Clinical and Counseling Psychologists Salary — San Diego, California

The average Clinical and Counseling Psychologists in San Diego, California earns $113,230 a year.

$113,230 / year, mean
↑ 0.5% above national average 21th percentile in California

San Diego pays below most of California for this role, though still within a normal range for the state. That's close to the national average for clinical and counseling psychologists — a fairly typical rate for this role. Cost of living here runs meaningfully above the national average. This is a reasonably reliable estimate, though the underlying sample is moderate in size.

Percentile within California

0th 50th 100th
Employment (this metro)
1,650
Estimate confidence
RSE 11.0%
Cost of living 112 #6 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 $946,365 #6 priciest of 188 cities in this dataset Source: zillow_real
Median household income $102,285 #10 highest of 188 cities in this dataset Source: Census Bureau ACS 5-year

Combining these four figures gives a fuller picture than salary alone: San Diego ranks #6 for cost of living and #6 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 Luis Obispo $166,470 San Francisco $153,490 Hanford $147,510 Salem $144,240 Sacramento $141,690 Eugene $137,620 Vallejo $137,210 Stockton $136,760 Modesto $135,390 Bend $129,930 Killeen $129,630 New York $129,390 Santa Rosa $127,910 Kiryas Joel $127,090 Oxnard $125,780 Trenton $125,730 Philadelphia $125,550 Ithaca $124,260 Portland $123,900 Kingston $121,390 Sarasota $121,350 Santa Cruz $120,840 Fresno $120,790 San Jose $119,160 Los Angeles $117,390 Binghamton $117,020 Spokane $115,890 Bakersfield $115,160 Olympia $115,030 Glens Falls $114,960 Crestview $114,420 Santa Maria $113,510 San Diego $113,230 Roanoke $113,030 Riverside $112,690 Albany $112,560 Port St. Lucie $111,880 Dallas $111,290 Miami $110,990 Buffalo $110,670 Utica $110,650 Jacksonville $110,490 Salinas $110,070 Erie $110,050 Syracuse $109,950 Scranton $109,000 Hagerstown $107,210 Reading $106,310 Lakeland $106,210 Rochester $105,870 Louisville $105,800 Visalia $105,530 Virginia Beach $105,250 Pittsburgh $104,940 Naples $104,720 Fort Myers $103,360 Harrisonburg $102,060 Harrisburg $101,370 Allentown $100,700 Dover $100,330 Peoria $100,150 Palm Bay $99,520 Lancaster $99,380 Detroit $99,210 Grand Rapids $98,840 Lexington $98,480 Flint $97,880 Columbus $97,620 Williamsport $97,520 Beckley $97,330 Pensacola $96,720 Staunton $96,560 Chicago $96,510 Lansing $96,500 Rockford $96,450 Houston $96,280 College Station $96,250 Morgantown $95,670 Lafayette $95,270 Champaign $94,370 Austin $94,350 Bay City $93,690 Indianapolis $93,160 Saginaw $91,800 Wheeling $91,370 Charlottesville $90,550 Muncie $90,000 Charleston $88,630 San Antonio $88,440 Richmond $88,360 Kalamazoo $88,310 South Bend $87,810 Bloomington $87,480 Evansville $86,950 Fort Wayne $86,910 Springfield $86,780 State College $86,580 Traverse City $85,050 Tampa $84,680 Elmira $84,420 Ann Arbor $84,360 Huntington $83,990 Elkhart $83,850 Niles $83,660 San Angelo $82,670 Tallahassee $80,120 Waco $78,940 Lubbock $77,640 McAllen $77,430 Terre Haute $75,840 Corpus Christi $75,680 Abilene $75,290 El Paso $75,030
CityMean salaryvs. San Diego
Abilene, Texas$75,290-33.5%
Albany, New York$112,560-0.6%
Allentown, Pennsylvania$100,700-11.1%
Ann Arbor, Michigan$84,360-25.5%
Austin, Texas$94,350-16.7%
Bakersfield, California$115,160+1.7%
Bay City, Michigan$93,690-17.3%
Beckley, West Virginia$97,330-14.0%
Bend, Oregon$129,930+14.7%
Binghamton, New York$117,020+3.3%
Bloomington, Indiana$87,480-22.7%
Buffalo, New York$110,670-2.3%
Fort Myers, Florida$103,360-8.7%
Champaign, Illinois$94,370-16.7%
Charleston, West Virginia$88,630-21.7%
Charlottesville, Virginia$90,550-20.0%
Chicago, Illinois$96,510-14.8%
College Station, Texas$96,250-15.0%
Columbus, Indiana$97,620-13.8%
Corpus Christi, Texas$75,680-33.2%
Crestview, Florida$114,420+1.1%
