Animal Caretakers in Mississippi
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$22,833
after federal, FICA and Mississippi tax
Tax takes
$4,137
15.3% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$26,157
Mississippi costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Mississippi — roughly, since only five points along the band are published.
One filer, standard deduction, no dependants and nothing paid in before tax — the same household the rest of this page uses, so the comparison holds. City and school-district income taxes are not included.
Median here
$26,970
Kept after tax
$22,833
Worth in national money
$26,157
State rank
51
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Mississippi is among the lower-paying states for animal caretakers. The middle earner takes $26,970, ranking 51 of 51 states — about 23.73% below the national middle. Costs here are often lower too, which the figures further down account for.
- Measured against other jobs in Mississippi, this one sits low: 465 of 486 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- Here is where Mississippi does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $26,970 you keep $22,833, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $26,157 would elsewhere. The average is higher, $28,270, because the best-paid pull it up.
- Mississippi ranks 51 of 51 for animal caretakers, with a median of $26,970 — about 23.73% below the national figure. A nominal shortfall is not by itself a real one: lower-paying states frequently carry lower tax and lower price levels, and the adjusted figures below are where that is settled rather than assumed.
- Animal caretakers occupies position 465 of 486 in Mississippi's occupational wage distribution, in the bottom quartile. National ranking and local ranking answer different questions and frequently disagree; this is the one a resident experiences.
- After federal, FICA and Mississippi income tax, retained pay for animal caretakers on $26,970 is $22,833. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $26,157 in national-average terms. ⚠️ That figure is purchasing power, not a wage, and nobody is paid it; it is what the take-home buys. The mean of $28,270 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Animal Caretakers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $21,160 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $26,970 |
| Top tenth earn over | $36,970 |
| This salary | $26,970 |
Positions between the published tenth, quarter, half, three-quarter and ninetieth points are estimated by straight line.
The same pay, somewhere else
The state median for this job
| Take-home in Mississippi | $22,833 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $23,820 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$1,645 |
The raise and the real gain point in opposite directions here.
State income tax and state price levels only. No city income tax, and no housing market.
What you would need there
The state median for this job
| To match take-home only | $25,772 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$1,951 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 87 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Mississippi earn less than $26,970. The published range is $21,160 up to $36,970, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- One filer, no dependants, no pension contributions — that is the household behind Mississippi's $22,833, worked from $26,970. That is on purpose. It lets states be compared with each other, not with each other's family circumstances. Local city taxes are left out. Locally this work ranks 465 of 486.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $26,157 uses one figure for the whole of Mississippi. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 486 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 465.
- Reported values are medians; for animal caretakers in Mississippi the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $21,160 to $36,970. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- The Mississippi take-home of $22,833, on $26,970 for work ranking 465 of 486 locally, models the simplest household deliberately: holding it constant is what makes the interstate comparison meaningful. It also means the absolute figure overstates liability for most real filers, and municipal income taxes are outside the model entirely. The occupation ranks 465 of 486 in the state.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $26,157, worked from $26,970, deflates by a statewide parity that conceals substantial intra-state variation, concentrated in housing — so it supports comparison between states rather than the pricing of a move to a particular Mississippi address, on work sitting at 465 of 486 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
No — it is the middle. Half of these workers earn more and half earn less. The average is $28,270, pulled upward by the top of the range, which is why the middle is the fairer number to plan against.
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
The range here is narrow. From $21,160 at the bottom tenth to $36,970 at the top, pay for this work clusters rather than spreads.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
More than the figure suggests. Prices in Mississippi sit below the national level, so take-home here stretches like $26,157 would elsewhere. The wage is the same; the ground it covers is larger.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Four deductions, stacked. The federal layer and the two payroll taxes apply wherever you work; Mississippi then takes its own share, leaving $22,833.
Can I compare this job across every state?
All 51 jurisdictions report this work, which makes the ranking a like-for-like one.
How does the published median differ from the mean for this occupation?
The median is the midpoint of the distribution; the mean for this occupation in Mississippi is $28,270. Wage distributions are right-skewed, so the mean exceeds the median wherever a minority earn substantially more. BLS publishes both because substituting one for the other misstates a typical worker's pay.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($21,160 to $36,970) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Mississippi rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Mississippi's regional price parity is at or below the national average, so nominal wages understate purchasing power. Take-home deflated by the state price level is $26,157 in national-average terms. The adjustment uses an all-items index and does not isolate housing.
What accounts for the gap between gross wage and take-home here?
Take-home of $22,833 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Mississippi income tax for a single filer with no adjustments. The state layer is levied in addition to the federal one; only its rate and base differ between states.
Is this occupation's state coverage complete?
State-level estimates are published for all 51 jurisdictions for this occupation, so cross-state comparison is not confounded by suppression. ⚠️ Estimates remain survey-based and carry sampling error; small differences between adjacent states should not be over-read.