General Surgeon Salary in California 2026: $600K Median

The median general surgeon salary in California is $600,000 per year, based on 26 approved salary reports on SalaryDr through June 18, 2026. The average is $556,400. At the average reported workweek of 56 hours, the median works out to about $206 per hour.

The middle 50% of reported general surgeon salaries in California fall between $490,000 (25th percentile) and $610,000 (75th percentile). The 10th to 90th percentile range is $418,000 to $626,000. Based on 26 reports.

In SalaryDr's reports, yes: private practice general surgeons in California ($635,000 across 10 reports) report a higher average total compensation than hospital-employed general surgeons in California ($535,000 across 14 reports).

General surgeons who reported their schedule in California average 56 hours per week (26 reports).

Average total compensation by years of experience in SalaryDr's general surgeon reports in California: 3–5 years, $445,000 (5 reports); 11–15 years, $610,000 (16 reports).

General surgeons who rated their job in California gave it an average of 4.5 out of 5 (26 reports). 84% of the 25 reports that answered say they would choose the specialty again.

These figures come from 26 reports that general surgeons in California submitted anonymously to SalaryDr and that were approved before publication; the most recent is from June 18, 2026. Reports are self-reported: approval means a report passed SalaryDr's review checks, not that the submitter's pay was independently verified. Outlier reports beyond 1.5×IQR are excluded from the median, average and percentiles.