Cashiers in District of Columbia
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$32,253
after federal, FICA and District of Columbia tax
Tax takes
$6,627
17.0% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$29,108
District of Columbia costs more than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in District of Columbia — 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
$38,880
Kept after tax
$32,253
Worth in national money
$29,108
State rank
1
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- This is a good state for the work. District of Columbia pays cashiers a middle wage of $38,880, ranking 1 of 51 states and sitting about 18.25% above the national middle.
- Against 390 occupations District of Columbia publishes, cashiers lands at 375. That is the lower quarter. That is the comparison people actually feel, more than any national table.
- The wage here flatters the reality. From $38,880 the take-home is $32,253. But District of Columbia costs more than the national average, so that money behaves more like $29,108 would elsewhere. Worth knowing before comparing offers across states. The average is higher, $42,370, because the best-paid pull it up.
- District of Columbia's median for cashiers is $38,880, about 18.25% above the national figure and 1 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.
- Within District of Columbia, this work ranks 375 of 390 occupations by median pay, in the bottom quartile. The within-state position is the more salient one for anyone weighing this job against alternatives available to them locally.
- Retained pay after federal, FICA and District of Columbia income tax is $32,253 for cashiers, from $38,880. The state's price level exceeds the national average, so the price-adjusted equivalent is $29,108. ⚠️ This is purchasing power and not a wage; cross-state offer comparisons that stop at the nominal figure systematically overvalue high-cost states. The mean of $42,370 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Cashiers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $36,400 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $38,880 |
| Top tenth earn over | $51,640 |
| This salary | $38,880 |
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 District of Columbia | $32,253 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $33,420 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$5,283 |
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 | $37,428 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$6,390 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 111 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $38,880 as a midpoint for District of Columbia, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $36,400 and the ninetieth is $51,640 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- In District of Columbia the take-home figure of $32,253, from $38,880, 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 375 of 390 occupations here.
- One number stands for prices across all of District of Columbia, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $29,108, the adjusted value of that $38,880 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 375 of 390 in the state.
- The District of Columbia median of $38,880 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $36,400 to $51,640. Because that spread is typically larger than the interstate spread, a state median is a weak predictor for any individual worker in this occupation.
- Take-home for District of Columbia is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $32,253 from $38,880. 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 375 of 390 locally.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for District of Columbia, so $29,108 — the adjusted value of that $38,880 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 375 of 390 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
It is the midpoint, not the average. The average here is $42,370, 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 $36,400 and the top tenth $51,640, so most people doing this work in District of Columbia sit within a fairly tight band.
Does a bigger number here mean I am better off?
Not on its own. Prices in District of Columbia run above the national level, so the same dollars buy less here. Adjusted for that, this pay is worth $29,108 — the wage did not change, only what it covers.
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 District of Columbia adds its own income tax on top — which is why $32,253 of this wage survives to your account.
Can I compare this job across every state?
All 51 jurisdictions report this work, which makes the ranking a like-for-like 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 District of Columbia is $42,370. 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 ($36,400 to $51,640) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to District of Columbia rather than a national figure.
How does the state price level affect real compensation?
District of Columbia's regional price parity sits above the national average, so nominal wages overstate purchasing power. Deflating take-home by the state price level gives $29,108 in national-average terms. ⚠️ RPPs are an all-items index; housing parities vary far more widely than the headline figure.
What accounts for the gap between gross wage and take-home here?
Take-home of $32,253 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and District of Columbia 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.