Respiratory Therapists Salary — Modesto, California

The average Respiratory Therapists in Modesto, California earns $107,680 a year.

$107,680 / year, mean
↑ 21.2% above national average 45th percentile in California

Modesto sits roughly in the middle of the pack for this role within California — neither a standout nor a laggard. That's a solid premium over the national average for respiratory therapists. 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)
270
Estimate confidence
RSE 1.2%
Cost of living 104 #25 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 $468,302 #30 priciest of 188 cities in this dataset Source: zillow_real
Median household income $79,661 #52 highest of 188 cities in this dataset Source: Census Bureau ACS 5-year

Combining these four figures gives a fuller picture than salary alone: Modesto ranks #25 for cost of living and #30 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 $146,490 Santa Cruz $133,510 Vallejo $133,510 San Francisco $128,490 Sacramento $124,410 Santa Rosa $120,450 Napa $115,620 New York $113,400 Stockton $109,200 Santa Maria $109,100 Redding $108,270 San Luis Obispo $108,020 Modesto $107,680 Salem $107,350 Kiryas Joel $106,910 Merced $106,650 Oxnard $105,780 San Diego $105,750 Kingston $103,730 Seattle $103,200 Atlantic City $103,000 Los Angeles $102,570 Medford $102,550 Binghamton $100,020 Bakersfield $98,860 Riverside $98,200 Portland $98,160 Kennewick $94,050 Utica $91,640 Fresno $91,630 Eugene $90,330 Syracuse $89,860 Baltimore $89,340 Albany $88,710 Buffalo $88,460 Chicago $88,400 Reading $87,990 Rochester $87,410 Philadelphia $87,200 Longview $87,010 Dallas $86,680 Virginia Beach $86,650 Visalia $86,630 Richmond $85,780 Charlottesville $85,660 Austin $85,370 Tampa $84,520 Fort Myers $84,440 Dover $84,430 Miami $84,380 Kankakee $84,170 Lakeland $83,860 Pensacola $83,800 Michigan City $83,140 Sebastian $82,070 Springfield $81,810 Allentown $81,440 Sarasota $81,440 Orlando $81,430 Port St. Lucie $81,400 Monroe $81,280 Houston $81,170 Ann Arbor $80,840 Champaign $80,720 Tallahassee $80,530 Jacksonville $80,430 Detroit $80,360 Chambersburg $80,220 Indianapolis $80,130 Deltona $79,870 Bloomington $79,850 Evansville $79,780 Bloomington $79,590 York $79,450 Lynchburg $79,320 San Antonio $79,130 Hagerstown $79,110 Rockford $79,090 Roanoke $78,800 Lafayette $78,780 Palm Bay $78,720 Lexington $78,710 Battle Creek $78,630 Lancaster $78,520 Williamsport $78,310 Waco $78,030 Peoria $77,810 Killeen $77,800 Beaumont $77,780 Amarillo $77,710 Gainesville $77,430 South Bend $76,780 Harrisburg $76,700 Texarkana $76,560 Lansing $76,400 Grand Rapids $76,230 Crestview $75,920 Flint $75,790 Lubbock $75,780 San Angelo $75,730 Corpus Christi $75,630 Tyler $75,460 El Paso $75,430 Louisville $75,290 Midland $75,150 Scranton $74,410 Charleston $74,330 Abilene $74,290 Homosassa Springs $73,880 Sherman $73,820 Victoria $73,330 Fort Wayne $73,210 Elizabethtown $73,050 Paducah $73,050 Pittsburgh $72,820 Kalamazoo $72,810 Panama City $72,450 Huntington $71,260 State College $70,700 Bowling Green $70,240 Weirton $70,190 Beckley $69,510 Brownsville $69,440 McAllen $67,960 Altoona $67,670 Erie $67,460 Johnstown $67,000
CityMean salaryvs. Modesto
Abilene, Texas$74,290-31.0%
Albany, New York$88,710-17.6%
Allentown, Pennsylvania$81,440-24.4%
Altoona, Pennsylvania$67,670-37.2%
Amarillo, Texas$77,710-27.8%
Ann Arbor, Michigan$80,840-24.9%
Atlantic City, New Jersey$103,000-4.3%
Austin, Texas$85,370-20.7%
Bakersfield, California$98,860-8.2%
Baltimore, Maryland$89,340-17.0%
Battle Creek, Michigan$78,630-27.0%
Beaumont, Texas$77,780-27.8%
Beckley, West Virginia$69,510-35.4%
Binghamton, New York$100,020-7.1%
Bloomington, Illinois$79,850-25.8%
Bloomington, Indiana$79,590-26.1%
Bowling Green, Kentucky$70,240-34.8%
Brownsville, Texas$69,440-35.5%
Buffalo, New York$88,460-17.8%
Fort Myers, Florida$84,440-21.6%
Chambersburg, Pennsylvania$80,220-25.5%
Champaign, Illinois$80,720-25.0%
Charleston, West Virginia$74,330-31.0%
Charlottesville, Virginia$85,660-20.4%
Chicago, Illinois$88,400-17.9%
