Bus Drivers, School in Utah
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$42,324
after federal, FICA and Utah tax
Tax takes
$10,567
20.0% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$44,550
Utah costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Utah — 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
$52,890
Kept after tax
$42,324
Worth in national money
$44,550
State rank
13
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- This is a good state for the work. Utah pays bus drivers, school a middle wage of $52,890, ranking 13 of 51 states and sitting about 10.37% above the national middle.
- Middle of the local pack. Of 487 occupations Utah reports figures for, this is number 276.
- Here is where Utah does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $52,890 you keep $42,324, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $44,550 would elsewhere. The average is higher, $53,430, because the best-paid pull it up.
- Utah's median for bus drivers, school is $52,890, about 10.37% above the national figure and 13 of 51 states reporting. Whether that premium reaches the worker depends on the two adjustments below, which is the part a wage table cannot tell you.
- In Utah's occupational distribution, bus drivers, school sits at 276 of 487 — 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 Utah income tax, retained pay for bus drivers, school on $52,890 is $42,324. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $44,550 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 $53,430 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Bus Drivers, School
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $37,010 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $52,890 |
| Top tenth earn over | $69,110 |
| This salary | $52,890 |
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 Utah | $42,324 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $44,677 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$1,426 |
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 | $49,961 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$1,724 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 95 |
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 bus drivers, school in Utah earn under $52,890 and half over. The published range runs $37,010 at the tenth percentile to $69,110 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- In Utah the take-home figure of $42,324, from $52,890, 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 276 of 487 occupations here.
- Two cautions on $44,550, the adjusted value of that $52,890 median. It levels out prices with a single number for all of Utah. No actual address matches that. The wage figures and price figures are also from different years. Each is published on its own timetable. This work sits at 276 of 487 locally.
- Figures are distribution medians for bus drivers, school in Utah, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $37,010 to $69,110; 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 Utah is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $42,324 from $52,890. 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 276 of 487 locally.
- This $44,550 adjusted figure, worked from $52,890, rests on a state-level price parity averaging over within-state dispersion larger than much of the between-state dispersion. Wage and price vintages differ by publication schedule. The result is directionally sound and not address-specific, for work at 276 of 487 in the state. The occupation ranks 276 of 487 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
The range here is narrow. From $37,010 at the bottom tenth to $69,110 at the top, pay for this work clusters rather than spreads.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
More than the figure suggests. Prices in Utah sit below the national level, so take-home here stretches like $44,550 would elsewhere. The wage is the same; the ground it covers is larger.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Into four separate taxes, not one. Federal income tax, Social Security and Medicare apply everywhere, and Utah adds its own income tax on top — which is why $42,324 of this wage survives to your account.
Can I compare this job across every state?
This occupation is published everywhere — all 51 of them — so comparing states measures real differences rather than gaps in the data.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($37,010 to $69,110) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Utah rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Utah'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 $44,550 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 $42,324 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Utah 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.