Molding, Coremaking, and Casting Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic Salary — San Luis Obispo, California

The average Molding, Coremaking, and Casting Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic in San Luis Obispo, California earns $52,290 a year.

$52,290 / year, mean
↑ 13.2% above national average 80th percentile in California

San Luis Obispo pays well above most of California for this role, landing in the top third statewide. That's a solid premium over the national average for molding, coremaking, and casting machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic. 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)
60
Estimate confidence
RSE 3.9%
Cost of living 109 #15 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 $909,699 #7 priciest of 188 cities in this dataset Source: zillow_real
Median household income $93,398 #25 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 Luis Obispo ranks #15 for cost of living and #7 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.

Bremerton $77,380 Saginaw $59,280 Corpus Christi $58,980 Baltimore $58,620 San Jose $56,900 Evansville $56,040 Albany $54,830 Albany $54,560 San Francisco $53,720 Lexington $53,470 Utica $53,150 Virginia Beach $53,010 Kiryas Joel $52,580 Vallejo $52,470 San Luis Obispo $52,290 Bakersfield $51,950 Reading $51,810 Midland $51,710 Peoria $51,530 Seattle $51,410 Oxnard $51,020 Portland $50,470 Spokane $49,860 Hagerstown $49,470 San Diego $49,470 Allentown $49,310 Los Angeles $49,250 Stockton $49,180 Michigan City $48,840 Bowling Green $48,780 Fresno $48,670 Sacramento $48,660 Muskegon $48,560 Lancaster $48,450 Winchester $48,430 Harrisburg $48,400 Modesto $48,330 Philadelphia $48,140 Glens Falls $47,770 Palm Bay $47,650 Lansing $47,640 Jackson $47,530 Fort Wayne $47,310 Santa Rosa $47,260 Chicago $46,980 Bend $46,840 York $46,640 Chico $46,410 Champaign $46,310 Battle Creek $46,280 Dallas $46,050 Syracuse $45,810 Buffalo $45,790 Port St. Lucie $45,750 Riverside $45,590 Houston $45,510 Pittsburgh $45,320 Scranton $45,230 Louisville $45,180 Williamsport $45,150 New York $45,130 Rockford $44,600 Austin $44,500 Gettysburg $44,010 Ann Arbor $43,950 Elkhart $43,760 Detroit $43,560 San Antonio $43,500 Kalamazoo $43,460 Rochester $43,240 Sarasota $43,200 Tampa $42,930 Terre Haute $42,920 Waco $42,840 Grand Rapids $42,830 Traverse City $42,760 Trenton $42,570 Indianapolis $42,540 Orlando $42,510 Jacksonville $42,460 Monroe $42,380 Niles $42,160 Tyler $42,050 Huntington $41,590 Miami $41,040 Lakeland $40,930 Binghamton $40,540 Columbus $40,500 Vineland $40,370 South Bend $40,160 Roanoke $40,100 Erie $40,070 Eugene $39,720 Grants Pass $39,530 Owensboro $39,150 Richmond $39,150 Lafayette $38,650 McAllen $38,070 Flint $37,010 Lynchburg $35,940 El Paso $35,020 College Station $34,720 Brownsville $32,340
CityMean salaryvs. San Luis Obispo
Albany, Oregon$54,830+4.9%
Albany, New York$54,560+4.3%
Allentown, Pennsylvania$49,310-5.7%
Ann Arbor, Michigan$43,950-15.9%
Austin, Texas$44,500-14.9%
Bakersfield, California$51,950-0.7%
Baltimore, Maryland$58,620+12.1%
Battle Creek, Michigan$46,280-11.5%
Bend, Oregon$46,840-10.4%
Binghamton, New York$40,540-22.5%
Bowling Green, Kentucky$48,780-6.7%
Bremerton, Washington$77,380+48.0%
Brownsville, Texas$32,340-38.2%
Buffalo, New York$45,790-12.4%
Champaign, Illinois$46,310-11.4%
Chicago, Illinois$46,980-10.2%
Chico, California$46,410-11.2%
College Station, Texas$34,720-33.6%
Columbus, Indiana$40,500-22.5%
Corpus Christi, Texas$58,980+12.8%
Dallas, Texas$46,050-11.9%
Detroit, Michigan$43,560-16.7%
Elkhart, Indiana$43,760-16.3%
