Sacramento water operator salary, 2025

Sacramento is a city in Sacramento County. 44 people worked as water operators for Sacramento in 2025. Those who worked the full year earned an average of $107,447, overtime included.

What is the average water operator salary at Sacramento?

Official pay range, water treatment operators1

$55,400 to $146,053

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

Average total pay, full-year water operators1

$107,447

average base pay $99,615

The largest group of Sacramento's water operators (20 of 44) hold the title Plant Operator, with an official range of $66,360 to $93,375. Those who worked the full year earned an average of $93,529, $154 above the top of the range.

Water operators
44
40 of them worked the full year
Starting salary
$55,400
bottom of the Junior Plant Operator range
Median total pay
$99,410
the middle water operator: half earned more, half less
Average pay rank
187th
of 300 California employers

What does each water operator title at Sacramento 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

Water treatment operators

  1. Junior Plant Operator$55,400 to $77,953 · fewer than 5 people
    fewer than 5
  2. Plant Operator$66,360 to $93,375 · 20 people
    $93,529
  3. Senior Plant Operator$79,709 to $112,158 · 11 people
    $122,736
  4. Supervising Plant Operator$103,797 to $146,053 · fewer than 5 people
    fewer than 5

Wastewater treatment operators

  1. Junior Plant Operator$55,400 to $77,953 · fewer than 5 people
    fewer than 5
  2. Senior Plant Operator$79,709 to $112,158 · fewer than 5 people
    fewer than 5
  3. Supervising Plant Operator$103,797 to $146,053 · 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 Sacramento pay water operators more than other employers in Sacramento County?

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

Full-year water operators at Sacramento earned $18,223 less than the Sacramento County average and $16,279 less than the California average.

Where does Sacramento rank among California employers?

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

All 300 California employers

Sacramento ranks 187th of 300, below the middle employer.

Sacramento
$50k$100k$150k$200k

Middle employer: $116,210

The 11 employers in Sacramento County

Sacramento ranks 8th of 11, below the middle employer.

Sacramento
$80k$100k$120k$140k

Middle employer: $113,104

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 Sacramento

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 62
the most common formula among Sacramento's water operators
Employer pension contribution
$9,552
average per year
Health, dental and vision
$13,391
average paid by the employer per year

Questions about water operator pay at Sacramento

What is the average water operator salary at Sacramento?

Water operators at Sacramento who worked the full year earned an average of $107,447 in 2025, overtime included. The middle water operator earned $99,410: half earned more, half less. The official pay range across its water operator titles runs from $55,400 to $146,053.

How much overtime do water operators at Sacramento earn?

Full-year water operators were paid an average of $4,779 in overtime in 2025. The middle one was paid $1,702: a few people with a lot of overtime pull the average up.

What pension do water operators at Sacramento get?

The most common pension formula among Sacramento's water operators is 2% at 62, as reported by the city. The employer paid an average of $9,552 a year into the pension plan.

More salaries in Sacramento County

Sources for the Sacramento figures

Every person who held a water operator position at Sacramento 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 Sacramento.

How we read the data