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Trade-School ROI in California
A California-specific cut of our national dataset: which trades pay back the most per tuition dollar, what schools cost, and where you can get paid to train instead of paying — all from official U.S. federal data. Free to cite with attribution to Explore Top Colleges. National report & full CSV →
Paid apprenticeship programs in California
329
earn while you train
Trade-school net price range
$6,202–$27,923
/yr, depending on trade
Trades tracked in California
20
state × trade rows
Best-value trades in California
Ranked by median graduate earnings (10 yrs after entry) per $1,000 of annual net price — a school-level value measure. Methodology.
| Trade | Value ($/$1k tuition) | Median net price/yr | Median earnings | Paid apprenticeships |
|---|
| Carpentry | $6,476 | $6,202 | $40,162 | 12 |
| Plumbing | $5,976 | $7,794 | $46,577 | 63 |
| Diesel Mechanics | $5,818 | $7,203 | $41,908 | 7 |
| Automotive Technology | $5,818 | $7,203 | $41,908 | 15 |
| Aviation Maintenance | $5,818 | $7,203 | $41,908 | 10 |
Get paid to train instead — in California
- 64 registered electrician apprenticeship programs — vs a median $16,726/yr to attend electrician school in California.
- 63 registered plumbing apprenticeship programs — vs a median $7,794/yr to attend plumbing school in California.
- 36 registered hvac apprenticeship programs — vs a median $26,871/yr to attend hvac school in California.
- 24 registered electrical lineman apprenticeship programs — vs a median $16,726/yr to attend electrical lineman school in California.
See all California trade schools & apprenticeships →
Compiled by Ikan Media Inc. from public federal data (U.S. Dept of Education College Scorecard, U.S. DOL apprenticeship.gov, CareerOneStop). Independent site, not affiliated with any government agency. Free to cite with attribution. Data as of 2026-08-20.
Full national dataset ·
methodology.