Architectural and Civil Drafters Salary — Riverside, California

The average Architectural and Civil Drafters in Riverside, California earns $74,800 a year.

$74,800 / year, mean
↑ 4.3% above national average 43th percentile in California

Riverside sits roughly in the middle of the pack for this role within California — neither a standout nor a laggard. That's close to the national average for architectural and civil drafters — a fairly typical rate for this role. Cost of living here is close to the national average — not a major factor either way. This is a high-confidence estimate, based on a large sample of reported wages.

Percentile within California

0th 50th 100th
Employment (this metro)
840
Estimate confidence
RSE 2.7%
Cost of living 106 #19 most expensive of 188 cities in this dataset 100 = U.S. average · Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024
Crime index 2124 #140 safest of 188 cities in this dataset Per 100k residents · Source: FBI Crime Data Explorer
Median home value $585,378 #18 priciest of 188 cities in this dataset Source: zillow_real
Median household income $86,031 #35 highest of 188 cities in this dataset Source: Census Bureau ACS 5-year

Combining these four figures gives a fuller picture than salary alone: Riverside ranks #19 for cost of living and #18 for home prices among the 188 cities in this pilot dataset, which matters as much as the headline salary number when comparing where to live.

San Jose $93,870 San Francisco $89,290 Santa Rosa $83,110 Sacramento $80,760 Kennewick $80,270 Napa $79,960 San Diego $79,500 New York $79,250 Los Angeles $79,180 Vallejo $79,070 Chico $77,610 Baltimore $77,570 Seattle $77,530 Portland $76,760 Lexington Park $76,750 San Luis Obispo $76,710 Austin $75,930 Modesto $75,550 Santa Maria $75,070 Riverside $74,800 Stockton $74,640 Santa Cruz $74,570 Ithaca $74,550 Wenatchee $74,200 Bremerton $73,560 Oxnard $73,310 Salinas $73,030 Bellingham $72,860 Philadelphia $72,370 Rockford $71,730 Bakersfield $71,450 Salem $71,050 Visalia $70,820 Pittsburgh $70,670 Allentown $70,580 Fresno $70,470 Trenton $70,340 Longview $69,980 Dallas $69,890 Syracuse $69,860 Beaumont $69,770 Kalamazoo $69,690 Houston $69,680 Albany $69,540 Buffalo $69,370 Mount Vernon $69,320 Rochester $69,150 Kiryas Joel $69,000 Redding $68,960 Altoona $68,840 Jacksonville $68,740 Killeen $68,680 Harrisburg $68,560 York $68,290 Indianapolis $68,210 Midland $68,200 Bend $68,130 Orlando $68,090 Tampa $67,800 Medford $67,660 Dover $67,520 Sarasota $67,320 Reading $66,960 Richmond $66,890 Lancaster $66,690 Detroit $66,510 Naples $66,430 Grand Rapids $66,320 State College $66,170 Corpus Christi $66,040 Eugene $66,010 Scranton $65,870 Panama City $65,850 Port St. Lucie $65,580 Punta Gorda $65,480 Palm Bay $65,360 Olympia $65,330 Kingston $65,280 Louisville $65,200 Crestview $65,050 Blacksburg $64,920 Virginia Beach $64,920 Huntington $64,690 Abilene $64,640 Fort Myers $64,610 Deltona $64,210 Erie $64,210 Yakima $63,760 Chicago $63,720 Wildwood $63,660 Hagerstown $63,570 Miami $63,540 Charleston $63,380 Flint $63,220 Lakeland $63,130 Spokane $63,080 San Antonio $63,060 Charlottesville $63,040 Atlantic City $62,940 Lansing $62,860 Evansville $62,720 Waco $62,680 Ann Arbor $62,600 Pensacola $62,290 Tyler $61,830 Amarillo $61,650 Roanoke $61,220 Gainesville $61,170 Bloomington $60,820 Ocala $60,400 Lafayette $60,360 Peoria $59,940 Lexington $59,880 Lynchburg $59,860 Sebastian $59,630 Chambersburg $59,580 Fort Wayne $59,400 Williamsport $59,280 Winchester $59,260 Johnstown $59,250 College Station $59,170 Elkhart $59,110 Terre Haute $58,720 Sherman $58,130 Tallahassee $58,080 Lubbock $57,260 El Paso $57,120 Bowling Green $56,900 South Bend $56,810 McAllen $56,150 Brownsville $55,880 Champaign $55,200 Traverse City $55,160 Muskegon $54,230
CityMean salaryvs. Riverside
Abilene, Texas$64,640-13.6%
Albany, New York$69,540-7.0%
Allentown, Pennsylvania$70,580-5.6%
Altoona, Pennsylvania$68,840-8.0%
Amarillo, Texas$61,650-17.6%
Ann Arbor, Michigan$62,600-16.3%
Atlantic City, New Jersey$62,940-15.9%
Austin, Texas$75,930+1.5%
Bakersfield, California$71,450-4.5%
Baltimore, Maryland$77,570+3.7%
