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Computer Hardware Engineers pay in Arizona and California
The May 2025 BLS OEWS median for Computer Hardware Engineers is $158,280 per year in Arizona. It is $185,180 per year in California. Arizona is 14.5% below California on the published median.
Both rows use SOC 17-2061 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 3,110 wage and salary jobs in Arizona and 19,820 in California. 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.
Evidence: bls-oews-may-2025 · Rule: same-soc-same-metric-pair · nominal-median-gap · employment-not-openings