Animal Trainers in Arkansas
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$32,839
after federal, FICA and Arkansas tax
Tax takes
$6,561
16.7% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$37,960
Arkansas costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Arkansas — 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
$39,400
Kept after tax
$32,839
Worth in national money
$37,960
State rank
20
of 47 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Neither high nor low. Arkansas is 20 of 47 states for animal trainers, with a middle wage of $39,400. What that is worth is the question the rest of this page answers.
- Middle of the local pack. Of 489 occupations Arkansas reports figures for, this is number 338.
- Arkansas is cheaper than average, and that shows up here. From $39,400 the take-home is $32,839; adjusted for what things actually cost, it goes as far as $37,960 would nationally. The average comes to $43,410, above the middle, thanks to the top of the range.
- Arkansas ranks 20 of 47 for animal trainers at $39,400. The nominal figure is unremarkable; the adjusted figures are where the state's actual position for this occupation is determined.
- In Arkansas's occupational distribution, animal trainers sits at 338 of 489 — neither quartile. This local position is what a resident compares against, and it is determined by the state's own labor market rather than by national patterns for this occupation.
- Post-tax income for animal trainers in Arkansas, on $39,400, is $32,839 — equivalent to $37,960 once regional price parity is applied. ⚠️ The adjustment uses a statewide index that describes no particular address; within-state price variation, concentrated in housing, routinely exceeds the difference between two states. At $43,410 the mean overshoots the median — the usual right-skewed shape.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Animal Trainers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $31,280 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $39,400 |
| Top tenth earn over | $59,260 |
| This salary | $39,400 |
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 Arkansas | $32,839 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $33,838 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$3,139 |
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 | $38,156 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$3,796 |
| 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 Arkansas earn less than $39,400. The published range is $31,280 up to $59,260, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- In Arkansas the take-home figure of $32,839, from $39,400, assumes one filer, no dependants, and nothing paid into a pension before tax. Each of those lowers the bill, so treat it as the plain case. City and school-district income taxes are not included either, and in a few states those are real money. It ranks 338 of 489 occupations here.
- One number stands for prices across all of Arkansas, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $37,960, the adjusted value of that $39,400 median, as a way to compare states fairly, not as a quote for any particular place. The two datasets are also from different years. This job sits at 338 of 489 in the state.
- Reported values are medians; for animal trainers in Arkansas the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $31,280 to $59,260. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Take-home for Arkansas is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $32,839 from $39,400. Each omitted item reduces taxable income, so the figure is a lower bound on retained pay for this household shape. Municipal and school-district income taxes are excluded, which understates the burden materially in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Maryland. The occupation ranks 338 of 489 locally.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Arkansas, so $37,960 — the adjusted value of that $39,400 median — establishes comparability between states rather than accuracy within one. The wage and parity series are dated independently, each following its own publication cycle, and neither is projected forward. This occupation sits at 338 of 489 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
It is the midpoint, not the average. The average here is $43,410, dragged up by high earners; the middle figure describes a typical worker better.
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Most of these jobs pay within a close range — $31,280 at the tenth percentile, $59,260 at the ninetieth.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
Further than the number implies. Arkansas is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $37,960 in national terms.
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; Arkansas then takes its own share, leaving $32,839.
Why is this job missing from some states?
A blank is a suppression, not a zero. 47 states have a published figure for this work; the others had too few responses to release 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 Arkansas is $43,410. 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 ($31,280 to $59,260) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Arkansas rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Arkansas'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 $37,960 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 $32,839 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Arkansas 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.
Why does this occupation lack published estimates in every state?
BLS suppresses estimates failing disclosure or reliability criteria. This occupation has published state-level estimates in 47 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.