Civil Engineers in Vermont
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$71,885
after federal, FICA and Vermont tax
Tax takes
$23,715
24.8% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$74,389
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
$95,600
Kept after tax
$71,885
Worth in national money
$74,389
State rank
41
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Vermont is among the lower-paying states for civil engineers. The middle earner takes $95,600, ranking 41 of 51 states — about 5.2% below the national middle. Costs here are often lower too, which the figures further down account for.
- Within Vermont this is well-paid work. Of 453 occupations with published figures in the state, civil engineers ranks 65 — in the top quarter of everything people do there.
- Here is where Vermont does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $95,600 you keep $71,885, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $74,389 would elsewhere. The average is higher, $97,480, because the best-paid pull it up.
- Vermont ranks 41 of 51 for civil engineers, with a median of $95,600 — about 5.2% 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.
- Ranked against every occupation Vermont publishes a median for, civil engineers sits 65 of 453 — the upper quartile of the state's wage distribution. National standing and within-state standing are separate questions, and a job can occupy very different positions on each.
- After federal, FICA and Vermont income tax, retained pay for civil engineers on $95,600 is $71,885. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $74,389 in national-average terms. ⚠️ That figure is purchasing power, not a wage, and nobody is paid it; it is what the take-home buys. The mean of $97,480 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Civil Engineers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $68,720 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $95,600 |
| Top tenth earn over | $129,390 |
| This salary | $95,600 |
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 | $71,885 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $76,085 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$3,908 |
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 | $89,631 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$5,398 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 97 |
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 civil engineers in Vermont earn under $95,600 and half over. The published range runs $68,720 at the tenth percentile to $129,390 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- In Vermont the take-home figure of $71,885, from $95,600, 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 65 of 453 occupations here.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $74,389 uses one figure for the whole of Vermont. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 453 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 65.
- Figures are distribution medians for civil engineers in Vermont, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $68,720 to $129,390; 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 Vermont is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $71,885 from $95,600. 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 65 of 453 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $74,389, worked from $95,600, 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 Vermont address, on work sitting at 65 of 453 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Most of these jobs pay within a close range — $68,720 at the tenth percentile, $129,390 at the ninetieth.
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 $74,389.
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 Vermont adds its own income tax on top — which is why $71,885 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 ($68,720 to $129,390) 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 $74,389 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 $71,885 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.