Roustabouts, Oil and Gas Salary

It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $49K, rent takes 74% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $2,471/month. The 30% guideline puts the comfortable ceiling at roughly $1,000/month in rent — so roommates or a 1-bedroom would ease the math significantly.

The 10th-percentile wage — what new roustabouts, oil and gas typically earn — is $39K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $2,347/month. At HUD’s $2,471/month FMR, rent would take 105% of that take-home — above the 30% guideline, so a 1-bedroom or shared housing is likely necessary starting out.

Pay here is roughly in line with the national average — $49K locally vs. $47K nationally, a 4% difference.

California pays $49K median vs. the U.S. average of $47K — that’s +4%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 106.14), the purchasing-power equivalent is $46K — below the national median.

The median is $48,880 a year, that works out to about $24 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $39,110, and experienced roustabouts, oil and gas can clear $83,930. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.

On that salary, you'd take home roughly $3,341/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $2,471/month, which eats 74% of your paycheck. That's above the 30% rule of thumb, housing will be a stretch at the median salary, though you can manage with roommates or a smaller place.

California has a Regional Price Parity of 106.14 (100 is the national average). Prices are above average here, so your dollar buys less than the same salary would in a cheaper metro. After cost-of-living adjustment, the median roustabouts, oil and gas salary is worth about $46,052 in national-average purchasing power.

The table above ranks every state by median pay for this role. Keep in mind that the highest-paying states tend to have the highest costs of living, so the top salary doesn't always mean the most money in your pocket.