Petaluma water operator salary, 2025

Petaluma is a city in Sonoma County. 14 people worked as water operators for Petaluma in 2025. Those who worked the full year earned an average of $142,135, overtime included.

What is the average water operator salary at Petaluma?

Official pay range, wastewater treatment operators1

$103,376 to $169,957

from the lowest entry salary to the top of the highest title for wastewater treatment operators, the largest group

Average total pay, full-year water operators1

$142,135

average base pay $120,305

Most of Petaluma's water operators (8 of 14) hold the title Water Recycle Plant Op 3, with an official range of $103,376 to $125,736. Those who worked the full year earned an average of $139,596, $13,860 above the top of the range.

Water operators
14
13 of them worked the full year
Starting salary
$75,941
bottom of the Assistant Utility System Operator range
Median total pay
$141,144
the middle water operator: half earned more, half less
Average pay rank
51st
of 300 California employers

What does each water operator title at Petaluma pay?

Each bar is the official range for one title, lowest first. The dot marks the average total pay of full-year staff in that title, where at least 5 people stand behind it.1

Wastewater treatment operators

  1. Water Recycle Plant Op 3$103,376 to $125,736 · 8 people
    $139,596
  2. Water Recycle Plant Lead Op$113,734 to $138,258 · fewer than 5 people
    fewer than 5
  3. Water Recycle Plant Op Supervisor$139,880 to $169,957 · fewer than 5 people
    fewer than 5

Water system operators

  1. Assistant Utility System Operator$75,941 to $92,331 · fewer than 5 people
    fewer than 5
  2. Utility System Operator$83,450 to $101,504 · fewer than 5 people
    fewer than 5

official range average total pay, full year. "Fewer than 5" means too few full-year people in that title to show.

Does Petaluma pay water operators more than other employers in Sonoma County?

Average total pay of full-year water operators: Petaluma next to every employer in the county together, and the whole state.1

Full-year water operators at Petaluma earned $26,865 more than the Sonoma County average and $18,409 more than the California average.

Where does Petaluma rank among California employers?

Every employer with at least 5 full-year water operators, by average total pay.1

All 300 California employers

Petaluma ranks 51st of 300, above the middle employer.

Petaluma
$50k$100k$150k$200k

Middle employer: $116,210

The 7 employers in Sonoma County

Petaluma ranks 2nd of 7, above the middle employer.

Petaluma
$100k$120k$140k$160k

Middle employer: $114,481

Each bar counts the employers whose average total pay falls in a $5,000 band. The dashed line marks the middle employer.

Pension and health cover at Petaluma

As reported by the city. Contributions are what the employer paid per full-year water operator, on top of wages.1

Pension formula
2% at 55
the most common formula among Petaluma's water operators
Employer pension contribution
$6,509
average per year
Health, dental and vision
$28,424
average paid by the employer per year

Questions about water operator pay at Petaluma

What is the average water operator salary at Petaluma?

Water operators at Petaluma who worked the full year earned an average of $142,135 in 2025, overtime included. The middle water operator earned $141,144: half earned more, half less. The official pay range across its water operator titles runs from $103,376 to $169,957.

How much overtime do water operators at Petaluma earn?

Full-year water operators were paid an average of $11,637 in overtime in 2025. The middle one was paid $11,716: a few people with a lot of overtime pull the average up.

What pension do water operators at Petaluma get?

The most common pension formula among Petaluma's water operators is 2% at 55, as reported by the city. The employer paid an average of $6,509 a year into the pension plan.

More salaries in Sonoma County

Sources for the Petaluma figures

Every person who held a water operator position at Petaluma at any point in 2025 counts toward the headcount. Pay figures use only people who worked roughly the full year: those whose regular pay reached at least 90% of the bottom of their official range. Total pay is gross wages before tax, including overtime, lump sums and other pay. Averages lead; the median total pay is the middle person's, with half above and half below, and is less pulled by a few people with a lot of overtime. Every figure covers at least 5 people.

  1. State Controller's Office, Government Compensation in California, 2025: positions, official pay ranges, wages, pension formula and employer contributions as reported by Petaluma.

How we read the data