Inspectors, Testers, Sorters, Samplers, and Weighers in the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim Metro

BLS metro-level wage data places Inspectors, Testers, Sorters, Samplers, and Weighers pay in Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA at a median of $51,560 per year ($24.79/hr), drawn from the OEWS May 2025 release for this Metropolitan Statistical Area. Compared with the national median of $48,570, the metro estimate is +6% above. OEWS reports the difference but does not identify its cause. Approximately 22,610 inspectors, testers, sorters, samplers, and weighers are employed across the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim MSA in SOC 51-9061.

The Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim pay distribution spans from $38,470 at the 10th percentile to $82,200 at the 90th, a 2.1× observed spread. Differences in specialization, employer, sector, location, credentials, schedule, and experience may all contribute, but OEWS does not isolate their effects. The 25th percentile sits at $44,720 and the 75th at $63,980, so half of Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim-based inspectors, testers, sorters, samplers, and weighers earn within that middle band.

Metro figures use establishment work location, not worker residence. BLS draws metro boundaries from the OMB MSA definitions, so Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA covers the central city plus outlying counties tied to the metro economically. OEWS includes straight-time pay, tips, commissions, incentive pay, and production bonuses. It excludes employer health and retirement benefits, overtime premiums, stock compensation, signing bonuses, and other nonproduction bonuses. The same occupation's national profile, statewide CA estimate, and peer-metro rows provide distinct geographic comparisons. A published median is a benchmark, not a prediction or ceiling for one worker.