Automotive and Watercraft Service Attendants in Wisconsin
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$30,599
after federal, FICA and Wisconsin tax
Tax takes
$5,951
16.3% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$32,868
Wisconsin costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Wisconsin — 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
$36,550
Kept after tax
$30,599
Worth in national money
$32,868
State rank
20
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Wisconsin sits in the middle of the pack for this job. The median is $36,550, ranking 20 of 51 states with figures. Close enough to the national middle that where you live matters more than the headline suggests.
- Measured against other jobs in Wisconsin, this one sits low: 449 of 491 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- Wisconsin is cheaper than average, and that shows up here. From $36,550 the take-home is $30,599; adjusted for what things actually cost, it goes as far as $32,868 would nationally. The average lands at $35,660, below the middle of the range.
- Wisconsin occupies the middle band for automotive and watercraft service attendants: a median of $36,550, ranking 20 of 51. Where nominal pay is close to the national figure, the tax and price adjustments below carry proportionally more weight in determining the real outcome.
- Automotive and watercraft service attendants occupies position 449 of 491 in Wisconsin'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.
- Post-tax income for automotive and watercraft service attendants in Wisconsin, on $36,550, is $30,599 — equivalent to $32,868 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 $35,660 the mean undershoots the median, an inversion of the usual skew.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Automotive and Watercraft Service Attendants
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $25,020 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $36,550 |
| Top tenth earn over | $43,910 |
| This salary | $36,550 |
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 Wisconsin | $30,599 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $31,548 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$403 |
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 | $35,369 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$488 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 93 |
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 automotive and watercraft service attendants in Wisconsin earn under $36,550 and half over. The published range runs $25,020 at the tenth percentile to $43,910 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- That $30,599 take-home in Wisconsin comes from $36,550. It is the no-frills case: single filer, standard deduction, nothing set aside before tax. Real circumstances almost always reduce the tax. City and school-district taxes are not counted at all. Locally the work ranks 449 of 491.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $32,868 uses one figure for the whole of Wisconsin. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 491 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 449.
- Figures are distribution medians for automotive and watercraft service attendants in Wisconsin, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $25,020 to $43,910; 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.
- Retained pay of $30,599, from $36,550, assumes a single Wisconsin filer with the standard deduction and no elective deferrals. Pre-tax retirement or HSA contributions, dependants and itemized deductions all reduce it further; local income taxes, excluded here, would increase it in the states that levy them. This occupation ranks 449 of 491 locally, and the state ranks 20 of 51 for it.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $32,868, worked from $36,550, 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 Wisconsin address, on work sitting at 449 of 491 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
The range here is narrow. From $25,020 at the bottom tenth to $43,910 at the top, pay for this work clusters rather than spreads.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
A smaller wage in a cheaper place is not automatically less. Adjusted for local prices, this is worth $32,868.
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; Wisconsin then takes its own share, leaving $30,599.
Can I compare this job across every state?
All 51 jurisdictions report this work, which makes the ranking a like-for-like one.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($25,020 to $43,910) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Wisconsin rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Wisconsin'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 $32,868 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 $30,599 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Wisconsin 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.