Bus and Truck Mechanics and Diesel Engine Specialists in Michigan
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$49,171
after federal, FICA and Michigan tax
Tax takes
$12,249
19.9% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$52,208
Michigan costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Michigan — 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
$61,420
Kept after tax
$49,171
Worth in national money
$52,208
State rank
25
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Middling, nationally. Michigan pays this job around $61,420 at the midpoint, 25 of 51 states. The interesting numbers on this page are the two below it.
- Ordinary, locally speaking. This job ranks 223 among 493 occupations Michigan publishes pay for.
- Michigan is cheaper than average, and that shows up here. From $61,420 the take-home is $49,171; adjusted for what things actually cost, it goes as far as $52,208 would nationally. The average comes to $62,140, above the middle, thanks to the top of the range.
- For bus and truck mechanics and diesel engine specialists the Michigan median is $61,420, ranking 25 of 51 states reporting. Mid-band nominal positions are the ones most frequently reordered by the adjustments, because no large wage premium exists to absorb a state's tax or price level.
- Position 223 of 493 in Michigan places bus and truck mechanics and diesel engine specialists in the middle of the state's wage distribution. Because within-state and cross-state rankings measure different things, this figure and the national one above should be read together rather than as a single verdict.
- Post-tax income for bus and truck mechanics and diesel engine specialists in Michigan, on $61,420, is $49,171 — equivalent to $52,208 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 $62,140 the mean overshoots the median — the usual right-skewed shape.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Bus and Truck Mechanics and Diesel Engine Specialists
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $45,240 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $61,420 |
| Top tenth earn over | $81,010 |
| This salary | $61,420 |
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 Michigan | $49,171 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $51,531 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$821 |
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 | $58,483 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$993 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 94 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $61,420 as a midpoint for Michigan, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $45,240 and the ninetieth is $81,010 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- One filer, no dependants, no pension contributions — that is the household behind Michigan's $49,171, worked from $61,420. 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 223 of 493.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $52,208 uses one figure for the whole of Michigan. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 493 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 223.
- The Michigan median of $61,420 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $45,240 to $81,010. Because that spread is typically larger than the interstate spread, a state median is a weak predictor for any individual worker in this occupation.
- The Michigan take-home of $49,171, on $61,420 for work ranking 223 of 493 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 223 of 493 in the state.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $52,208, worked from $61,420, 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 Michigan address, on work sitting at 223 of 493 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
The range here is narrow. From $45,240 at the bottom tenth to $81,010 at the top, pay for this work clusters rather than spreads.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
Further than the number implies. Michigan is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $52,208 in national terms.
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 Michigan's own levy, $49,171 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.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($45,240 to $81,010) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Michigan rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Michigan'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 $52,208 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 $49,171 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Michigan 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.