Beaumont, Texas$69,770-6.7%
Bellingham, Washington$72,860-2.6%
Bend, Oregon$68,130-8.9%
Blacksburg, Virginia$64,920-13.2%
Bloomington, Indiana$60,820-18.7%
Bowling Green, Kentucky$56,900-23.9%
Bremerton, Washington$73,560-1.7%
Brownsville, Texas$55,880-25.3%
Buffalo, New York$69,370-7.3%
Fort Myers, Florida$64,610-13.6%
Chambersburg, Pennsylvania$59,580-20.3%
Champaign, Illinois$55,200-26.2%
Charleston, West Virginia$63,380-15.3%
Charlottesville, Virginia$63,040-15.7%
Chicago, Illinois$63,720-14.8%
Chico, California$77,610+3.8%
College Station, Texas$59,170-20.9%
Corpus Christi, Texas$66,040-11.7%
Crestview, Florida$65,050-13.0%
Dallas, Texas$69,890-6.6%
Deltona, Florida$64,210-14.2%
Detroit, Michigan$66,510-11.1%
Dover, Delaware$67,520-9.7%
Elkhart, Indiana$59,110-21.0%
El Paso, Texas$57,120-23.6%
Erie, Pennsylvania$64,210-14.2%
Eugene, Oregon$66,010-11.8%
Evansville, Indiana$62,720-16.1%
Flint, Michigan$63,220-15.5%
Fort Wayne, Indiana$59,400-20.6%
Fresno, California$70,470-5.8%
Gainesville, Florida$61,170-18.2%
Grand Rapids, Michigan$66,320-11.3%
Hagerstown, Maryland$63,570-15.0%
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania$68,560-8.3%
Houston, Texas$69,680-6.8%
Huntington, West Virginia$64,690-13.5%
Indianapolis, Indiana$68,210-8.8%
Ithaca, New York$74,550-0.3%
Jacksonville, Florida$68,740-8.1%
Johnstown, Pennsylvania$59,250-20.8%
Kalamazoo, Michigan$69,690-6.8%
Kennewick, Washington$80,270+7.3%
Killeen, Texas$68,680-8.2%
Kingston, New York$65,280-12.7%
Kiryas Joel, New York$69,000-7.8%
Lafayette, Indiana$60,360-19.3%
Lakeland, Florida$63,130-15.6%
Lancaster, Pennsylvania$66,690-10.8%
Lansing, Michigan$62,860-16.0%
Lexington, Kentucky$59,880-19.9%
Lexington Park, Maryland$76,750+2.6%
Longview, Texas$69,980-6.4%
Los Angeles, California$79,180+5.9%
Louisville, Kentucky$65,200-12.8%
Lubbock, Texas$57,260-23.4%
Lynchburg, Virginia$59,860-20.0%
McAllen, Texas$56,150-24.9%
Medford, Oregon$67,660-9.5%
Miami, Florida$63,540-15.1%
Midland, Texas$68,200-8.8%
Modesto, California$75,550+1.0%
Mount Vernon, Washington$69,320-7.3%
Muskegon, Michigan$54,230-27.5%
Napa, California$79,960+6.9%
Naples, Florida$66,430-11.2%
New York, New York$79,250+5.9%
Sarasota, Florida$67,320-10.0%
Ocala, Florida$60,400-19.3%
Olympia, Washington$65,330-12.7%
Orlando, Florida$68,090-9.0%
Oxnard, California$73,310-2.0%
Palm Bay, Florida$65,360-12.6%
Panama City, Florida$65,850-12.0%
Pensacola, Florida$62,290-16.7%
Peoria, Illinois$59,940-19.9%
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania$72,370-3.2%
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania$70,670-5.5%
Portland, Oregon$76,760+2.6%
Port St. Lucie, Florida$65,580-12.3%
Punta Gorda, Florida$65,480-12.5%
Reading, Pennsylvania$66,960-10.5%
Redding, California$68,960-7.8%
Richmond, Virginia$66,890-10.6%
Roanoke, Virginia$61,220-18.2%
Rochester, New York$69,150-7.6%
Rockford, Illinois$71,730-4.1%
Sacramento, California$80,760+8.0%
Salem, Oregon$71,050-5.0%
Salinas, California$73,030-2.4%
San Antonio, Texas$63,060-15.7%
San Diego, California$79,500+6.3%
San Francisco, California$89,290+19.4%
San Jose, California$93,870+25.5%
San Luis Obispo, California$76,710+2.6%
Santa Cruz, California$74,570-0.3%
Santa Maria, California$75,070+0.4%
Santa Rosa, California$83,110+11.1%
Scranton, Pennsylvania$65,870-11.9%
Seattle, Washington$77,530+3.6%
Sebastian, Florida$59,630-20.3%
Sherman, Texas$58,130-22.3%
South Bend, Indiana$56,810-24.1%
Spokane, Washington$63,080-15.7%
State College, Pennsylvania$66,170-11.5%
Stockton, California$74,640-0.2%
Syracuse, New York$69,860-6.6%
Tallahassee, Florida$58,080-22.4%
Tampa, Florida$67,800-9.4%
Terre Haute, Indiana$58,720-21.5%
Traverse City, Michigan$55,160-26.3%
Trenton, New Jersey$70,340-6.0%
Tyler, Texas$61,830-17.3%
Vallejo, California$79,070+5.7%
Virginia Beach, Virginia$64,920-13.2%
Visalia, California$70,820-5.3%
Waco, Texas$62,680-16.2%
Wenatchee, Washington$74,200-0.8%
Wildwood, Florida$63,660-14.9%
Williamsport, Pennsylvania$59,280-20.7%
Winchester, Virginia$59,260-20.8%
Yakima, Washington$63,760-14.8%
York, Pennsylvania$68,290-8.7%
Gross salary
74,800/yr
Estimated take-home
58,540/yr
Est. total withheld
21.7%

