Market Wire

Manufacturing in California Runs 39% Above the National Cost Average

California's manufacturing cost index stands at 138.6 against a national 100 as of June 2026 — labor at 109.4 and industrial energy at 226.2. That places it 48th cheapest of 51 jurisdictions.

California's manufacturing cost index stands at 138.6 against a national 100 as of June 2026 — labor at 109.4 and industrial energy at 226.2. That places it 48th cheapest of 51 jurisdictions.

• composite (US = 100): 138.6
• labor: 109.4
• industrial energy: 226.2

The composite weights labor at 75% and industrial electricity at 25%, so California's position is mostly a energy story: its energy component indexes at 226.2 against the national 100. A premium of 39 points compounds differently across shops — a labor-heavy job shop feels the labor line, an energy-hungry process plant feels the kilowatt-hours.

For a site decision the index is the starting point, not the answer: freight to customers, workforce depth, and incentives move individual cases. The per-state page carries the underlying wage and electricity series this index is built from, both refreshed automatically.

Published 2026-08-28.