Is Caltrans a good company to work for?

Caltrans has an overall rating of 4.0 out of 5, based on over 974 reviews left anonymously by employees. This rating has decreased by 2% over the last 12 months. 80% of employees would recommend working at Caltrans to a friend and 78% have a positive outlook for the business. The best reviews about Caltrans have been left by employees working as Associate Right of Way Agent , Civil Engineer and Transportation Engineer, Civil .

Does Caltrans pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, Caltrans employees rate their compensation and benefits as 4.0 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at Caltrans. This rating has improved by 1% over the last 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at Caltrans?

80% of Caltrans employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated Caltrans 4.3 out of 5 for work life balance, 3.7 for culture and values and 4.0 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at Caltrans?

Transportation Engineer (89) , Student Assistant (74) , Transportation Engineer, Civil (41) , Associate Governmental Program Analyst (AGPA) (27) , Environmental Planner (23) , Right of Way Agent (15) , Civil Engineer (14) , Engineer (14) , Intern (14) , Associate Transportation Planner (13) , Associate Right of Way Agent (11) , Highway Maintenance Worker (11) , Senior Transportation Engineer (11) , Associate Environmental Planner (10) , Transportation Planner (10)

What are the pros of working at Caltrans according to real employee reviews?

"Great benefits and Hours." ((in 95 reviews)); "Great work/life balance and a genuine feeling of positive work for the public (even though the public may not see it that way)." ((in 63 reviews)); "Great people to work with and to learn the legal profession" ((in 49 reviews)); "Good job security" ((in 24 reviews)); "Great work environment and flexible" ((in 21 reviews))

What are the cons of working at Caltrans according to real employee reviews?

"High turnover because of low pay" ((in 48 reviews)); "San Diego is expensive and the salaries are low" ((in 20 reviews)); "The supervisors are abusive." ((in 12 reviews)); "Lots of red tape, nepotism." ((in 9 reviews)); "Upper management is incompetent." ((in 9 reviews))

What are employees saying about Caltrans layoffs in 2026?

Explore Glassdoor’s employee reviews to understand what current and former employees are saying about Caltrans layoffs and their outlook for job security at Caltrans in 2026.

What are the top reviewed Caltrans locations?

Sacramento , Oakland , Los Angeles , San Diego , San Bernardino , Fresno , Marysville , Santa Ana , San Luis Obispo , Eureka , Redding , Stockton , Irvine , Orange , San Francisco , Bakersfield , Fontana , San Jose , Yreka , Bishop , Brea , Long Beach , Riverside , West Sacramento , Alameda , Santa Cruz , Fairfield , Central Valley , Sacramento Valley , Austin

Caltrans reviews

4.0

80% would recommend to a friend

(854 total reviews)

Malcolm Dougherty

67% approve of CEO

78% positive business outlook

Ratings by category

4.3

Diversity & inclusion

4.3

Work/Life balance

4.0

Compensation and benefits

4.0

Career opportunities

3.7

Culture & values

3.6

Senior management

Caltrans has an employee rating of 4.0 out of 5 stars, based on 854 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The Caltrans employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Government & Public Administration industry (3.6 stars).

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

Reviews by job title

854 reviews

3.0

Jun 21, 2022

A “Conflicted” Workplace

Senior transportation engineer

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

If you are looking for good pay and benefits, a great diversity of work, and WFH as the norm - Caltrans will meet those needs.

Cons

Like most large entities, the lofty goals are not in alignment with the day-to-day work. It is too easy for slackers to be the norm.

3.0

Jun 15, 2022

Okay

Senior transportation planner

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Overall, it’s a great place to work at with lots of training opportunities, good benefits, and job stability. Having a good supervisor makes or breaks your experience here. Thankfully, I’ve had great bosses mostly. A lot of the cons have to do with resources and processes.

Cons

There’s certain activities you’re not allowed to do to protect the public perception of a State agency. This results in lack of resources and support for team building activities. There may be lack of resources and tools to do certain duties asked. You do what you can with what you have. Sometimes support from HQ is lacking and they push a lot of unexpected last minute work onto the District offices on top of normal workload. This may be due to bureaucracy and politics which may push out dates so it can’t be helped but this results in a lot of overtime for the Districts to rush and meet their deadlines. There may be a few bad eggs that drag the team down and make it harder for supervisors.

5.0

Jun 14, 2022

Good

Picking up trash

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

good employees to work with

Cons

Very long commutes to work

Viewing 529 - 531 of 854 Reviews

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Jobs at Caltrans

CALTRANS LANDSCAPE MAINTENANCE WORKER

OFFICE TECHNICIAN (TYPING)

CALTRANS HIGHWAY MAINTENANCE WORKER

CALTRANS LANDSCAPE MAINTENANCE WORKER

OFFICE TECHNICIAN (TYPING)

Caltrans

Caltrans reviews

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A “Conflicted” Workplace

Okay

Good

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