BLS metro-level wage data places Commercial and Industrial Designers pay in San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA at a median of $141,310 per year ($67.94/hr/hour), drawn from the OEWS May 2025 release for this Metropolitan Statistical Area. Compared to the national median of $83,910, San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara pays +68% above, signaling either concentrated employer demand, a cost-of-living premium, or both. Approximately 410 commercial and industrial designerss are employed across the San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara MSA in SOC 27-1021.

The San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara pay distribution spans from $83,340 at the 10th percentile to $211,100 at the 90th — a 2.5× spread that reflects experience tenure, specialization, employer size, and the difference between public-sector, nonprofit, and private-sector compensation inside the metro. The 25th percentile sits at $110,000 and the 75th at $192,240, so half of San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara-based commercial and industrial designerss earn within that middle band.

Metro figures capture where you actually work, not just where you live — which matters for commuters. BLS draws metro boundaries from the OMB MSA definitions, so San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA covers the central city plus outlying counties tied to the metro economically. Remember that OEWS wages reflect base pay only: employer-provided health insurance, retirement matches, stock options, signing bonuses, overtime, and tips are excluded and can add 20-40% to real total compensation. Before using this metro median as a negotiation anchor, triangulate against the same occupation's national profile (linked below), its state-wide CA data, and peer-metro comparisons — a median is a starting point, not a ceiling.