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How to become a plumber in California
California licenses plumbing contractors: anyone who contracts for plumbing work needing a permit, using workers, or costing $1,000 or more must hold the CSLB C-36 Plumbing Contractor license. Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters in California earned a median $72,830 a year in May 2025 ($35.01 an hour).
Plumber licensing in California
The licensing authority is California Contractors State License Board (CSLB). The pages each row was read from are listed under the table, with the date each was read.
| License | What it takes | Experience | Exam | Fee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| C-36 Plumbing Contractor (CSLB) | Four full years of journey-level (or foreman/supervisor/contractor) plumbing experience within the last ten years, and passing both the Law & Business exam and the C-36 trade exam. Original application fee $450 (exam or waiver for one classification) plus an initial license fee ($200 sole owner / $350 otherwise). An active license expires every two years, an inactive one every four. | — | Law & Business exam + C-36 trade exam | $450 |
Reciprocity. CSLB has reciprocity agreements with Arizona, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nevada and North Carolina; reciprocity can waive the trade exam, but the Law & Business exam is still required.
Renewal. Every two years (active licenses).
Licensing sources: CSLB C-36 Plumbing Contractor classification (retrieved 2026-09-16) · CSLB before applying (experience requirement) (retrieved 2026-09-24) · California CSLB: fees (retrieved 2026-09-24) · CSLB general renewal information (retrieved 2026-09-24). Requirements change; confirm with California Contractors State License Board (CSLB) before you act.
The steps in order, with exams, fees and renewal → · Every fee here, itemised and totalled → · Compare time and cost across trades and states →
Common questions
Do you need a license to work as a plumber in California?
California licenses plumbing contractors: anyone who contracts for plumbing work needing a permit, using workers, or costing $1,000 or more must hold the CSLB C-36 Plumbing Contractor license.
What does it cost to get licensed as a plumber in California?
The published fee in the table above is $450. Read each tier's requirements for any exam or license-issue fee charged on top.
How long does it take to become a plumber in California?
It depends on which credential you need and the training and testing each step takes; the full path is in the table above.
How much do plumbers make in California?
Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters in California earned a median $72,830 a year in May 2025, $35.01 an hour. That median is 14% above the national figure of $63,800, and California ranks 17 of 51 by pay for this trade.
How much do apprentice plumbers make in California?
In fiscal 2023 (October 2022 to September 2023), among registered apprentices in California under the occupation titles the U.S. Department of Labor maps to plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters, 1,523 apprentices started, at a median $24.00 an hour across the 1,507 whose starting wage DOL counts. Those who completed that year were paid a median $51.88 an hour at completion (776 completers with an exit wage DOL counts). Wages are in that year's dollars.
What plumbers earn in California
Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters in California earned a median $72,830 a year in May 2025, $35.01 an hour. 47,660 people held the job, 2.6 for every 1,000 jobs in the state. That median is 14% above the national figure of $63,800, and California ranks 17 of 51 by pay for this trade.
The full wage spread in California
| Point | Hourly | Annual | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $22.76 | $47,350 | A tenth of the workforce earns less than this. |
| 25th percentile | $28.36 | $58,980 | A quarter earn less. |
| Median | $35.01 | $72,830 | Half earn less, half earn more. |
| 75th percentile | $48.17 | $100,200 | A quarter earn more. |
| 90th percentile | $63.03 | $131,100 | A tenth earn more than this. |
| Mean | $39.58 | $82,320 | The average. Pulled up by the top earners. |
Annual figures are the hourly rate times 2,080 hours, BLS's full-time year. Overtime is inside the survey's earnings but not separated out.
