Career Training Path › Massage therapy schools › California
Massage therapy schools in California
California has 26 accredited campuses awarding massage therapy credentials. If you finish and work as a massage therapist in California, expect to start around $34,320–$35,170 and reach a median of $45,970 with experience; the top quarter earn $64,130 or more (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025, California). Graduates of these California programs — every graduate, whatever job they took — earned a median of $19,016 in their first year, against $19,383 nationally; that is the figure used to rank campuses below.
What massage therapists earn in California
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025; 14,600 employed in California. National median: $58,450.
Campuses in California, ranked by what their graduates earned
Cities: AnaheimBakersfieldCarsonCerritosClovisCupertinoDowneyEmeryvilleEscondidoHuntington BeachLancasterLos AngelesMontereyNorth HollywoodOceansidePalm DesertPomonaSan BrunoSan DiegoSan FranciscoSanta AnaStocktonVisaliaWest Covina
| Campus | City | Type | Grads / yr | Earnings, yr 1 | Program debt | Completion | Cost / yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Healing Hands School of Holistic Health | Escondido | for-profit | 137 | $23,341 | $9,464 | 58% | $54,888 |
| National Holistic Institute | Emeryville | for-profit | 769 | $22,470 | $9,500 | 80% | $38,841 |
| Carrington College-Stockton | Stockton | for-profit | 7 | $21,822 | not reported | 54% | $42,476 |
| North-West College-West Covina | West Covina | for-profit | 13 | $19,228 | $9,500 | 68% | $34,193 |
| Downey Adult School | Downey | Public | 60 | $19,016 | not reported | 31% | $18,545 |
| Southern California Health Institute | North Hollywood | for-profit | 58 | $18,519 | $9,500 | 87% | $32,655 |
| Milan Institute-Bakersfield | Bakersfield | for-profit | 14 | $18,078 | $6,333 | 59% | $28,832 |
| Milan Institute-Clovis | Clovis | for-profit | 4 | $18,078 | $6,333 | 63% | $26,169 |
| Milan Institute-Visalia | Visalia | for-profit | 22 | $17,412 | $7,690 | 51% | $29,148 |
| Milan Institute-Palm Desert | Palm Desert | for-profit | 4 | $15,631 | not reported | 48% | $28,722 |
| University of Antelope Valley | Lancaster | for-profit | 4 | $8,650 | not reported | not reported | not reported |
| San Francisco School of Massage & Bodywork | San Francisco | for-profit | 66 | not reported | not reported | not reported | $38,332 |
| American Institute of Massage Therapy | Santa Ana | for-profit | 43 | not reported | not reported | 98% | $11,928 |
| ICOHS College | San Diego | non-profit | 42 | not reported | not reported | 81% | $108,002 |
| California Healing Arts College | Carson | for-profit | 27 | not reported | not reported | 70% | $27,218 |
| Universal Healthcare Careers College | Los Angeles | for-profit | 19 | not reported | not reported | 91% | $32,794 |
| Victory Career College | Carson | for-profit | 19 | not reported | not reported | 94% | not reported |
| CalCopa Massage School | Huntington Beach | for-profit | 16 | not reported | not reported | not reported | $40,463 |
| International School of Beauty Inc | Palm Desert | for-profit | 14 | not reported | not reported | 92% | $24,198 |
| Fremont University | Cerritos | for-profit | 12 | not reported | $13,000 | not reported | $39,537 |
| North-West College-Pomona | Pomona | for-profit | 9 | not reported | not reported | 71% | $35,112 |
| North-West College-Anaheim | Anaheim | for-profit | 6 | not reported | not reported | 60% | $31,922 |
| Skyline College | San Bruno | Public | 2 | not reported | not reported | not reported | not reported |
| De Anza College | Cupertino | Public | 1 | not reported | not reported | 68% | not reported |
| MiraCosta College | Oceanside | Public | 1 | not reported | not reported | not reported | not reported |
| Monterey Peninsula College | Monterey | Public | 1 | not reported | not reported | 40% | not reported |
Earnings are median wages and self-employment income reported to the IRS (W-2 and Schedule SE) for graduates who received federal aid and were working and not enrolled, measured in the calendar year after finishing. They are pay only: health insurance, retirement contributions and other benefits are not included.
Ranked by median earnings of this program's graduates one year after completion (College Scorecard field-of-study, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) 2022-23 Completions survey; College Scorecard June 2026; Database of Accredited Postsecondary Institutions and Programs (DAPIP), September 2026); campuses without a reported figure follow, by credentials awarded. "Program debt" is the median federal loan debt for graduates of this program at this campus. Completion is the campus-wide 150%-of-time rate. "Not reported" means the federal file suppresses the value for privacy.