Chemists in North Dakota
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$76,663
after federal, FICA and North Dakota tax
Tax takes
$20,667
21.2% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$86,554
North Dakota costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in North Dakota — 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
$97,330
Kept after tax
$76,663
Worth in national money
$86,554
State rank
20
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Middling, nationally. North Dakota pays chemists around $97,330 at the midpoint, 20 of 51 states. The interesting numbers on this page are the two below it.
- This is one of the better-paid jobs in North Dakota. It ranks 57 out of 460 occupations the state publishes figures for, which puts it in the top quarter locally.
- Cheaper living works in this state's favor. From $97,330 you keep $76,663 after tax, and local prices stretch that to the equivalent of $86,554 at national prices. Here the average runs under the middle, at $94,470.
- For chemists the North Dakota median is $97,330, ranking 20 of 51 states reporting. Mid-band nominal positions are the ones most frequently reordered by the adjustments, because no large wage premium exists to absorb a state's tax or price level.
- Within North Dakota, chemists ranks 57 of 460 occupations by median pay, placing it in the top quartile of the local distribution. This is the comparison a resident actually makes — against neighbors rather than against the same job elsewhere.
- Retained pay in North Dakota is $76,663 after the full tax stack, from $97,330. Because the state's price level runs below the national average, the price-adjusted equivalent is $86,554 — a real-terms figure describing purchasing power rather than compensation, and not a number that appears on any pay stub. Mean pay of $94,470 sits under the median, so the lower tail is the longer one.
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Pay band: Chemists
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $52,050 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $97,330 |
| Top tenth earn over | $132,330 |
| This salary | $97,330 |
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 North Dakota | $76,663 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $77,302 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$7,005 |
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 | $96,422 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$9,677 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 89 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $97,330 as a midpoint for North Dakota, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $52,050 and the ninetieth is $132,330 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- In North Dakota the take-home figure of $76,663, from $97,330, 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 57 of 460 occupations here.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $86,554 uses one figure for the whole of North Dakota. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 460 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 57.
- The North Dakota median of $97,330 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $52,050 to $132,330. 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 North Dakota is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $76,663 from $97,330. 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 57 of 460 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $86,554, worked from $97,330, 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 North Dakota address, on work sitting at 57 of 460 locally.
Questions people ask
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
One title, many jobs. The lowest tenth take $52,050, the highest tenth $132,330, and what separates them is experience, employer and what exactly the role does.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
Further than the number implies. North Dakota is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $86,554 in national terms.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Four deductions, stacked. The federal layer and the two payroll taxes apply wherever you work; North Dakota then takes its own share, leaving $76,663.
Can I compare this job across every state?
All 51 jurisdictions report this work, which makes the ranking a like-for-like one.
What drives the percentile dispersion in this occupation?
Dispersion between the tenth percentile ($52,050) and the ninetieth ($132,330) exceeds the family median dispersion. SOC codes aggregate roles differing in seniority, industry and specialisation, and BLS does not disaggregate below the detailed occupation level, so within-title variance is not separable from the published series.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
North Dakota'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 $86,554 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 $76,663 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and North Dakota 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.