Dallas, Texas$111,290-1.7%
Detroit, Michigan$99,210-12.4%
Dover, Delaware$100,330-11.4%
Elkhart, Indiana$83,850-25.9%
Elmira, New York$84,420-25.4%
El Paso, Texas$75,030-33.7%
Erie, Pennsylvania$110,050-2.8%
Eugene, Oregon$137,620+21.5%
Evansville, Indiana$86,950-23.2%
Flint, Michigan$97,880-13.6%
Fort Wayne, Indiana$86,910-23.2%
Fresno, California$120,790+6.7%
Glens Falls, New York$114,960+1.5%
Grand Rapids, Michigan$98,840-12.7%
Hagerstown, Maryland$107,210-5.3%
Hanford, California$147,510+30.3%
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania$101,370-10.5%
Harrisonburg, Virginia$102,060-9.9%
Houston, Texas$96,280-15.0%
Huntington, West Virginia$83,990-25.8%
Indianapolis, Indiana$93,160-17.7%
Ithaca, New York$124,260+9.7%
Jacksonville, Florida$110,490-2.4%
Kalamazoo, Michigan$88,310-22.0%
Killeen, Texas$129,630+14.5%
Kingston, New York$121,390+7.2%
Kiryas Joel, New York$127,090+12.2%
Lafayette, Indiana$95,270-15.9%
Lakeland, Florida$106,210-6.2%
Lancaster, Pennsylvania$99,380-12.2%
Lansing, Michigan$96,500-14.8%
Lexington, Kentucky$98,480-13.0%
Los Angeles, California$117,390+3.7%
Louisville, Kentucky$105,800-6.6%
Lubbock, Texas$77,640-31.4%
McAllen, Texas$77,430-31.6%
Miami, Florida$110,990-2.0%
Modesto, California$135,390+19.6%
Morgantown, West Virginia$95,670-15.5%
Muncie, Indiana$90,000-20.5%
Naples, Florida$104,720-7.5%
New York, New York$129,390+14.3%
Niles, Michigan$83,660-26.1%
Sarasota, Florida$121,350+7.2%
Olympia, Washington$115,030+1.6%
Oxnard, California$125,780+11.1%
Palm Bay, Florida$99,520-12.1%
Pensacola, Florida$96,720-14.6%
Peoria, Illinois$100,150-11.6%
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania$125,550+10.9%
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania$104,940-7.3%
Portland, Oregon$123,900+9.4%
Port St. Lucie, Florida$111,880-1.2%
Reading, Pennsylvania$106,310-6.1%
Richmond, Virginia$88,360-22.0%
Riverside, California$112,690-0.5%
Roanoke, Virginia$113,030-0.2%
Rochester, New York$105,870-6.5%
Rockford, Illinois$96,450-14.8%
Sacramento, California$141,690+25.1%
Saginaw, Michigan$91,800-18.9%
Salem, Oregon$144,240+27.4%
Salinas, California$110,070-2.8%
San Angelo, Texas$82,670-27.0%
San Antonio, Texas$88,440-21.9%
San Francisco, California$153,490+35.6%
San Jose, California$119,160+5.2%
San Luis Obispo, California$166,470+47.0%
Santa Cruz, California$120,840+6.7%
Santa Maria, California$113,510+0.2%
Santa Rosa, California$127,910+13.0%
Scranton, Pennsylvania$109,000-3.7%
South Bend, Indiana$87,810-22.4%
Spokane, Washington$115,890+2.3%
Springfield, Illinois$86,780-23.4%
State College, Pennsylvania$86,580-23.5%
Staunton, Virginia$96,560-14.7%
Stockton, California$136,760+20.8%
Syracuse, New York$109,950-2.9%
Tallahassee, Florida$80,120-29.2%
Tampa, Florida$84,680-25.2%
Terre Haute, Indiana$75,840-33.0%
Traverse City, Michigan$85,050-24.9%
Trenton, New Jersey$125,730+11.0%
Utica, New York$110,650-2.3%
Vallejo, California$137,210+21.2%
Virginia Beach, Virginia$105,250-7.0%
Visalia, California$105,530-6.8%
Waco, Texas$78,940-30.3%
Wheeling, West Virginia$91,370-19.3%
Williamsport, Pennsylvania$97,520-13.9%
Gross salary
113,230/yr
Estimated take-home
82,049/yr
Est. total withheld
27.5%

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 Clinical and Counseling Psychologists salaries in California → All Clinical and Counseling Psychologists salaries →
Community reality check

Community reality check for San Diego

These notes add local color around San Diego, 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 19-3033 SOC code
Official area San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA BLS metro/geographic area
Area code 41740 Stable geographic key
Reference year 2025 BLS OEWS
Cost: bea_realHousing: zillow_realCrime: latest availableNet-pay source: ca_ftb_verificado 2025
Metro also includes
Chula VistaCarlsbad
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)
3,282,782