Hiring an actuary in Irvine, CA

Employers in the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA area pay actuaries a median of $127,970, with the middle half of the market between $103,040 and $188,390. Irvine residents working in computer and mathematical occupations report a median of $123,512, which is 3% below what the metro pays for this role.

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What does an actuary earn here?

Place of work

What employers pay

Annual wages paid by employers in the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA area. BLS OEWS, May 2025.
25th percentile	$103,040
Median	$127,970
75th percentile	$188,390

Half of actuaries in this area earn between $103,040 and $188,390. A band set below $103,040 competes for the bottom quarter of the market.

Place of residence

What Irvine residents earn

$123,512

Median earnings of Irvine residents working in computer and mathematical occupations, 16,923 people. Census ACS 5-year 2023, tables S2401 and B24011. Where people live, not where they work, so it is not the same measurement as the wages beside it.

The 3% figure is not a pay gap. ACS counts the civilian employed population 16 and over, part-time and part-year work included; OEWS counts wage-and-salary jobs only. The two populations differ, so read this number against other cities rather than as a shortfall: the same definitional difference applies to every city equally, which is what makes a city-to-city reading sound.

The two sit close together, so pay alone is unlikely to be what wins or loses this hire.

What does the role actually involve?

Core tasks

Ascertain premium rates required and cash reserves and liabilities necessary to ensure payment of future benefits.
Collaborate with programmers, underwriters, accounts, claims experts, and senior management to help companies develop plans for new lines of business or improvements to existing business.
Analyze statistical information to estimate mortality, accident, sickness, disability, and retirement rates.
Design, review, and help administer insurance, annuity and pension plans, determining financial soundness and calculating premiums.
Determine, or help determine, company policy, and explain complex technical matters to company executives, government officials, shareholders, policyholders, or the public.

O*NET 29.1, task statements for SOC 15-2011.

Tools and technologies in demand

Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Office software, Microsoft Power BI, Microsoft PowerPoint, Microsoft Visual Basic for Applications VBA, Python, R, SAS.

O*NET 29.1, flagged in demand or hot for this occupation. Useful as a screen, not as a checklist.

Is the talent actually in Irvine?

This is a job zone four: considerable preparation needed occupation. Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.

That matters here, because 70.6% of Irvine adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher. That is a deep local pool for a degree-requiring role. Census ACS 5-year 2023, table S1501.

The average Irvine commute runs 24.3 minutes, which is roughly how far your catchment reaches before candidates start saying no. 25.9% already work from home, so a fully onsite requirement here is competing against that.

How often do these jobs turn over?

In Orange County, computer systems design and related services employs 28,823 and turns over 5.9% a quarter, with 2,066 hires against 2,304 separations. Average earnings in that industry run $14,426 a month. Census LEHD Quarterly Workforce Indicators, 2024 Q1, NAICS 5415.

That figure covers every occupation in the industry, not this role alone, so read it as the local churn rate rather than as a number about actuaries. It still tells you what you are hiring into: a low-churn market, where people do not move often and passive candidates are the whole game.

What does the search cost?

The fee is set by the seniority of the role, never by salary and never by location. Across all six tiers it runs $6,240 to $54,340 per search. A contingency firm hiring at this role's median would bill roughly $25,594 to $38,391 on the first year salary alone.

One owner runs the search from market map to signed offer. Searches typically fill in 23 to 35 days, which is a typical window rather than a promise, and the replacement guarantee runs 45 days at 50% off.

Price this search

Eight questions about the role. Your tier range appears on screen.