El Paso, Texas$35,020-33.0%
Erie, Pennsylvania$40,070-23.4%
Eugene, Oregon$39,720-24.0%
Evansville, Indiana$56,040+7.2%
Flint, Michigan$37,010-29.2%
Fort Wayne, Indiana$47,310-9.5%
Fresno, California$48,670-6.9%
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania$44,010-15.8%
Glens Falls, New York$47,770-8.6%
Grand Rapids, Michigan$42,830-18.1%
Grants Pass, Oregon$39,530-24.4%
Hagerstown, Maryland$49,470-5.4%
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania$48,400-7.4%
Houston, Texas$45,510-13.0%
Huntington, West Virginia$41,590-20.5%
Indianapolis, Indiana$42,540-18.6%
Jackson, Michigan$47,530-9.1%
Jacksonville, Florida$42,460-18.8%
Kalamazoo, Michigan$43,460-16.9%
Kiryas Joel, New York$52,580+0.6%
Lafayette, Indiana$38,650-26.1%
Lakeland, Florida$40,930-21.7%
Lancaster, Pennsylvania$48,450-7.3%
Lansing, Michigan$47,640-8.9%
Lexington, Kentucky$53,470+2.3%
Los Angeles, California$49,250-5.8%
Louisville, Kentucky$45,180-13.6%
Lynchburg, Virginia$35,940-31.3%
McAllen, Texas$38,070-27.2%
Miami, Florida$41,040-21.5%
Michigan City, Indiana$48,840-6.6%
Midland, Michigan$51,710-1.1%
Modesto, California$48,330-7.6%
Monroe, Michigan$42,380-19.0%
Muskegon, Michigan$48,560-7.1%
New York, New York$45,130-13.7%
Niles, Michigan$42,160-19.4%
Sarasota, Florida$43,200-17.4%
Orlando, Florida$42,510-18.7%
Owensboro, Kentucky$39,150-25.1%
Oxnard, California$51,020-2.4%
Palm Bay, Florida$47,650-8.9%
Peoria, Illinois$51,530-1.5%
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania$48,140-7.9%
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania$45,320-13.3%
Portland, Oregon$50,470-3.5%
Port St. Lucie, Florida$45,750-12.5%
Reading, Pennsylvania$51,810-0.9%
Richmond, Virginia$39,150-25.1%
Riverside, California$45,590-12.8%
Roanoke, Virginia$40,100-23.3%
Rochester, New York$43,240-17.3%
Rockford, Illinois$44,600-14.7%
Sacramento, California$48,660-6.9%
Saginaw, Michigan$59,280+13.4%
San Antonio, Texas$43,500-16.8%
San Diego, California$49,470-5.4%
San Francisco, California$53,720+2.7%
San Jose, California$56,900+8.8%
Santa Rosa, California$47,260-9.6%
Scranton, Pennsylvania$45,230-13.5%
Seattle, Washington$51,410-1.7%
South Bend, Indiana$40,160-23.2%
Spokane, Washington$49,860-4.6%
Stockton, California$49,180-5.9%
Syracuse, New York$45,810-12.4%
Tampa, Florida$42,930-17.9%
Terre Haute, Indiana$42,920-17.9%
Traverse City, Michigan$42,760-18.2%
Trenton, New Jersey$42,570-18.6%
Tyler, Texas$42,050-19.6%
Utica, New York$53,150+1.6%
Vallejo, California$52,470+0.3%
Vineland, New Jersey$40,370-22.8%
Virginia Beach, Virginia$53,010+1.4%
Waco, Texas$42,840-18.1%
Williamsport, Pennsylvania$45,150-13.7%
Winchester, Virginia$48,430-7.4%
York, Pennsylvania$46,640-10.8%
Gross salary
52,290/yr
Estimated take-home
42,865/yr
Est. total withheld
18.0%

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 Molding, Coremaking, and Casting Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic salaries in California → All Molding, Coremaking, and Casting Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic salaries →
Community reality check

Community reality check for San Luis Obispo

These notes add local color around San Luis Obispo, 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 51-4072 SOC code
Official area San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles, CA BLS metro/geographic area
Area code 42020 Stable geographic key
Reference year 2025 BLS OEWS
Cost: bea_realHousing: zillow_realCrime: latest availableNet-pay source: ca_ftb_verificado 2025
Metro also includes
Paso Robles
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)
281,486