SalaryExplorer

SOC 53-7199 · May 2025 · BLS OEWS

Material Moving Workers, All Other — Riverside

Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA · 10 metro areas compared

$38,070 /year
$18.30per hour
1,340jobs in area
−8.9%vs US median

Median pay for this occupation in Riverside, CA is $38,070 a year, trailing the national median of $41,800 by 8.9%.

Wage distribution · annual

Shaded band holds the middle 50% of earners

US MEDIAN $41,80010TH$35,150MEDIAN$38,07075TH$45,32090TH$47,410

How pay has moved

$44,325$26,8952019202020212022202320242025$38,070
$29,800 in 2019 to $38,070 in 2025, +27.8% 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 about as fast as average

Change in jobs, 2024 to 2034
+4.3%
Openings per year
3,100
Typical entry-level education
No formal educational credential
On-the-job training
Short-term on-the-job training

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

6.1% of people in this occupation work for themselves.

Projections are published nationally only. This is the outlook for the occupation across the United States, not a measurement for Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, 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

Median pay for this occupation in Riverside, CA is $38,070 a year, trailing the national median of $41,800 by 8.9%. Half of workers earn between $36,270 and $45,320. Beyond that band, the tenth percentile sits at $35,150 and the ninetieth at $47,410.

The area has 1,340 jobs in this occupation, which works out to 0.8 of every thousand jobs. Merced leads the state's metro areas for this occupation, at $49,670. Set against every other occupation measured in the same area, it ranks 627th of 671 by median pay.

Percentile breakdown

Annual wages by percentile · Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA · May 2025
PercentileAnnualvs US median
10th$35,150−15.9%
25th$36,270−13.2%
Median (50th)$38,070−8.9%
75th$45,320+8.4%
90th$47,410+13.4%
Mean$41,070−1.7%

Why the average earner is usually not a typical earner

Other metro areas in California

Median annual wage for Material Moving Workers, All Other, by metro area
#Metro areaMedianJobsRelative
1Merced$49,67030
2San Jose$44,510410
3San Francisco$44,410920
4Vallejo$43,780100
5Santa Rosa$41,76090
6Salinas$40,72050
7Redding$39,52050
8Stockton$39,400210
9Sacramento$38,250650
10Modesto$38,050110

What the pay is worth locally

Prices in Riverside run 6.4% above the national average, so the median of $38,070 buys what $35,780 would elsewhere in the country. Measured that way the gap against the national median narrows to 14.4% below the national median in real terms.

Published median

$38,070as reported by BLS

Local price level

106.4US average = 100 · BEA 2024

Adjusted for local prices

$35,780US average = 100 · BEA 2024

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

Key takeaways

  • Median pay is $38,070 a year, 8.9% below the national median.
  • Published pay spans $35,150 to $47,410 between the tenth and ninetieth percentiles.
  • The area has 1,340 jobs in this occupation.
  • The highest-paying metro area covered is Merced, at $49,670.

Frequently asked questions

What is the median wage for Material Moving Workers, All Other in Riverside, CA?

The median annual wage is $38,070, or $18.30 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 $41,800, so pay in Riverside, CA is 8.9% lower. 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 Riverside, CA earns more than $47,410 per year. The ninetieth percentile is the highest figure the survey publishes.

What is the starting range?

The tenth percentile wage is $35,150 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 Merced, at $49,670 per year.

How many jobs are there in this occupation here?

The survey estimates 1,340 jobs in this occupation in Riverside, 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.