Project Coordinator salary in Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA
Santa Cruz-Watsonville pays project coordinators less than California as a whole but still more than the country. The median is $106,780 a year1: 11.7% below the California statewide median of $120,910 and 4.4% above the US median of $102,320. Only 33 of 518 US areas pay more for this job. BLS counts about 440 people in this job here.
BLS occupation 13-1082, area Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA. Data from the May 2025 release, checked 2026-10-15.
Pay in Santa Cruz-Watsonville against California and the US
| Range | 10th | Median | 90th | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA | $55,040 | $106,780 | $167,690 | |
| California | $69,180 | $120,910 | $188,560 | |
| United States | $61,580 | $102,320 | $167,970 |
Pay is more spread out here than nationally: the top tenth earns $167,690 or more, 3.0 times the bottom tenth, against 2.7 times across the US. Two offers for the same title can sit far apart. The middle half of project coordinators in Santa Cruz-Watsonville earns $78,500–$134,180. From the 25th to the 75th percentile, the local range is $55,680 wide, between the figure for California ($70,230) and the US figure ($54,660).
What to budget for a project coordinator here
| Point in the local range | Per year | Per month | Per hour | Employer cost per year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $55,040 | $4,587 | $26.46 | $71,019 |
| 25th percentile | $78,500 | $6,542 | $37.74 | $101,290 |
| Median | $106,780 | $8,898 | $51.34 | $137,781 |
| 75th percentile | $134,180 | $11,182 | $64.51 | $173,135 |
| 90th percentile | $167,690 | $13,974 | $80.62 | $216,374 |
An offer at the 75th percentile instead of the median adds $27,400 a year in pay and about $35,355 in employer cost. Going down to the 25th percentile saves $28,280 in pay. These percentiles describe what people in the job earn locally, not experience levels, so place your offer by the tasks and seniority you need.
For scale, the US median of $102,320 falls between the 25th percentile and the median in Santa Cruz-Watsonville, and the California statewide median of $120,910 falls between the median and the 75th percentile.
What a hire really costs in Santa Cruz-Watsonville
Pay is only part of it. Benefits and payroll taxes other than paid leave are 22.5% of total compensation in US private industry2, which adds about $31,001 to the $106,780 median and brings it to $137,781 a year. Recruiting, equipment and office space come on top. Benefit levels vary by employer, so treat this as an estimate.
We place executive assistants, customer support and e-commerce staff today; for project coordinators we answer within one business day whether we can help. Enter the monthly pay you have in mind to compare it with a local hire. The fee field shows our standard fee3; Deel's contractor plan is the default payroll tool4.
Other roles in Santa Cruz-Watsonville
Project coordinators have the highest median of the 17 roles we track in Santa Cruz-Watsonville; e-commerce order specialists have the lowest, at $44,420.
| Role | Median | vs project coordinator | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Project Coordinator | this role | 440 | |
| Accountant | -20.5% | 740 | |
| Recruiter | -20.7% | 450 | |
| Executive Assistant | -21.2% | 260 | |
| Marketing Specialist | -26.1% | 440 |
Measured against the US median, project coordinators rank #12 of the 17 roles we track in Santa Cruz-Watsonville (+4.4%), between customer support specialists (+7.5%) and paralegals (+2.9%). The typical role here is at +9.4%, so, measured against the US, project coordinators cost less in Santa Cruz-Watsonville than the area's general pay level would suggest. Project coordinators hold 5.3% of the jobs in these 17 roles in Santa Cruz-Watsonville, 6.9% across California and 6.7% nationally. The job is a smaller part of the local workforce in these roles than it is nationally.
Other areas in California
Across the 28 areas of California with data for this job, the median runs from $86,540 in the North Valley-Northern Mountains Region of California nonmetro area to $135,120 in San Jose-Sunnyvale, a gap of $48,580 a year. Of the 17 areas in California with more project coordinators than Santa Cruz-Watsonville, 10 pay less, the largest of them Riverside-San Bernardino, CA ($100,770), Fresno, CA ($101,030) and Oxnard-Thousand Oaks, CA ($104,990).
| Area | Median | vs Santa Cruz-Watsonville | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles-Long Beach, CA | +1.4% | 38,540 | |
| Yuba City, CA | +1.3% | 150 | |
| Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA | +0.5% | 1,000 | |
| Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA | this area | 440 | |
| Vallejo, CA | -0.2% | 720 | |
| Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA | -0.5% | 1,030 | |
| El Centro, CA | -0.9% | 140 |
Santa Cruz-Watsonville against other US metro areas
By number of jobs, Santa Cruz-Watsonville is #250 of 517 US areas for this job. It is a mid-sized market, and its pay is in the top quarter of US areas. Outside California, Portland-Vancouver and Mount Vernon-Anacortes pay just above Santa Cruz-Watsonville and Wenatchee-East Wenatchee and Albuquerque just below. Of the three markets with about as many project coordinators, none pays as much.
| Metro area | Median | vs Santa Cruz-Watsonville | Jobs | Close in |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mount Vernon-Anacortes, WA | +2.1% | 380 | pay | |
| Portland-Vancouver, OR-WA | +1.5% | 14,440 | pay | |
| Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA | this area | 440 | ||
| Wenatchee-East Wenatchee, WA | -0.0% | 240 | pay | |
| Albuquerque, NM | -0.0% | 2,300 | pay | |
| Bloomington, IL | -5.3% | 460 | jobs | |
| Racine-Mount Pleasant, WI | -9.7% | 430 | jobs | |
| Burlington-South Burlington, VT | -20.0% | 430 | jobs |
Questions
How much does it cost to hire a project coordinator in Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA?
About $137,781 a year at the median, or $11,482 a month: $106,780 in pay plus about $31,001 in benefits and payroll taxes. Recruiting, equipment and office space are extra.
What do project coordinators earn in Santa Cruz-Watsonville?
Pay here is higher than in three quarters of US areas. The median was $106,780 a year in the May 2025 BLS survey. The 10th percentile was $55,040, the 90th $167,690, and the middle half earned $78,500 to $134,180.
Is Santa Cruz-Watsonville cheaper than the rest of California for project coordinators?
Yes, it costs less: a median of $106,780 against $120,910 statewide. The next area up in California is Santa Rosa-Petaluma at $107,340, the next down Vallejo at $106,520.
How many project coordinators work in Santa Cruz-Watsonville?
BLS counts about 440 in the May 2025 survey. 17 areas in California have more; the closest in size is Visalia, with about 450.
Does a project coordinator cost more than an accountant in Santa Cruz-Watsonville?
Yes: $21,860 a year more at the median. The medians are $106,780 and $84,920.
Sources
4 sources, with links
- BLS OEWS May 2025, 13-1082: bls.gov
- BLS Employer Costs for Employee Compensation, private industry, June 2026: bls.gov
- Stafka pricing: stafka.com
- Deel pricing, contractor management: deel.com
How these pages are built: methodology and data sources. Last updated 2026-11-12.