SalaryExplorer

SOC 13-2072 · May 2025 · BLS OEWS

Loan Officers — Merced

Merced, CA · 10 metro areas compared

$78,940 /year
$37.95per hour
90jobs in area
+2.9%vs US median

At $78,940, median pay for Loan Officers in Merced, CA tracks the national median of $76,690 closely.

Wage distribution · annual

Shaded band holds the middle 50% of earners

US MEDIAN $76,69010TH$34,58025TH$54,860MEDIAN$78,94075TH$100,33090TH$138,860

How pay has moved

$86,985$38,7152019202020212022202320242025$78,940
$53,780 in 2019 to $78,940 in 2025, +46.8% before inflation. BLS states that OEWS estimates are not designed for comparison across years: the occupational classification, the sampling frame and the survey method have all changed inside this window. Read the direction, not the exact difference.

The next ten years

Projected to grow more slowly than average

Change in jobs, 2024 to 2034
+1.7%
Openings per year
20,300
Typical entry-level education
Bachelor's degree
Related work experience
Less than 5 years
On-the-job training
Moderate-term on-the-job training

Includes jobs opened by workers leaving the occupation, not only new positions.

Projections are published nationally only. This is the outlook for the occupation across the United States, not a measurement for Merced, CA.

Projections are based on 2024 employment and run to 2034. The wages above are from the May 2025 survey, a separate BLS programme on a different release cycle, so the two are not two views of one dataset.

Salary overview

At $78,940, median pay for Loan Officers in Merced, CA tracks the national median of $76,690 closely. The middle half of workers in this occupation earn between $54,860 and $100,330. The lowest tenth earn under $34,580, while the highest tenth earn more than $138,860.

Employment stands at 90, or 1.1 jobs per thousand held locally. San Francisco leads the state's metro areas for this occupation, at $103,000. Set against every other occupation measured in the same area, it ranks 71st of 272 by median pay.

Percentile breakdown

Annual wages by percentile · Merced, CA · May 2025
PercentileAnnualvs US median
10th$34,580−54.9%
25th$54,860−28.5%
Median (50th)$78,940+2.9%
75th$100,330+30.8%
90th$138,860+81.1%
Mean$84,490+10.2%

Why the average earner is usually not a typical earner

Other metro areas in California

Median annual wage for Loan Officers, by metro area
#Metro areaMedianJobsRelative
1San Francisco$103,0003,330
2Salinas$95,640140
3San Jose$95,0901,140
4Santa Maria$86,200180
5Vallejo$83,110170
6San Luis Obispo$82,470100
7Modesto$82,250190
8San Diego$81,7702,360
9Santa Rosa$80,370290
10Los Angeles$80,3609,690

What the pay is worth locally

Prices in Merced sit close to the national average, so $78,940 is worth roughly its face value against pay elsewhere.

Published median

$78,940as reported by BLS

Local price level

98.3US average = 100 · BEA 2024

Adjusted for local prices

$80,305US average = 100 · BEA 2024

Why the state that pays most is usually not where pay goes furthest

Key takeaways

  • Median pay is $78,940 a year, 2.9% above the national median.
  • Published pay spans $34,580 to $138,860 between the tenth and ninetieth percentiles.
  • The area has 90 jobs in this occupation.
  • The highest-paying metro area covered is San Francisco, at $103,000.

Frequently asked questions

What is the median wage for Loan Officers in Merced, CA?

The median annual wage is $78,940, or $37.95 per hour, as of May 2025. Half of the workers in this occupation earn more than that and half earn less.

Is that higher than the national average?

The national median for this occupation is $76,690, so pay in Merced, CA is 2.9% higher. These figures are medians, not averages: half of workers fall on each side.

What do the top earners make?

The top tenth of this occupation in Merced, CA earns more than $138,860 per year. The ninetieth percentile is the highest figure the survey publishes.

What is the starting range?

The tenth percentile wage is $34,580 per year. The survey measures wages actually paid rather than experience level, so this reflects the lowest-paid tenth rather than entry-level pay specifically.

Which area nearby pays the most?

The highest median for this occupation among the metro areas covered is in San Francisco, at $103,000 per year.

How many jobs are there in this occupation here?

The survey estimates 90 jobs in this occupation in Merced, CA. Self-employed workers are not included.

Source and methodology

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 Wages are for wage-and-salary workers; self-employed workers are not included. Salary Explorer is an independent project. It is not affiliated with, or endorsed by, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics or any government agency. Full methodology.