Pay by metro area in California
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA employs the most plumbers of the 25 metro areas based in California that BLS publishes, 15,690, at a median $71,110 a year. The best-paid is San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA at $107,560.
| Metro | Employed | Median annual | 10th pct | 90th pct |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | 15,690 | $71,110 | $46,090 | $125,080 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | 5,660 | $77,880 | $48,540 | $155,330 |
| San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA | 5,100 | $72,510 | $46,030 | $127,790 |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA | 4,510 | $63,920 | $48,910 | $115,340 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | 3,830 | $107,560 | $63,270 | $155,600 |
| Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA | 3,120 | $65,210 | $46,620 | $131,100 |
| Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA | 1,230 | $62,300 | $47,940 | $123,710 |
| Fresno, CA | 970 | $64,400 | $46,590 | $124,280 |
| Bakersfield-Delano, CA | 960 | $66,450 | $45,670 | $117,840 |
| Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA | 740 | $61,000 | $54,080 | $110,910 |
| Stockton-Lodi, CA | 690 | $62,900 | $46,640 | $98,920 |
| Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA | 560 | $64,700 | $49,430 | $133,120 |
| Modesto, CA | 470 | $63,280 | $47,260 | $114,510 |
| Visalia, CA | 460 | $60,720 | $44,730 | $116,850 |
| Vallejo, CA | 370 | $71,560 | $49,770 | $120,700 |
| Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA | 350 | $68,130 | $47,770 | $124,660 |
| Salinas, CA | 320 | $64,440 | $47,270 | $101,400 |
| San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles, CA | 320 | $63,090 | $48,370 | $113,880 |
| Redding, CA | 200 | $61,300 | $45,910 | $114,790 |
| Chico, CA | 180 | $60,730 | $47,180 | $99,530 |
| Merced, CA | 160 | $60,230 | $45,510 | $80,390 |
| El Centro, CA | 150 | $62,390 | $46,970 | $96,180 |
| Napa, CA | 150 | $65,420 | $48,070 | $117,390 |
| Hanford-Corcoran, CA | 110 | $62,860 | $46,650 | $92,110 |
| Yuba City, CA | 100 | $61,120 | $44,040 | $97,830 |
Metropolitan statistical areas as BLS publishes them in the same May 2025 estimates. A metro that crosses a state line is listed only under its primary state, so part of a neighboring state's metro can sit outside this table. Areas outside any metro are not shown.
California against its neighbors on the pay ladder
| # | State | Median annual | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|
| 14 | Connecticut | $77,280 | 5,410 |
| 15 | Rhode Island | $76,470 | 1,820 |
| 16 | Indiana | $76,320 | 11,280 |
| 17 | California | $72,830 | 47,660 |
| 18 | Pennsylvania | $68,080 | 13,620 |
| 19 | New Hampshire | $66,810 | 1,950 |
| 20 | Missouri | $66,790 | 8,310 |
The complete ranking is on the Plumbers and pipefitters page.
Against the national figure
| Figure | California | United States |
|---|---|---|
| Median annual | $72,830 | $63,800 |
| Median hourly | $35.01 | $30.67 |
| 10th percentile, annual | $47,350 | $44,150 |
| 90th percentile, annual | $131,100 | $108,420 |
| Employed | 47,660 | 465,840 |
Apprenticeships in California
U.S. Department of Labor records list 4,495 registered apprentices active in California in fiscal year 2024 (October 2023 to September 2024) under the occupation titles DOL maps to plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters (SOC 47-2152). The file's fiscal 2024 records largely stop after February 2024. In fiscal 2023, the latest year the file holds in full, 1,523 apprentices started, at a median $24.00 an hour across the 1,507 whose starting wage DOL counts. Those who completed that year were paid a median $51.88 an hour at completion (776 completers with an exit wage DOL counts).
Find a registered program: DOL's Apprenticeship Finder → · What those wages come to at your hours a week → · Every state's count and wages for this trade →
Wages are DOL's own hourly figures in the dollars of each year, not adjusted for inflation. Which wages DOL counts, which titles count and how the state is assigned are on the data page.
Other trades in California
Electricians ($76,160) · HVAC technicians ($72,560) · Welders ($58,060) · Truck drivers (CDL) ($60,230) · Lineworkers (power-line installers) ($129,040) · Elevator installers ($141,180) · Ironworkers ($76,370) · Sheet metal workers ($76,590) · Carpenters ($75,920) · Brickmasons and blockmasons ($69,050) · Auto service technicians ($64,980) · Diesel mechanics ($73,950) · Heavy equipment operators ($87,160) · Machinists ($57,190)
See all 15 ranked by pay in California.
The pay and employment figures on this page are the May 2025 BLS estimates, apart from the apprenticeship figures, which are DOL's; the licensing detail is read from the pages listed in the licensing section, each with the date it was read. See how the numbers are built.