Automotive Service Technicians and Mechanics in Louisiana
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$38,457
after federal, FICA and Louisiana tax
Tax takes
$7,943
17.1% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$43,530
Louisiana costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Louisiana — 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
$46,400
Kept after tax
$38,457
Worth in national money
$43,530
State rank
46
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Pay for this job is on the low side in Louisiana. The middle earner gets $46,400. That is 46 of 51 states, and about 8.34% under the national figure. Whether that matters depends on what things cost here.
- Middle of the local pack. Of 484 occupations Louisiana reports figures for, this is number 311.
- Here is where Louisiana does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $46,400 you keep $38,457, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $43,530 would elsewhere. The average is higher, $50,650, because the best-paid pull it up.
- For automotive service technicians and mechanics, Louisiana sits in the lower band at $46,400, ranking 46 of 51 and trailing the national median by about 8.34%. Nominal rankings routinely invert once tax and regional price level are applied, so this position should not be read as the conclusion.
- In Louisiana's occupational distribution, automotive service technicians and mechanics sits at 311 of 484 — 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.
- After federal, FICA and Louisiana income tax, retained pay for automotive service technicians and mechanics on $46,400 is $38,457. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $43,530 in national-average terms. ⚠️ That figure is purchasing power, not a wage, and nobody is paid it; it is what the take-home buys. The mean of $50,650 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
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 | $30,230 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $46,400 |
| Top tenth earn over | $77,790 |
| This salary | $46,400 |
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 Louisiana | $38,457 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $39,462 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$2,920 |
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 | $45,148 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$3,532 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 88 |
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 service technicians and mechanics in Louisiana earn under $46,400 and half over. The published range runs $30,230 at the tenth percentile to $77,790 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- One filer, no dependants, no pension contributions — that is the household behind Louisiana's $38,457, worked from $46,400. 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 311 of 484.
- One number stands for prices across all of Louisiana, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $43,530, the adjusted value of that $46,400 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 311 of 484 in the state.
- Figures are distribution medians for automotive service technicians and mechanics in Louisiana, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $30,230 to $77,790; 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.
- The Louisiana take-home of $38,457, on $46,400 for work ranking 311 of 484 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 311 of 484 in the state.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Louisiana, so $43,530 — the adjusted value of that $46,400 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 311 of 484 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
It is the midpoint, not the average. The average here is $50,650, dragged up by high earners; the middle figure describes a typical worker better.
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
The label is broader than the work. From $30,230 at the bottom tenth to $77,790 at the top, the same title covers roles that share little beyond a name.
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 $43,530.
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 Louisiana's own levy, $38,457 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 Louisiana is $50,650. 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 ($30,230) and the ninetieth ($77,790) 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?
Louisiana'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 $43,530 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 $38,457 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Louisiana 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.