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City of San Diego salary estimate

$41,287yearly

$19.85 hourly rate

Entry-level salary
$22,000 yearly salary
Updated December 15, 2025

City of San Diego Salary Overview

The City of San Diego offers a competitive salary structure with an average annual salary of $41,287. This figure represents a wide range of positions, reflecting the diverse workforce within the city. Salary levels vary significantly depending on job roles and departments. For instance, administrative roles tend to offer higher compensation compared to other sectors.

Highest Paying Jobs

Among the highest paying jobs are those in management and specialized technical roles. These positions often command salaries that exceed the average, making them attractive options for job seekers. Additionally, understanding the salary by department helps prospective employees gauge their earning potential.

Departmental Insights

Different departments within the City of San Diego have unique pay scales. By exploring the salary estimates by department, you can identify which sectors offer the best compensation. This information is particularly useful for candidates looking to align their career paths with financial goals.

Highest paying jobs at City of San Diego

The highest paying jobs at City of San Diego are sap/abap developer, public information officer, sap bw consultant, and city attorney. Sap/abap developer jobs at City of San Diego earn an average yearly salary of $95,734, City of San Diego public information officer jobs average $94,566, and City of San Diego sap bw consultant jobs average $94,436.

The lowest paying City of San Diego roles include data entry associate and library aide. City of San Diego data entry associate average salary is $25,694 per year. So while the average City of San Diego salary is $41,287 there is a big variation in pay depending on the role.

Highest paying jobs at City of San Diego

RankJob titleAverage City of San Diego salaryHourly rate
1Sap/Abap Developer$95,734$46.03
2Public Information Officer$94,566$45.46
3SAP BW Consultant$94,436$45.40
4City Attorney$94,231$45.30
5Legal Extern$85,554$41.13
6Engineering Associate$83,260$40.03
7Engineering Aide$78,416$37.70
8Program Manager$77,463$37.24
9Civil Engineer$75,548$36.32
10Environmental Planner$74,564$35.85
11Program Coordinator$73,651$35.41
12Press Secretary$73,340$35.26
13BI Consultant$73,269$35.23
14Student Engineer$72,880$35.04
15Project Manager$71,106$34.19
16Police Officer$64,696$31.10
17Department Coordinator$64,088$30.81
18Management Analyst$61,717$29.67
19Administrative Analyst$57,369$27.58
20Payroll Specialist$46,507$22.36

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City of San Diego salaries by department

Salaries at City of San Diego vary depending on the department you work in. City of San Diego salaries in the engineering department are the highest with an average salary of $71,829. Employees in the legal department at City of San Diego receive relatively high salaries as well, with an average salary of $66,418 per year. Departments that don't pay as well at City of San Diego include the hospitality/service and the education organizational functions, with employees earning average salaries of $29,960 and $30,840, respectively.

Average City of San Diego salary by department

RankDepartmentAverage City of San Diego salaryHourly rate
1Engineering$71,829$34.53
2Legal$66,418$31.93
3IT$62,825$30.20
4Finance$61,349$29.49
5Marketing$57,405$27.60
6Construction$47,697$22.93
7Accounting$47,535$22.85
8Plant/Manufacturing$45,520$21.88
9Healthcare$44,679$21.48
10Supply Chain$42,415$20.39
11Non Profit/Government$40,438$19.44
12Customer Service$38,118$18.33
13Administrative$33,440$16.08
14Facilities$32,347$15.55
15Education$30,840$14.83
16Hospitality/Service$29,960$14.40

How much does City of San Diego pay by department?

Best paying City of San Diego administrative salaries

RankPositionAverage City of San Diego salaryHourly rate
1Senior Administrator$63,878$30.71
2Billing Supervisor$50,948$24.49
3Accountable Clerk$41,769$20.08
4City Secretary$41,334$19.87
5Executive Secretary$40,139$19.30
6Office Manager$39,316$18.90
7Administrative Aide$38,906$18.70
8Records Specialist$37,711$18.13
9Project Management Internship$37,106$17.84
10Administrative Assistant$34,837$16.75
11Document Specialist$34,585$16.63
12Receptionist$29,085$13.98
13Office Assistant$28,755$13.82
14Clerical Associate$28,617$13.76
15Library Clerk$27,621$13.28
16Word Processor Operator$27,066$13.01
17Student Internship$26,336$12.66
18Library Aide$25,742$12.38
19Data Entry Associate$25,695$12.35

