Costa Mesa, California has 43 accredited schools offering retail management programs, with tuition ranging from $1,150 to $12,544 per year for indexed programs. Costa Mesa has a population of about 110,538. Median household income is $110,073 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 43.6% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA metro area, the top-earning retail management-related role is Sales Manager at a median $132,330 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
Closest Retail Management Schools to Costa Mesa
The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer retail management programs near Costa Mesa, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from Costa Mesa city center. The list is rebuilt from federal IPEDS data on every site update.
How We Rank Schools
Every school list on this site is ordered by the BOC Score, computed from the most
recent school-level data published by the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard and IPEDS).
To qualify, a school must be currently operating and accredited by an agency recognized by the
U.S. Department of Education. Each eligible school is then scored on five measures, percentile-ranked
against schools at the same credential level:
BOCSCORE
- Graduation rate 30%
- Median earnings, 10 years after entry 25%
- Average net price (lower is better) 20%
- Retention rate 15%
- Fully online availability 10%
Schools without enough outcome data appear after ranked schools, without a score.
On this page, schools are ordered by distance from Costa Mesa.
Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.
Graduation rate
31%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$43,552
Avg net price
$3,133/yr
TuitionIn‑state$1,180
Out‑of‑state$10,756
Key stats- Retention rate: 100%
- Programs offered: 70
Source:Accreditor: Western Association of Schools and Colleges Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges · IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
26%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$44,950
Avg net price
$14,379/yr
TuitionIn‑state$1,388
Out‑of‑state$9,884
Key stats- Retention rate: 100%
- Programs offered: 63
Source:Accreditor: Western Association of Schools and Colleges Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges · IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
22%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$42,678
Avg net price
$12,152/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
28%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$43,845
Avg net price
$7,339/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats- Retention rate: 89%
- Programs offered: 57
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
23%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$39,834
Avg net price
$13,380/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
34%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$45,120
Avg net price
$5,814/yr
TuitionIn‑state$1,146
Out‑of‑state$10,002
Source:Accreditor: Western Association of Schools and Colleges Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges · IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
25%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$37,361
Avg net price
$8,069/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Graduation rate
28%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry
$42,368
Avg net price
$2,818/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Key stats- Retention rate: 71%
- Programs offered: 71
Source:IPEDS · College Scorecard
Source: IPEDS / College Scorecard (2023 cohort). Browse all California schools on the California retail management page.
Retail Management Wages Near Costa Mesa
Costa Mesa is part of the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA metro area (BLS area code 31080). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to California statewide.
| Occupation | Median Wage | Source | COL-Adjusted (US=100) |
|---|
| First-Line Supervisor of Retail Sales Workers | $51,390 | Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | $45,238 |
| General and Operations Manager | $125,830 | Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | $110,766 |
| Sales Manager | $132,330 | Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | $116,488 |
Source: BLS, May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes wage data at the metro (MSA) and state level – not by individual city.
Costa Mesa at a Glance
| Metric | Value | Source |
|---|
| Population | 110,538 | Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003) |
| Median household income | $110,073 | Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013) |
| Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+ | 43.6% | Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003) |
| Regional Price Parity (US=100) | 113.6 (above U.S. average) | BEA RPP 2024 |
Other Costa Mesa-Area Cities With Retail Management Programs
- Fountain Valley, CA – 3.7 mi away (56,529 pop)
- Newport Beach, CA – 4.5 mi away (86,688 pop)
- Santa Ana, CA – 5.2 mi away (334,217 pop)
- Huntington Beach, CA – 5.5 mi away (200,652 pop)
- Tustin, CA – 7.4 mi away (80,395 pop)
Frequently Asked Questions
How many accredited retail management schools are near Costa Mesa, CA?
Our directory has 43 accredited schools offering retail management programs near Costa Mesa. The closest is Orange Coast College in Costa Mesa, CA (0.3 miles), and the farthest of the schools shown is Long Beach City College (17.2 miles). 5 of the highlighted schools are flagged as offering distance education.
What are the highest-paying retail management roles near Costa Mesa?
Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying retail management-related roles near Costa Mesa are: Sales Manager ($132,330), General and Operations Manager ($125,830), First-Line Supervisor of Retail Sales Workers ($51,390). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with California statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.
Should I look at programs in Fountain Valley instead of Costa Mesa?
Fountain Valley, CA is 3.7 miles from Costa Mesa and has its own set of local retail management programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.
Is Costa Mesa an affordable place to study retail management?
Costa Mesa’s median household income of $110,073 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Costa Mesa while attending lower-cost out-of-state schools, and California public universities often offer reduced in-state online tuition.
How do I verify a program is accredited?
Confirm institutional accreditation via the U.S. Department of Education database (U.S. Dept. of Education database), and check for any program-specific accreditation listed by the school.
Learn More About Retail Management Programs
Other Programs Available in Costa Mesa
Compare every accredited online degree program with city-level data for Costa Mesa:
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- Nonprofit Management programs in Costa Mesa, CA
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- Public Administration programs in Costa Mesa, CA
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- Risk Management programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Statistics programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Taxation programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Corrections programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Crime Analysis programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Criminal Justice Administration programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Criminology programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Cybercrime programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Emergency Management programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Fire Science programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Forensic Science programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Legal Services programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Legal Studies programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Paralegal programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Security Management programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Cloud Computing programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Computer Engineering programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Innovation programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Mobile App Development programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Software Development programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- User Experience programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Web Development programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Artificial Intelligence programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Machine Learning programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Supply Chain Management programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Data Analytics programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Public Health programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Human Resources programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Project Management programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Special Education programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Homeland Security programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Marketing programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Finance programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Kinesiology programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Sports Management programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Early Childhood Education programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Elementary Education programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Biology programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Communications programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Graphic Design programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Human Services programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- MBA programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Criminal Justice programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Nursing programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Business Administration programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Computer Science programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Psychology programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Education programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Engineering programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Technology programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Liberal Arts programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Healthcare programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Cybersecurity programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Accounting programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Healthcare Administration programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Social Work programs in Costa Mesa, CA
- Counseling programs in Costa Mesa, CA
Data verified: August 11, 2026.
Salary, employment, and tuition figures on this page are sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2024–2034) and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2023 cohort). The source agency and data year are cited inline with every statistic.
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