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Salary ledger — May 2025 government data

Paralegal salary in San Diego

What paralegals and legal assistants actually earn in San Diego, from the federal wage survey: the full pay range, and what that pay is worth once local prices are counted.

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Median pay, paralegals and legal assistants in San Diego

$76,300

Half earn more, half earn less. The average is $78,860, pulled up by top earners.

$68,194
What the median buys at US-average prices
$59,410–$98,260
What the middle half earns
10th of 20
Rank among these metros, after local prices

How much do paralegals and legal assistants make in San Diego?

The bar spans the middle half of earners. The whiskers run from the 10th to the 90th percentile. Hover or tab to a row for every figure.

San Diego, as paid
At national prices
United States
Annual pay by percentile, paralegals and legal assistants
Area10th25thMedian75th90th
San Diego, as paid $48,210 $59,410 $76,300 $98,260 $107,380
San Diego, at national prices $43,088 $53,098 $68,194 $87,821 $95,972
United States $44,740 $50,340 $62,890 $80,080 $101,500
Everyday prices in San Diego run 11.9% above the US average. Housing alone runs 79.3% above. That's why what the pay buys differs from the paycheck.

Where paralegals and legal assistants come out ahead after prices

Each line runs from the median paycheck to what it buys at US-average prices. Sorted by the second. Select a metro to open it.

Median as paid
At national prices
Median pay by metro for paralegals and legal assistants, ranked after local prices
MetroMedianAt US pricesPrices vs US
1San Jose$99,250$89,882+10.4%
2Seattle$92,900$83,594+11.1%
3Denver$80,500$76,100+5.8%
4Washington, DC$81,590$74,933+8.9%
5Boston$79,850$73,754+8.3%
6Minneapolis–St. Paul$76,220$72,714+4.8%
7San Francisco$84,030$72,682+15.6%
8Philadelphia$70,430$68,676+2.6%
9Los Angeles$77,520$68,260+13.6%
10San Diego$76,300$68,194+11.9%
11Chicago$70,550$68,102+3.6%
12New York$75,330$66,923+12.6%
13Austin$64,140$65,405−1.9%
14Atlanta$64,080$64,043+0.1%
15Houston$62,730$63,602−1.4%
16Nashville$60,800$63,111−3.7%
17Charlotte$59,870$61,501−2.7%
18Dallas–Fort Worth$63,220$61,325+3.1%
19Phoenix$62,620$60,610+3.3%
20Miami$62,090$54,391+14.2%

Wages: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, all industries — San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA metro area, “Paralegals and Legal Assistants.” Prices: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities by MSA (MARPP), 2024. Checked against the source October 4, 2026.

Other jobs in San Diego

Paralegal pay across the US
Common questions

How we read the wage data

Where the numbers come from, what they include, and what the price adjustment does.

From the Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey run by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Employers report what they actually pay, by job and location, so these are payroll figures, not self-reported numbers or job-ad ranges. BLS publishes one release a year, with a May reference date. Each page names the release it uses and the date we last checked for a newer one.
It is the paycheck restated as what it would buy at US-average prices, using the Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parities (US = 100). The math is wage × 100 ÷ parity. In a metro where prices run 12.5% above average, $100,000 buys what about $88,900 buys nationally. It covers everyday prices including housing. It does not account for taxes.
A few very high earners pull the average up, so most people earn less than the "average salary." The median is the middle paycheck: half earn more and half earn less. The percentile range shows the rest. The 25th-to-75th band is where the middle half of workers sit.
Those sites use self-reported salaries or posted job ads, and they skew toward people who choose to share. OEWS surveys employers about their payrolls, so it covers people who never post their pay. OEWS wages include base pay, commissions, production bonuses, and tips. They exclude overtime, shift differentials, and benefits, and they don't cover the self-employed.
BLS withholds estimates that don't meet its reliability standards, usually because too few employers in a metro reported that job. We show "n/a" rather than fill the gap. BLS also top-codes the highest wages, publishing them only as "at or above" a ceiling, and we label those the same way.