570 | +19% | 1.1× |
| San Francisco, CA | $180,420 | +12% | 1× |
| Vallejo, CA | $179,210 | +12% | 0.7× |
| Santa Rosa, CA | $170,100 | +6% | 0.8× |
Staying in CA keeps state income tax and licensing the same, which makes these the most directly comparable moves.
Other jobs in Santa Maria
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 187 metros we hold wage data for in this occupation. Estimates for guidance only. See methodology.