2026 Compare Cities Economy:
Salem, OR vs Petaluma, CA

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Highlights
- Household income in Petaluma, is 61% more than it is in Salem and is 31% above the National Average.
- Salem unemployment rate is 6.2%.
- Petaluma unemployment rate is 5.0%.
 Salem, ORPetaluma, CAUnited States
 Unemployment Rate  Unlock5.0%6.0%
 Recent Job Growth  Unlock1.7%1.6%
 Future Job Growth40.2%  Unlock33.5%
 Sales Taxes0.0%  Unlock6.2%
 Income Taxes  Unlock8.0%4.6%
 Income per Cap.$31,610  Unlock$37,638
 Household Income  Unlock$100,379$69,021
 Family Median Income$75,291  Unlock$85,028
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 Est. Households By Income
 Salem, ORPetaluma, CAUnited States
 Income Less Than 15K  Unlock5.2%9.4%
 Income between 15K and 20K4.3%  Unlock3.8%
 Income between 20K and 30K  Unlock5.0%8.1%
 Income between 30K and 40K9.1%  Unlock8.0%
 Income between 40K and 50K  Unlock5.0%7.6%
 Income between 50K and 60K8.4%  Unlock7.2%
 Income between 60K and 75K  Unlock8.2%9.6%
 Income between 75K and 100K13.0%  Unlock12.8%
 Income between 100K and 150K  Unlock19.8%16.3%
 Income between 150K and 200K6.1%  Unlock7.8%
 Income greater than 200K  Unlock17.4%9.5%
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 Population By Occupation
 Salem, ORPetaluma, CAUnited States
 Management, business, finance14.0%  Unlock16.4%
 Engineering, computers, science  Unlock6.6%6.5%
 Community, social services2.9%  Unlock1.8%
 Legal  Unlock1.3%1.2%
 Education, library5.4%  Unlock6.2%
 Arts, design, media, sports, entertainment  Unlock2.5%2.0%
 Healthcare practitioners and technology5.6%  Unlock6.2%
 Healthcare support  Unlock3.2%3.3%
 Firefighters, law enforcement2.5%  Unlock2.1%
 Food preparation, serving  Unlock6.3%5.4%
 Building maintenance3.8%  Unlock3.6%
 Personal care  Unlock2.6%2.6%
 Sales, office, administrative support21.9%  Unlock20.9%
 Farming, fishing, forestry  Unlock0.4%0.6%
 Construction, extraction, maintenance/repair7.4%  Unlock8.1%
 Production, transportation, material moving  Unlock9.5%13.1%
Reviews for Salem    37 Reviews

After reading the reviews here, I had to come write my own. The problem I had with most of the reviews is that most were very opinion-based and seemed to assume everyone  More

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Moved here approx. 4 years ago from SW Michigan, but I've lived in 9 other cities & 5 other states. Salem is a very manageable sized city, with tons of parks, diverse  More

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Over 6 years ago

I'm a native 5th generation Oregonian, so bear in mind that I was born with webs between my toes! Anyway, I used to think it rained too much when I was young. Then I  More

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Reviews for Petaluma    16 Reviews

I agree with the low star reviews. Been here for 25 years, raised a family and seen everything turn to the left and worse. Weather is glorious, love the old Victorians  More

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We’ve lived here for 3 years and we love it. It has taken some time to grow on us. We moved from SF where we had lived over 15 years, we were not used to one year leases  More

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I’ve lived here a couple of years (after living in others parts of the Bay Area for 15+ years) and I love it! Great neighborhoods, friendly folks, good schools with  More

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