Methodology

How the data is collected

The directory lists 45 brokerages that operate in California. The seed was checked on November 10, 2026. Each brokerage page shows its own Last checked date and the source URLs that were opened.

At 10 deals, $800,000, and a 2.5% commission, 16 brokerages have one computable annual cost, 4 have two or more published figures that are kept separate, and 25 do not have enough published numbers for a total.

Large franchise and company-owned brands are included even when they do not print a public split. Local offices that publish their own schedule, such as a Keller Williams market center or a Realty ONE Group office, are separate entries from the national brand. Association dues, MLS dues, and lockbox fees are almost never part of the brokerage schedule and are not added.

When sources disagree

If two official pages print different amounts, both stay in the notes and, when the math can be done without inventing a third number, both totals are shown. They are not averaged. That includes the eXp risk-management fee, Big Block’s per-transaction charge, NB Elite’s starting transaction fee, Nexgen’s unit-cap threshold, Ashby & Graff’s E&O figure, and HomeSmart Bay Area’s membership charges.

A dated source stays dated. Balboa Real Estate’s fee article is still online and is marked October 11, 2017 in the notes. The Keller Williams California Premier value book says “Updated 12/11” and does not give a year.

How estimates are computed

• Gross commission = deals per year × average sale price × commission rate.
• Brokerage cost = company split (stopped at a published annual cap) + per-deal fees × deals + monthly fee × 12 + annual fee + post-cap fees on deals after the cap + other published plan charges, such as a capped royalty.
• Commission kept = gross commission − brokerage cost.
• Startup fees are shown separately and are not included in the annual cost.
• MLS dues, association dues, lockbox fees, taxes, and revenue-share income are not included.
• Transaction coordination is included only when the published per-deal total already includes it.
• When two official pages disagree, both amounts are shown. They are not averaged.

The home-page column uses 10 deals, a $800,000 sale, and a 2.5% commission. The calculator uses the same rules with your numbers. Brokerage detail pages also show the cost at 5, 10, and 20 deals on that standard price and rate.

When a brokerage publishes more than one plan, the estimate uses the plan stored in the structured fields and says so. Examples: Fathom Edge rather than Elevate, United Realty Group Silver rather than Gold, Merge Pro Agent rather than Premier, Rise Realty’s RISE 100 Smart Scale rather than Premier, and the monthly E&O option at Keller Williams California Premier rather than the upfront option. A price formula is used only when the page states one, such as 0.1% of price or a published dollar step.

An annual fee that was not published is omitted, and the omission is written next to the result. A cap that the production level would pass is not given a made-up post-cap fee. eXp at the standard 10-deal scenario is an example: the cap is reached, and the post-cap dollar amount is not on the income page, so no annual total is shown.

Sponsors do not change rankings

A featured sponsor, the top bar, and a newsletter line are paid placements. They are labeled Sponsored. The featured entry sits above the comparison list and is excluded from sorting. Buying a week does not move a brokerage up or down the estimated-cost order.

Corrections

Anyone can submit a correction with a source URL. It is stored as pending. It is not published until it is approved, which updates the entry and the checked date.