Cabinetmakers and Bench Carpenters in Kentucky
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$33,376
after federal, FICA and Kentucky tax
Tax takes
$7,064
17.5% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$36,892
Kentucky costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Kentucky — 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
$40,440
Kept after tax
$33,376
Worth in national money
$36,892
State rank
44
of 49 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Kentucky is among the lower-paying states for this job. The middle earner takes $40,440, ranking 44 of 49 states — about 13.37% below the national middle. Costs here are often lower too, which the figures further down account for.
- Measured against other jobs in Kentucky, this one sits low: 381 of 491 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- Kentucky is cheaper than average, and that shows up here. From $40,440 the take-home is $33,376; adjusted for what things actually cost, it goes as far as $36,892 would nationally. The average comes to $43,940, above the middle, thanks to the top of the range.
- Kentucky ranks 44 of 49 for cabinetmakers and bench carpenters, with a median of $40,440 — about 13.37% below the national figure. A nominal shortfall is not by itself a real one: lower-paying states frequently carry lower tax and lower price levels, and the adjusted figures below are where that is settled rather than assumed.
- Cabinetmakers and bench carpenters occupies position 381 of 491 in Kentucky'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.
- Post-tax income for cabinetmakers and bench carpenters in Kentucky, on $40,440, is $33,376 — equivalent to $36,892 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 $43,940 the mean overshoots the median — the usual right-skewed shape.
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Pay band: Cabinetmakers and Bench Carpenters
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $34,600 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $40,440 |
| Top tenth earn over | $59,530 |
| This salary | $40,440 |
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 Kentucky | $33,376 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $34,674 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$1,211 |
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 | $38,825 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$1,464 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 90 |
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 cabinetmakers and bench carpenters in Kentucky earn under $40,440 and half over. The published range runs $34,600 at the tenth percentile to $59,530 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- In Kentucky the take-home figure of $33,376, from $40,440, 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 381 of 491 occupations here.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $36,892 uses one figure for the whole of Kentucky. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 491 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 381.
- Figures are distribution medians for cabinetmakers and bench carpenters in Kentucky, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $34,600 to $59,530; 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 Kentucky is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $33,376 from $40,440. 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 381 of 491 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $36,892, worked from $40,440, 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 Kentucky address, on work sitting at 381 of 491 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
It is the midpoint, not the average. The average here is $43,940, dragged up by high earners; the middle figure describes a typical worker better.
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $34,600 and the top tenth $59,530, so most people doing this work in Kentucky sit within a fairly tight band.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
More than the figure suggests. Prices in Kentucky sit below the national level, so take-home here stretches like $36,892 would elsewhere. The wage is the same; the ground it covers is larger.
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 Kentucky's own levy, $33,376 remains.
Why is this job missing from some states?
A blank is a suppression, not a zero. 49 states have a published figure for this work; the others had too few responses to release one.
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 Kentucky is $43,940. 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 is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($34,600 to $59,530) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Kentucky rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Kentucky'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 $36,892 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 $33,376 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Kentucky 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.
Why does this occupation lack published estimates in every state?
BLS suppresses estimates failing disclosure or reliability criteria. This occupation has published state-level estimates in 49 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.