Butchers and Meat Cutters in Utah
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$35,151
after federal, FICA and Utah tax
Tax takes
$8,289
19.1% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$37,000
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
$43,440
Kept after tax
$35,151
Worth in national money
$37,000
State rank
20
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Utah sits in the middle of the pack for butchers and meat cutters. The median is $43,440, ranking 20 of 51 states with figures. Close enough to the national middle that where you live matters more than the headline suggests.
- Measured against other jobs in Utah, this one sits low: 382 of 487 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- Cheaper living works in this state's favor. From $43,440 you keep $35,151 after tax, and local prices stretch that to the equivalent of $37,000 at national prices. Here the average runs under the middle, at $42,480.
- Utah occupies the middle band for butchers and meat cutters: a median of $43,440, ranking 20 of 51. Where nominal pay is close to the national figure, the tax and price adjustments below carry proportionally more weight in determining the real outcome.
- Butchers and meat cutters occupies position 382 of 487 in Utah's occupational wage distribution, in the bottom quartile. National ranking and local ranking answer different questions and frequently disagree; this is the one a resident experiences.
- Retained pay in Utah is $35,151 after the full tax stack, from $43,440. Because the state's price level runs below the national average, the price-adjusted equivalent is $37,000 — a real-terms figure describing purchasing power rather than compensation, and not a number that appears on any pay stub. Mean pay of $42,480 sits under the median, so the lower tail is the longer one.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Butchers and Meat Cutters
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $32,060 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $43,440 |
| Top tenth earn over | $53,470 |
| This salary | $43,440 |
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 | $35,151 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $37,084 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$1,162 |
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 | $41,034 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$1,405 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 95 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Utah earn less than $43,440. The published range is $32,060 up to $53,470, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- That $35,151 take-home in Utah comes from $43,440. 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 382 of 487.
- One number stands for prices across all of Utah, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $37,000, the adjusted value of that $43,440 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 382 of 487 in the state.
- Reported values are medians; for butchers and meat cutters in Utah the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $32,060 to $53,470. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Retained pay of $35,151, from $43,440, assumes a single Utah 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 382 of 487 locally, and the state ranks 20 of 51 for it.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Utah, so $37,000 — the adjusted value of that $43,440 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 382 of 487 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $32,060 and the top tenth $53,470, so most people doing this work in Utah sit within a fairly tight band.
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 $37,000.
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 $35,151 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 ($32,060 to $53,470) 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 $37,000 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 $35,151 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.