Is Caltrans a good company to work for?

Caltrans has an overall rating of 4.1 out of 5, based on over 971 reviews left anonymously by employees. This rating has been stable over the past 12 months. 79% of employees would recommend working at Caltrans to a friend and 76% 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?

79% 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?

"Good benefits and retirement plans" ((in 97 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 64 reviews)); "Great people to work with and to learn the legal profession" ((in 53 reviews)); "Job security is very good" ((in 26 reviews)); "Respectful and friendly coworkers" ((in 20 reviews))

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

"High turnover because of low pay" ((in 49 reviews)); "San Diego is expensive and the salaries are low" ((in 21 reviews)); "Lots of red tape, nepotism." ((in 9 reviews)); "If you have a bad manager, expect a horrible time working." ((in 9 reviews)); "Upper management is incompetent." ((in 8 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 , Stockton , Redding , 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

4.1

79% would recommend to a friend

(852 total reviews)

Malcolm Dougherty

67% approve of CEO

76% positive business outlook

Company ratings over time

Ratings trend for the last 6 months (852 reviews)

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

Caltrans has an employee rating of 4.1 out of 5 stars, based on 852 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have an excellent 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).

Reviews by job title

852 reviews

4.0

Feb 15, 2017

The ups and downs

Agpa

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

good benefits, lots of paid holidays, the diversity of employees, opportunity to learn of different division within the department if the employee is motivied to.

Cons

department doesn't honor the telecomute program as it should. some supervisors don't step up to the plate to put their lazy co-workers in check.

3.0

Feb 10, 2017

Caltrans Dispatch

Anonymous employee

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Interesting. Maintenance works hard to keep roads safe.

Cons

A lot of lazy people -no team players

4.0

Jan 2, 2017

Caltrans review by a transportation engineer

Transportation engineer

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

opportunity to work on transportation projects that impact lives of millions of public, pay parity between men and women engineers, opportunity to work on projects that don't get terminated because of poor quarter financial performance

Cons

Most engineers are civil engineers in Caltrans. As an electrical engineer sometimes you don't get involved in product life cycle as well as civil engineers do.

Viewing 178 - 180 of 852 Reviews

Top companies for "Compensation and Benefits" near you

New York City Department of Education

3.5★Compensation & Benefits

Metropolitan Transportation Authority

3.8★Compensation & Benefits

State of Michigan

4.0★Compensation & Benefits

Army National Guard

4.1★Compensation & Benefits

Jobs at Caltrans

OFFICE TECHNICIAN (TYPING)

SENIOR TRANSPORTATION PLANNER

CALTRANS ELECTRICIAN I

SENIOR TRANSPORTATION PLANNER

Caltrans

Caltrans reviews

Company ratings over time

Ratings by demographic groups

Reviews by job title

The ups and downs

Caltrans Dispatch

Caltrans review by a transportation engineer

Top companies for "Compensation and Benefits" near you

Jobs at Caltrans