Single filer, federal + California state tax + FICA, 2025 rates. Does not include state-specific payroll withholdings beyond income tax (see Data transparency). Not tax advice — verify with a professional for your specific situation.

View cost of living in this state All Architectural and Civil Drafters salaries in California → All Architectural and Civil Drafters salaries →
Community reality check

Community reality check for Riverside

These notes add local color around Riverside, California: comfort ranges, budget constraints and location trade-offs reported in public discussions.

Relocation gap2.0× calculator gap
City comparison anecdotal

Discussion highlights that calculators may imply roughly 2x gross income for comparable standard of living, while some employers offer only about 10% location premiums. Tech total compensation can be an exception, so the page should distinguish salary from total compensation.

2.0×calculator multiplier10%HCOL premium cited$200KAtlanta TC example$450KBay Area TC example

Anecdotal public-discussion signals, not official salary data, rent data or financial advice. Read this alongside the official figures on the page.

Data transparency

Sources used for this page

Official occupation and area metadata behind the visible salary, cost, housing and safety signals.

Occupation 17-3011 SOC code
Official area Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA BLS metro/geographic area
Area code 40140 Stable geographic key
Reference year 2025 BLS OEWS
Cost: bea_realHousing: zillow_realCrime: latest availableNet-pay source: ca_ftb_verificado 2025
Metro also includes
San BernardinoOntario
No additional caveats are attached to this row.
Methodology

How this page is built

The salary figure is the mean annual wage reported by the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) program for this occupation and metro area. Percentile and national-average comparisons are calculated directly from the 188 cities currently in this dataset, not from a fixed external benchmark. Cost of living, crime and housing figures come from BEA, FBI and Zillow respectively — see "Data transparency" above for the exact sources and reference years used on this specific page.

Confidence: the RSE (relative standard error) shown under Overview indicates how reliable the salary estimate is for this metro — a lower RSE means a larger underlying sample.

On this page

Where this is

AK HI

Highlighted: California

Population (metro area)
4,637,725