How Much Is Bail in California

By Jane Un, licensed bail agent #1843448. Updated October 29, 2026.

There is no single bail price in California. Each county has its own schedule, and a judge can change the number. Here is how the amount is set, what Los Angeles County's official schedule actually says, and what it costs to post a bond once you know the amount.

The short answer

Bail in California depends on the charge, the county and the judge. A minor offense can have a bail of a few hundred dollars or none at all. A serious violent offense can run well into six or seven figures. Anyone who gives you one flat number for the whole state is guessing.

What you can count on is how the number is set. The county bail schedule gives a starting amount. A judge can raise it, lower it or replace it with release conditions that do not involve money. After you know the amount, a licensed bail agent charges a premium, which is most commonly 10% of that amount.

The rest of this guide is the details, with numbers taken straight from the Los Angeles Superior Court.

Who decides the amount

California Penal Code section 1269b tells the superior court judges in each county to adopt a countywide bail schedule and revise it every year. That is why bail for the same charge can differ between Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino and San Diego counties.

The schedule does most of the work in the first hours after an arrest. Under the same section, certain officials, including the officer in charge of a jail, can accept bail at the scheduled amount in cash or by a surety bond and issue the release.

The schedule is a starting point and not the last word. After the person has appeared before a judge on the charge, the judge's decision controls. The court says in its own schedule that the amount "may be greater or less" than the schedule. The judge must weigh the protection of the public, the safety of the victim, how serious the charge is, the person's past record and the chance that they will come to court. Public and victim safety come first.

If an arrest warrant was issued, the judge who signed it may have written a bail amount on the warrant. That amount applies until the person appears before a judge.

What the Los Angeles felony schedule shows

The Los Angeles County felony bail schedule is posted on the court's site and carries an effective date of January 1, 2026. We read it. Below are a few of its listed amounts, so you can see how it looks. These are the amounts that apply before arraignment when a person is arrested without a warrant. They can change at the first court date.

The schedule lists hundreds of offenses across the Penal Code, Vehicle Code, Health and Safety Code and Business and Professions Code, so this is a small slice. Do not use this table to guess a particular person's bail. The exact line depends on the exact charge, the degree, any enhancements and how many counts are filed.

To read the whole thing, go to the Los Angeles Superior Court site and look for the current felony and misdemeanor bail schedules. We link the felony schedule in the sources below. Misdemeanors are in a separate schedule that we have not reproduced here.

Many charges carry no money bail before arraignment

Look at the last two rows of the table. In Los Angeles County, many offenses are marked Cite and Release, Book and Release or Magistrate Review. For those, the schedule sets bail at zero dollars before arraignment and the person is released on a promise to appear, or a magistrate decides on release and conditions.

Offenses that are not on the schedule at all, but are charged as felonies, are also set at zero dollars and treated as Book and Release, unless they fall in the serious group in Penal Code section 1270.1.

That zero is not permanent. The court notes that these pre-arraignment designations do not bind the judge at arraignment. When a judge sets financial conditions for offenses in these three groups, the court's guidelines list $25,000 for Cite and Release offenses, $50,000 for Book and Release offenses and $75,000 for Magistrate Review offenses. Those are guidelines, and the judge has discretion.

Our full guide to pre-arraignment release in Los Angeles explains who gets released without money.

What can raise the number

A few things move the amount up, and you should know them before you hear the number.

• More than one count. For several felonies, the schedule has a worksheet. It starts from the offense with the highest listed amount. If the offenses involve separate victims or separate dates, amounts are added.
• Enhancements. Allegations such as a prior serious conviction or use of a weapon can add to the bail. The court says enhancement amounts are added once per case.
• Serious and violent offenses. Penal Code section 1270.1 covers violent felonies, serious felonies and certain domestic violence, stalking and threat offenses. For these, a person cannot be released on a bail amount different from the schedule until there is a hearing in open court.
• A request from law enforcement. Within two hours of booking, an officer can ask a magistrate to raise the bail if there is reason to believe the schedule amount is not enough.

The same two hour window works the other way for families. The court's schedule says an attorney, friend or family member can apply to the magistrate for release at a lower bail, or on the person's own recognizance, by calling the court's Pre-Arraignment Support Unit within two hours of booking. The number printed in the schedule is (213) 633-6350, and the unit is available around the clock. Requests to reduce bail are not available before arraignment for the offenses listed in section 1270.1.

If the jail tells you an amount and it feels out of reach, the amount is not always final. A lawyer can ask the judge at arraignment to review it, and in some cases a family member can ask a magistrate within two hours of booking.

Ability to pay and the Humphrey decision

In 2021 the California Supreme Court decided In re Humphrey. As the Los Angeles court describes it, a person cannot be kept in jail only because they cannot afford bail. Judges are told to use the least restrictive conditions that will reasonably protect the public and the victim and bring the person back to court. Money bail can still be set, but the judge has to consider whether a lower amount or non-financial conditions would do the job.

In real life, that means bail hearings can go differently than the schedule suggests. A person with a lawyer who speaks to ability to pay, local ties, work and family may see a different number. We cannot give legal advice. We can tell you that this ruling exists and that it is a good reason to talk to an attorney as early as you can. We do not recommend any one attorney, because that is a decision for you.

What it costs to post a bond

Once you have the bail amount, you can work out the cost of a bond. The California Department of Insurance says the cost to the consumer is most commonly ten percent of the bond amount, plus actual, necessary and reasonable expenses. Agents must charge the rate their insurer has filed with the state.

At Jane Un Bail Bonds the premium is 10% of the court ordered bail. It is 8% when a private attorney has been retained or when the defendant or the cosigner is a veteran. If you qualify for Bail Today, Pay Later®, you can begin with 1% of the bail down on approved credit and pay the rest of the premium on a monthly plan.

How much is $1,000 bail

If the court sets bail at $1,000, you can pay $1,000 in cash to the court, which is returned if the person appears at every date. Or you can post a bond. At a 10% premium, a bond for $1,000 bail costs $100. At 8% it costs $80.

How much is 10% of a $10,000 bond

It is $1,000. The premium on a $10,000 bond at 10% is $1,000. At the 8% rate it is $800.

The premium is the agent's fee. It is not returned when the case ends. Use our calculator for any amount, and read about the 1% down payment plan for how the down payment fits in.

Other costs and how to avoid surprises

California rules limit what a bail licensee can collect. Under the state regulations, an agent can collect the filed premium, collateral, and certain actual, necessary and reasonable expenses. Apart from those, an agent should not charge extra for the service of writing the bond. That is why you should ask three questions before you sign.

• What is the total premium, in dollars?
• Is there any expense on top of it? If so, what is it for?
• Is collateral needed, and when does it come back?

Collateral is not a fee. It is property held as security and returned after the bond is released and the premium is paid in full. For the details, see is bail money returned in California.

You can also check the agent's license on the Department of Insurance site. Ours is #1843448. A bail agent in California may not solicit you. If someone calls out of nowhere with a price, be careful.

How to find out the bail amount tonight

Find the person first. Use the inmate lookup for the facility that holds them, or call. Our guide on finding someone in jail in Los Angeles shows how. The record often lists the booking number and the bail amount. Remember that the Sheriff's Department says records are not available for bookings from the last 2 hours.

If you cannot find an amount, call Jane Un Bail Bonds at (213) 725-2815. We are open 24 hours and a family member, friend or attorney can call for the person in custody. We will tell you the premium on the amount, whether the 8% rate applies, and what the payment plan could look like. You can also see the jails we serve.