Bus Drivers, Transit and Intercity in Vermont
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$43,885
after federal, FICA and Vermont tax
Tax takes
$9,945
18.5% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$45,414
Vermont costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Vermont — 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
$53,830
Kept after tax
$43,885
Worth in national money
$45,414
State rank
23
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Neither high nor low. Vermont is 23 of 51 states for this job, with a middle wage of $53,830. What that is worth is the question the rest of this page answers.
- Ordinary, locally speaking. This job ranks 287 among 453 occupations Vermont publishes pay for.
- Cheaper living works in this state's favor. From $53,830 you keep $43,885 after tax, and local prices stretch that to the equivalent of $45,414 at national prices. Averages run higher here, $55,210, since top earners drag the number up.
- Vermont ranks 23 of 51 for bus drivers, transit and intercity at $53,830. The nominal figure is unremarkable; the adjusted figures are where the state's actual position for this occupation is determined.
- Position 287 of 453 in Vermont places bus drivers, transit and intercity 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.
- Retained pay in Vermont is $43,885 after the full tax stack, from $53,830. Because the state's price level runs below the national average, the price-adjusted equivalent is $45,414 — a real-terms figure describing purchasing power rather than compensation, and not a number that appears on any pay stub. Mean pay of $55,210 exceeds the median, so the upper tail is doing the work.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Bus Drivers, Transit and Intercity
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $46,910 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $53,830 |
| Top tenth earn over | $62,630 |
| This salary | $53,830 |
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 Vermont | $43,885 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $45,432 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$1,340 |
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 | $51,905 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$1,620 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 97 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Vermont earn less than $53,830. The published range is $46,910 up to $62,630, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- One filer, no dependants, no pension contributions — that is the household behind Vermont's $43,885, worked from $53,830. 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 287 of 453.
- One number stands for prices across all of Vermont, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $45,414, the adjusted value of that $53,830 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 287 of 453 in the state.
- Reported values are medians; for bus drivers, transit and intercity in Vermont the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $46,910 to $62,630. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- The Vermont take-home of $43,885, on $53,830 for work ranking 287 of 453 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 287 of 453 in the state.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Vermont, so $45,414 — the adjusted value of that $53,830 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 287 of 453 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Most of these jobs pay within a close range — $46,910 at the tenth percentile, $62,630 at the ninetieth.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
Further than the number implies. Vermont is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $45,414 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 Vermont's own levy, $43,885 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 ($46,910 to $62,630) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Vermont rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Vermont'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 $45,414 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 $43,885 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Vermont 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.