Start with the answer
Automotive Service Technicians and Mechanics pay in Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA and San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA
The May 2025 BLS OEWS median for Automotive Service Technicians and Mechanics is $60,470 per year in Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA. It is $77,840 per year in San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA. Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA is 22.3% below San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA on the published median.
Both rows use SOC 49-3023 and the same annual wage metric. Median means the middle of each area's published wage spread. It is not one worker's pay. The larger median is not proof that one place gives a better job or a better result. It is one wage fact from one source period.
BLS lists 1,870 wage and salary jobs in Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA and 3,040 in San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA. Those are survey job counts, not open posts. Read pay, job scale, local share, and price level as separate facts before you make a choice.