Architectural and Civil Drafters in Oregon
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$54,964
after federal, FICA and Oregon tax
Tax takes
$19,036
25.7% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$52,486
Oregon costs more than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Oregon — 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
$74,000
Kept after tax
$54,964
Worth in national money
$52,486
State rank
9
of 50 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Oregon is one of the better-paying states for this job. The middle earner takes $74,000, which ranks 9 of 50 states with published figures. That is about 11.87% above the national middle.
- Middle of the local pack. Of 489 occupations Oregon reports figures for, this is number 200.
- The wage here flatters the reality. From $74,000 the take-home is $54,964. But Oregon costs more than the national average, so that money behaves more like $52,486 would elsewhere. Worth knowing before comparing offers across states. The average is higher, $74,430, because the best-paid pull it up.
- Oregon ranks 9 of 50 states publishing a median for architectural and civil drafters, at $74,000 — about 11.87% above the national median. A state's position on nominal pay is the figure wage tables report and the least informative of the three on this page, because it survives neither the tax adjustment nor the price adjustment intact for most occupations.
- In Oregon's occupational distribution, architectural and civil drafters sits at 200 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.
- Retained pay after federal, FICA and Oregon income tax is $54,964 for architectural and civil drafters, from $74,000. The state's price level exceeds the national average, so the price-adjusted equivalent is $52,486. ⚠️ This is purchasing power and not a wage; cross-state offer comparisons that stop at the nominal figure systematically overvalue high-cost states. The mean of $74,430 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Architectural and Civil Drafters
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $57,020 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $74,000 |
| Top tenth earn over | $98,410 |
| This salary | $74,000 |
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 Oregon | $54,964 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $60,889 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$10,173 |
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 | $65,693 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$13,236 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 105 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Oregon earn less than $74,000. The published range is $57,020 up to $98,410, 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 Oregon's $54,964, worked from $74,000. 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 200 of 489.
- One number stands for prices across all of Oregon, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $52,486, the adjusted value of that $74,000 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 200 of 489 in the state.
- Reported values are medians; for architectural and civil drafters in Oregon the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $57,020 to $98,410. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- The Oregon take-home of $54,964, on $74,000 for work ranking 200 of 489 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 200 of 489 in the state.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Oregon, so $52,486 — the adjusted value of that $74,000 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 200 of 489 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $57,020 and the top tenth $98,410, so most people doing this work in Oregon sit within a fairly tight band.
Does a bigger number here mean I am better off?
Not on its own. Prices in Oregon run above the national level, so the same dollars buy less here. Adjusted for that, this pay is worth $52,486 — the wage did not change, only what it covers.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Three of them are federal and one is not. After income tax, Social Security, Medicare and Oregon's own levy, $54,964 remains.
Why is this job missing from some states?
Because the survey suppresses a figure when too few employers report it. This occupation has published pay in 50 states — the rest are withheld to protect confidentiality, which is not the same as nobody doing the work there.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($57,020 to $98,410) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Oregon rather than a national figure.
How does the state price level affect real compensation?
Oregon's regional price parity sits above the national average, so nominal wages overstate purchasing power. Deflating take-home by the state price level gives $52,486 in national-average terms. ⚠️ RPPs are an all-items index; housing parities vary far more widely than the headline figure.
What accounts for the gap between gross wage and take-home here?
Take-home of $54,964 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Oregon 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 50 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.