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Forensic Science Technicians pay in San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA and Stockton-Lodi, CA
The May 2025 BLS OEWS median for Forensic Science Technicians is $137,280 per year in San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA. It is $81,930 per year in Stockton-Lodi, CA. San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA is 67.6% above Stockton-Lodi, CA on the published median.
Both rows use SOC 19-4092 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 140 wage and salary jobs in San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA and 60 in Stockton-Lodi, 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.
Evidence: bls-oews-may-2025 · Rule: same-soc-same-metric-pair · nominal-median-gap · employment-not-openings