Police, Fire, and Ambulance Dispatcher Salary Information in California

The average annual salaries for police, fire, and ambulance dispatchers in the state of California are shown in Table 1. The comparison of the salary statistics of police, fire, and ambulance dispatchers among California cities is shown in Table 2. The salary statistics are based on the national compensation survey conducted by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics in 2022 and published in April 2023 [1].

Table 1 & 2. Annual Salary of Police, Fire, and Ambulance Dispatchers in California (2022 Survey)

Percentile bracketAverage annual salary
10th Percentile Wage
$47,990
25th Percentile Wage
$59,220
50th Percentile Wage
$72,780
75th Percentile Wage
$84,650
90th Percentile Wage
$103,830

Table 1 shows the average annual salary for police, fire, and ambulance dispatchers in California in 5 percentile scales. The average annual salary for the 90th percentile (the top 10 percent of the highest paid) is $103,830. The median (50th percentile) annual salary is $72,780. The average annual salary for the bottom 10 percent is $47,990.

Median salary trend (2012 to 2022)

The table and chart below show the trend of the median salary of police, fire, and ambulance dispatchers from 2012 to 2022.

YearMedian SalaryYearly Growth10-Year Growth
2022
$72,780
2.18% 23.94%
2021
$71,190
4.59% -
2020
$67,920
2.83% -
2019
$66,000
1.33% -
2018
$65,120
4.71% -
2017
$62,050
4.61% -
2016
$59,190
3.43% -
2015
$57,160
0.19% -
2014
$57,050
0.91% -
2013
$56,530
2.07% -
2012
$55,360
- -

Table 3. Median Annual Salary of Police, Fire, and Ambulance Dispatchers in California Cities (2022 Survey)

Table 3 shows the median annual salary of police, fire, and ambulance dispatchers in some California cities and metropolitan areas. We note that the median annual salary of police, fire, and ambulance dispatchers in state of California ranges from $47,620 to $105,160. The highest paying area for police, fire, and ambulance dispatchers in California is San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara with a median annual salary of $105,160. The second highest paying city/area in California State is San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont (mean annual salary $99,540). The lowest paying area is Northern Mountains Region of California nonmetropolitan area with a median annual salary of $47,620.

Cities/Areas Median Annual Salary
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara
$105,160
San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont
$99,540
Santa Maria-Santa Barbara
$79,790
Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura
$79,570
Santa Rosa-Petaluma
$79,390
Vallejo-Fairfield
$78,400
Oakland-Fremont-Hayward
$76,430
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim
$76,380
Napa
$75,200
Sacramento-Arden-Arcade-Roseville
$74,780
Stockton
$74,540
Santa Cruz-Watsonville
$73,630
San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles
$72,730
Santa Ana-Anaheim-Irvine
$66,040
Yuba City
$64,370
San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City
$64,180
Santa Barbara-Santa Maria-Goleta
$64,120
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario
$63,950
Fresno
$63,850
San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos
$63,650
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale
$62,180
Salinas
$60,830
Redding
$60,420
Modesto
$59,910
Visalia-Porterville
$59,360
Eastern Sierra-Mother Lode Region of California nonmetropolitan area
$58,730
North Coast Region of California nonmetropolitan area
$58,500
North Valley-Northern Mountains Region of California nonmetropolitan area
$58,210
Chico
$57,910
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana
$57,870
Mother Lode Region of California nonmetropolitan area
$55,600
Hanford-Corcoran
$54,460
Bakersfield-Delano
$52,240
Merced
$51,690
Madera-Chowchilla
$50,490
El Centro
$49,500
Northern Mountains Region of California nonmetropolitan area
$47,620