Best paying City of San Diego non profit/government salaries

RankPositionAverage City of San Diego salaryHourly rate
1Program Manager$77,463$37.24
2Program Coordinator$73,651$35.41
3Police Officer$64,696$31.10
4Department Coordinator$64,089$30.81
5Assistant Center Director$51,773$24.89
6Deputy Coroner$50,028$24.05
7Homicide Investigator$48,021$23.09
8Community Services Officer$47,768$22.97
9Equal Employment Opportunity Investigator$46,563$22.39
10Sergeant$46,145$22.19
11Police Cadet$41,904$20.15
12Social Services Assistant$37,351$17.96
13Case Manager$36,373$17.49
14Recreation Center Director$33,157$15.94
15Case Aide$30,951$14.88
16Community Service Volunteer$28,679$13.79
17Recreation Leader$27,448$13.20

Best paying City of San Diego engineering salaries

RankPositionAverage City of San Diego salaryHourly rate
1SAP Project Manager$104,381$50.18
2Sap/Abap Developer$95,734$46.03
3SAP BW Consultant$94,436$45.40
4Architect$82,537$39.68
5GIS Developer$80,040$38.48
6Engineering Aide$78,416$37.70
7Programmer$75,570$36.33
8Civil Engineer$75,548$36.32
9Environmental Planner$74,564$35.85
10BI Consultant$73,269$35.23
11Student Engineer$72,880$35.04
12Information Systems Technician$69,554$33.44
13Engineering Internship$64,656$31.08
14Data Analyst$62,429$30.01
15Gis Internship$59,457$28.59
16Police Dispatcher$39,927$19.20
17Public Safety Dispatcher$37,854$18.20
18Refuse Driver$37,789$18.17
19Solid Waste Collector$31,002$14.90

City of San Diego competitors’ average salaries

Average salaries at City of San Diego competitors, like City of Palo Alto, City of Fresno, and City of Chandler, Arizona, vary. City of Palo Alto employees earn the highest salaries, with an average yearly salary of $67,557. The average salary at City of Fresno is $59,977 per year, and the average salary at City of Chandler, Arizona is $59,462 per year.

Highest paying City of San Diego competitors

RankCompany nameZippia scoreAverage salary
1City of Palo Alto3.8$67,557
2City of Fresno4.2$59,977
3City of Chandler, Arizona4.2$59,462
4City of Seattle4.5$58,099
5City of San Jos4.4$51,913
6City and County of Denver Government4.6$49,854
7City of Los Angeles4.0$49,427
8City of Houston4.1$42,702
9City of Anaheim4.7$39,223
10City of Chesapeake4.1$38,484
11City of Pasadena4.4$37,090
12Municipal Court-Criminal Div4.5$36,809
13City of Lakewood4.5$36,580
14City of Sacramento4.3$35,908
15City of Temple Terrace3.9$35,717
16City of Tampa3.9$35,492
17Hillsboro County Sheriff4.5$34,666
18City of Modesto3.0$34,400
19City of Dublin, Ohio - Government3.4$32,902
20Oakland Public Library4.1$32,495

Recently added City of San Diego salaries

JobLocationDate addedSalary
Literacy Tutor/Learner CoordinatorSan Diego, CA06/28/2025$66,830
Equipment Technician IISan Diego, CA06/20/2025$56,035
Lifeguard ISan Diego, CA06/20/2025$52,572
Sanitation Driver TraineeSan Diego, CA06/20/2025$56,430
Dispatcher IISan Diego, CA06/20/2025$62,213

What employees say about salary at City of San Diego

Employee reviews
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2.0
A zippia user wrote a review on Dec 2023
Cons of working at City of San Diego

Not good enough for me

City of San Diego benefits

Helping people

Pros of working at City of San Diego

Not fair for the people that work for them and not getting paid enough for leaving

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Zippia gives an in-depth look into the details of City of San Diego, including salaries, political affiliations, employee data, and more, in order to inform job seekers about City of San Diego. The employee data is based on information from people who have self-reported their past or current employments at City of San Diego. The data on this page is also based on data sources collected from public and open data sources on the Internet and other locations, as well as proprietary data we licensed from other companies. Sources of data may include, but are not limited to, the BLS, company filings, estimates based on those filings, H1B filings, and other public and private datasets. While we have made attempts to ensure that the information displayed are correct, Zippia is not responsible for any errors or omissions or for the results obtained from the use of this information. None of the information on this page has been provided or approved by City of San Diego. The data presented on this page does not represent the view of City of San Diego and its employees or that of Zippia.

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