A typical residential dishwasher lasts 9 to 12 years, per Consumer Reports appliance reliability data and ENERGY STAR lifecycle modeling. Premium brands — Bosch 500/800 Series, Miele, KitchenAid's upper tiers — routinely last 15-plus years. Budget brands and entry-level builder-grade models often land at 8 to 10.
Hard water is the dominant factor shortening dishwasher life in the Sacramento area. Scale builds up on the heating element (which strains the element and the thermostat circuit), inside the circulation-pump housing (which increases wear on the pump seals), and on the spray-arm bearings (which slows or stops rotation). A dishwasher on unsoftened Sacramento-area water will typically show visible scale after three to four years and measurable performance loss by year six.
At the 8-to-10-year mark, a $400-plus repair — control board, circulation pump, or the combination of multiple worn parts — starts to argue for replacement, especially given that newer ENERGY STAR dishwashers use materially less water (about 3.2 gallons per cycle versus 6-plus on older units) and run measurably quieter.
Prevention: soften the water if possible, use rinse aid every cycle, run a dishwasher-cleaning tablet monthly, and check the filter at the sump every month or two. Dishwashers that live most of their life with a partially clogged sump filter tend to fail early and fail hard.