Automotive Service Technicians and Mechanics in Illinois
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$39,399
after federal, FICA and Illinois tax
Tax takes
$9,771
19.9% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$39,855
Illinois costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Illinois — 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
$49,170
Kept after tax
$39,399
Worth in national money
$39,855
State rank
32
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Neither high nor low. Illinois is 32 of 51 states for this job, with a middle wage of $49,170. What that is worth is the question the rest of this page answers.
- Middle of the local pack. Of 494 occupations Illinois reports figures for, this is number 331.
- No great distortion either way. Illinois costs about what the country costs, so from $49,170, take-home of $39,399 is worth roughly $39,855 in national money. The average comes to $56,680, above the middle, thanks to the top of the range.
- Illinois ranks 32 of 51 for automotive service technicians and mechanics at $49,170. The nominal figure is unremarkable; the adjusted figures are where the state's actual position for this occupation is determined.
- In Illinois's occupational distribution, automotive service technicians and mechanics sits at 331 of 494 — 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.
- Price parity in Illinois is near the national base, so for automotive service technicians and mechanics, whose median is $49,170, the adjusted figure of $39,855 differs little from $39,399 retained after tax. The state's position for this occupation is therefore set by wage and tax rather than by living costs. At $56,680 the mean overshoots the median — the usual right-skewed shape.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Automotive Service Technicians and Mechanics
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $34,190 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $49,170 |
| Top tenth earn over | $91,200 |
| This salary | $49,170 |
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 Illinois | $39,399 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $41,688 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$3,045 |
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 | $46,321 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$3,682 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 99 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $49,170 as a midpoint for Illinois, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $34,190 and the ninetieth is $91,200 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- That $39,399 take-home in Illinois comes from $49,170. 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 331 of 494.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $39,855 uses one figure for the whole of Illinois. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 494 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 331.
- The Illinois median of $49,170 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $34,190 to $91,200. Because that spread is typically larger than the interstate spread, a state median is a weak predictor for any individual worker in this occupation.
- Retained pay of $39,399, from $49,170, assumes a single Illinois 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 331 of 494 locally, and the state ranks 32 of 51 for it.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $39,855, worked from $49,170, 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 Illinois address, on work sitting at 331 of 494 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
It is the midpoint, not the average. The average here is $56,680, dragged up by high earners; the middle figure describes a typical worker better.
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
One title, many jobs. The lowest tenth take $34,190, the highest tenth $91,200, and what separates them is experience, employer and what exactly the role does.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
More than the figure suggests. Prices in Illinois sit below the national level, so take-home here stretches like $39,855 would elsewhere. The wage is the same; the ground it covers is larger.
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 Illinois's own levy, $39,399 remains.
Can I compare this job across every state?
Yes for this one. Pay is published in all 51 jurisdictions, so a state-to-state comparison here rests on the same survey everywhere rather than on a patchwork.
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 Illinois is $56,680. 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 drives the percentile dispersion in this occupation?
Dispersion between the tenth percentile ($34,190) and the ninetieth ($91,200) 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.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Illinois'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 $39,855 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 $39,399 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Illinois 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.