Atmospheric and Space Scientists in Alaska
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$75,226
after federal, FICA and Alaska tax
Tax takes
$19,154
20.3% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$73,958
Alaska costs more than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Alaska — 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
$94,380
Kept after tax
$75,226
Worth in national money
$73,958
State rank
30
of 47 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Neither high nor low. Alaska is 30 of 47 states for atmospheric and space scientists, with a middle wage of $94,380. What that is worth is the question the rest of this page answers.
- Locally, this pays well. Among 430 occupations Alaska reports, atmospheric and space scientists comes in at 98 — comfortably in the upper quarter.
- No great distortion either way. Alaska costs about what the country costs, so from $94,380, take-home of $75,226 is worth roughly $73,958 in national money. The average lands at $93,570, below the middle of the range.
- Alaska ranks 30 of 47 for atmospheric and space scientists at $94,380. The nominal figure is unremarkable; the adjusted figures are where the state's actual position for this occupation is determined.
- Atmospheric and space scientists ranks 98 of 430 occupations by median in Alaska, in the top quartile. Within-state position is largely independent of national position, so this holds regardless of how the state compares to others for the same work.
- Price parity in Alaska is near the national base, so for atmospheric and space scientists, whose median is $94,380, the adjusted figure of $73,958 differs little from $75,226 retained after tax. The state's position for this occupation is therefore set by wage and tax rather than by living costs. At $93,570 the mean undershoots the median, an inversion of the usual skew.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Atmospheric and Space Scientists
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $61,150 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $94,380 |
| Top tenth earn over | $135,030 |
| This salary | $94,380 |
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 Alaska | $75,226 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $75,226 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$3,455 |
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 | $94,380 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$4,773 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 102 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- A median is the middle, not an offer. Half of atmospheric and space scientists in Alaska earn under $94,380 and half over. The published range runs $61,150 at the tenth percentile to $135,030 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- In Alaska the take-home figure of $75,226, from $94,380, 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 98 of 430 occupations here.
- One number stands for prices across all of Alaska, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $73,958, the adjusted value of that $94,380 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 98 of 430 in the state.
- Figures are distribution medians for atmospheric and space scientists in Alaska, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $61,150 to $135,030; within-state dispersion of that width routinely exceeds the dispersion between states, so tenure, employer and metropolitan area predict an individual's pay better than geography does.
- Take-home for Alaska is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $75,226 from $94,380. 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 98 of 430 locally.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Alaska, so $73,958 — the adjusted value of that $94,380 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 98 of 430 locally.
Questions people ask
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
The label is broader than the work. From $61,150 at the bottom tenth to $135,030 at the top, the same title covers roles that share little beyond a name.
Does a bigger number here mean I am better off?
Not on its own. Prices in Alaska run above the national level, so the same dollars buy less here. Adjusted for that, this pay is worth $73,958 — the wage did not change, only what it covers.
Is most of this wage taxed away?
No. $75,226 survives, because Alaska levies no wage income tax. The federal share does not change with the state you work in.
Why is this job missing from some states?
The survey withholds small samples rather than publish an unreliable number. Pay appears for 47 states here, and a missing state means too few reports, not no jobs.
What drives the percentile dispersion in this occupation?
Dispersion between the tenth percentile ($61,150) and the ninetieth ($135,030) exceeds the family median dispersion. SOC codes aggregate roles differing in seniority, industry and specialisation, and BLS does not disaggregate below the detailed occupation level, so within-title variance is not separable from the published series.
How does the state price level affect real compensation?
Alaska's regional price parity sits above the national average, so nominal wages overstate purchasing power. Deflating take-home by the state price level gives $73,958 in national-average terms. ⚠️ RPPs are an all-items index; housing parities vary far more widely than the headline figure.
Why is the take-home ratio comparatively high in this state?
Alaska levies no personal income tax on wages, so take-home of $75,226 reflects the federal layer and FICA alone. Federal income tax and FICA are unchanged; states without a wage income tax generally recover revenue through consumption and property bases instead.
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.