Corpus Christi, Texas$75,630-29.8%
Crestview, Florida$75,920-29.5%
Dallas, Texas$86,680-19.5%
Deltona, Florida$79,870-25.8%
Detroit, Michigan$80,360-25.4%
Dover, Delaware$84,430-21.6%
Elizabethtown, Kentucky$73,050-32.2%
El Paso, Texas$75,430-29.9%
Erie, Pennsylvania$67,460-37.4%
Eugene, Oregon$90,330-16.1%
Evansville, Indiana$79,780-25.9%
Flint, Michigan$75,790-29.6%
Fort Wayne, Indiana$73,210-32.0%
Fresno, California$91,630-14.9%
Gainesville, Florida$77,430-28.1%
Grand Rapids, Michigan$76,230-29.2%
Hagerstown, Maryland$79,110-26.5%
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania$76,700-28.8%
Homosassa Springs, Florida$73,880-31.4%
Houston, Texas$81,170-24.6%
Huntington, West Virginia$71,260-33.8%
Indianapolis, Indiana$80,130-25.6%
Jacksonville, Florida$80,430-25.3%
Johnstown, Pennsylvania$67,000-37.8%
Kalamazoo, Michigan$72,810-32.4%
Kankakee, Illinois$84,170-21.8%
Kennewick, Washington$94,050-12.7%
Killeen, Texas$77,800-27.7%
Kingston, New York$103,730-3.7%
Kiryas Joel, New York$106,910-0.7%
Lafayette, Indiana$78,780-26.8%
Lakeland, Florida$83,860-22.1%
Lancaster, Pennsylvania$78,520-27.1%
Lansing, Michigan$76,400-29.0%
Lexington, Kentucky$78,710-26.9%
Longview, Texas$87,010-19.2%
Los Angeles, California$102,570-4.7%
Louisville, Kentucky$75,290-30.1%
Lubbock, Texas$75,780-29.6%
Lynchburg, Virginia$79,320-26.3%
McAllen, Texas$67,960-36.9%
Medford, Oregon$102,550-4.8%
Merced, California$106,650-1.0%
Miami, Florida$84,380-21.6%
Michigan City, Indiana$83,140-22.8%
Midland, Texas$75,150-30.2%
Monroe, Michigan$81,280-24.5%
Napa, California$115,620+7.4%
New York, New York$113,400+5.3%
Sarasota, Florida$81,440-24.4%
Orlando, Florida$81,430-24.4%
Oxnard, California$105,780-1.8%
Paducah, Kentucky$73,050-32.2%
Palm Bay, Florida$78,720-26.9%
Panama City, Florida$72,450-32.7%
Pensacola, Florida$83,800-22.2%
Peoria, Illinois$77,810-27.7%
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania$87,200-19.0%
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania$72,820-32.4%
Portland, Oregon$98,160-8.8%
Port St. Lucie, Florida$81,400-24.4%
Reading, Pennsylvania$87,990-18.3%
Redding, California$108,270+0.5%
Richmond, Virginia$85,780-20.3%
Riverside, California$98,200-8.8%
Roanoke, Virginia$78,800-26.8%
Rochester, New York$87,410-18.8%
Rockford, Illinois$79,090-26.6%
Sacramento, California$124,410+15.5%
Salem, Oregon$107,350-0.3%
San Angelo, Texas$75,730-29.7%
San Antonio, Texas$79,130-26.5%
San Diego, California$105,750-1.8%
San Francisco, California$128,490+19.3%
San Jose, California$146,490+36.0%
San Luis Obispo, California$108,020+0.3%
Santa Cruz, California$133,510+24.0%
Santa Maria, California$109,100+1.3%
Santa Rosa, California$120,450+11.9%
Scranton, Pennsylvania$74,410-30.9%
Seattle, Washington$103,200-4.2%
Sebastian, Florida$82,070-23.8%
Sherman, Texas$73,820-31.4%
South Bend, Indiana$76,780-28.7%
Springfield, Illinois$81,810-24.0%
State College, Pennsylvania$70,700-34.3%
Stockton, California$109,200+1.4%
Syracuse, New York$89,860-16.5%
Tallahassee, Florida$80,530-25.2%
Tampa, Florida$84,520-21.5%
Texarkana, Texas$76,560-28.9%
Tyler, Texas$75,460-29.9%
Utica, New York$91,640-14.9%
Vallejo, California$133,510+24.0%
Victoria, Texas$73,330-31.9%
Virginia Beach, Virginia$86,650-19.5%
Visalia, California$86,630-19.5%
Waco, Texas$78,030-27.5%
Weirton, West Virginia$70,190-34.8%
Williamsport, Pennsylvania$78,310-27.3%
York, Pennsylvania$79,450-26.2%
Gross salary
107,680/yr
Estimated take-home
78,661/yr
Est. total withheld
26.9%

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 Respiratory Therapists salaries in California → All Respiratory Therapists salaries →
Community reality check

Community reality check for Modesto

These notes add local color around Modesto, 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 29-1126 SOC code
Official area Modesto, CA BLS metro/geographic area
Area code 33700 Stable geographic key
Reference year 2025 BLS OEWS
Cost: bea_realHousing: zillow_realCrime: latest availableNet-pay source: ca_ftb_verificado 2025
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)
552,250