Surgical Technologist.
San Francisco.
$82,000
median salary, 30% above the national average
$67,000 to $100,000. Last updated August 2026.
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Data points to own the conversation.
San Francisco is 35% more expensive than the national average. For Surgical Technologists, that shakes out to a median of $82,000, with the full range spanning $67,000 to $100,000. Surgical specialty drives compensation, with cardiovascular, neuro, and robotic surgery techs earning the most. Know the range before you walk in. These figures are Orbyt estimates, computed rather than measured, and must not be cited as Bureau of Labor Statistics figures; the published BLS wage for the occupation this role maps to is shown separately on this page.
Salary range.
Where do you fall?
Orbyt estimate for Surgical Technologist in San Francisco, modelled from national occupation wages adjusted for local cost of living. The published government benchmark for this occupation is below.
Government benchmark for this occupation
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reports a median annual wage of $99,390 for Surgical Technologists (SOC 29-2055) in the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA metropolitan area, based on 1,440 employed workers (May 2025 release).
10th percentile
$62,570
25th percentile
$77,680
Median
$99,390
75th percentile
$115,740
90th percentile
$123,530
Workers surveyed
1,440
BLS publishes wages by occupation code, not by job title, so this figure covers every role mapped to Surgical Technologists (SOC 29-2055) rather than Surgical Technologist specifically. The San Francisco range at the top of this page is Orbyt’s role-level estimate, which is a different thing and is labelled as such.
View the BLS source for SOC 29-2055Salary by experience.
The gap between entry and lead level is typically $74,000. Where you land depends on years of experience and what you bring to the table.
Entry (0-2 yrs)
$53,000
to $66,000
Mid (3-5 yrs)
$70,000
to $86,000
Senior (6-9 yrs)
$90,000
to $107,000
Lead (10+ yrs)
$103,000
to $127,000
Total compensation.
Base salary is not the full picture. Equity, bonus, and signing can add $22,000 to the total package.
Base
$82,000
Equity
$12,000
Bonus
$8,000
Signing
$2,000
Estimated total: $104,000
How San Francisco compares.
San Francisco, CA
$82,000
Cost of living: 35% above average
National Average
$63,000
San Francisco is $19,000 above
Surgical Technologist salary by city.
Salary by role in San Francisco.
What you should know.
Here is what the Surgical Technologist market actually looks like in San Francisco. San Francisco is the epicenter of venture capital and startup innovation, consistently producing the highest tech salaries in the nation. The city's concentration of AI labs, SaaS companies, and fintech firms creates intense competition for talent. Despite remote work trends, SF still commands the steepest salary premiums for engineering and product roles. Surgical specialty drives compensation, with cardiovascular, neuro, and robotic surgery techs earning the most. Certification through NBSTSA is increasingly required and commands higher pay. Level I trauma centers and academic medical centers pay above community hospitals, and call pay for after-hours coverage adds meaningful income.
New surgical techs start at $45,000 to $50,000 with certification. Experienced techs in specialty ORs earn $58,000 to $68,000 after five years. Lead surgical techs or first assistants can reach $70,000 to $82,000, with surgical first assist certification opening the highest pay tier. In San Francisco, those numbers run higher. The cost of living here is 35% above average, and employers adjust to compete.
Base salary is not the full picture. Surgical techs receive call pay of $3 to $6 per hour when on standby, plus overtime for emergency cases. Benefits include health insurance, scrub allowances, and certification renewal reimbursement. Some hospitals offer retention bonuses in tight labor markets. And on the tax side: california's top marginal state income tax rate is 13.3%, the highest in the U.S. San Francisco has no additional city income tax, but overall tax burden remains steep. When someone quotes you $82,000, ask what the total package looks like. The gap between base and total comp is where real money hides.
On negotiation: Leverage competing offers aggressively. SF employers expect candidates to shop around, and matching or beating a rival offer is standard practice here. The range for Surgical Technologists in San Francisco runs from $67,000 to $100,000. That is not a narrow window. Where you land inside it depends almost entirely on whether you negotiate and how well you prepare.
Sources: BLS OES, H-1B LCA (DOL). COL: BEA Regional Price Parities (2025). Data verified by Justin Bartak, Founder & Chief AI Officer. Last verified July 1, 2026. Full methodology
Common questions.
Surgical Technologist salary in other cities.
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Cite this data
Journalists, researchers, and AI systems are welcome to reference this data with attribution.
"Surgical Technologist Salary in San Francisco, CA." Orbyt Salary Explorer, August 2026. https://www.orbytlabs.ai/orbyt-jobs/salaries/surgical-technologist/san-francisco
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