Clergy in Washington
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$65,694
after federal, FICA and Washington tax
Tax takes
$15,136
18.7% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$60,513
Washington costs more than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Washington — 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
$80,830
Kept after tax
$65,694
Worth in national money
$60,513
State rank
1
of 50 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Washington is one of the better-paying states for clergy. The middle earner takes $80,830, which ranks 1 of 50 states with published figures. That is about 32.92% above the national middle.
- Middle of the local pack. Of 493 occupations Washington reports figures for, this is number 185.
- The wage here flatters the reality. From $80,830 the take-home is $65,694. But Washington costs more than the national average, so that money behaves more like $60,513 would elsewhere. Worth knowing before comparing offers across states. The average is higher, $81,460, because the best-paid pull it up.
- Washington ranks 1 of 50 states publishing a median for clergy, at $80,830 — about 32.92% above the national median. A state's position on nominal pay is the figure wage tables report and the least informative of the three on this page, because it survives neither the tax adjustment nor the price adjustment intact for most occupations.
- In Washington's occupational distribution, clergy sits at 185 of 493 — neither quartile. This local position is what a resident compares against, and it is determined by the state's own labor market rather than by national patterns for this occupation.
- Retained pay after federal, FICA and Washington income tax is $65,694 for clergy, from $80,830. The state's price level exceeds the national average, so the price-adjusted equivalent is $60,513. ⚠️ 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 $81,460 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Clergy
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $45,630 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $80,830 |
| Top tenth earn over | $108,200 |
| This salary | $80,830 |
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 Washington | $65,694 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $65,694 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$7,091 |
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 | $80,830 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$9,795 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 109 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Washington earn less than $80,830. The published range is $45,630 up to $108,200, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- In Washington the take-home figure of $65,694, from $80,830, 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 185 of 493 occupations here.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $60,513 uses one figure for the whole of Washington. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 493 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 185.
- Reported values are medians; for clergy in Washington the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $45,630 to $108,200. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Take-home for Washington is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $65,694 from $80,830. 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 185 of 493 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $60,513, worked from $80,830, 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 Washington address, on work sitting at 185 of 493 locally.
Questions people ask
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
The label is broader than the work. From $45,630 at the bottom tenth to $108,200 at the top, the same title covers roles that share little beyond a name.
Does a bigger number here mean I am better off?
Not on its own. Prices in Washington run above the national level, so the same dollars buy less here. Adjusted for that, this pay is worth $60,513 — the wage did not change, only what it covers.
Is most of this wage taxed away?
Most of it arrives. $65,694 lands after tax, since there is no state income tax on wages here — though the federal floor is identical in every state.
Why is this job missing from some states?
The survey withholds small samples rather than publish an unreliable number. Pay appears for 50 states here, and a missing state means too few reports, not no jobs.
What drives the percentile dispersion in this occupation?
Dispersion between the tenth percentile ($45,630) and the ninetieth ($108,200) 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.
How does the state price level affect real compensation?
Washington's regional price parity sits above the national average, so nominal wages overstate purchasing power. Deflating take-home by the state price level gives $60,513 in national-average terms. ⚠️ RPPs are an all-items index; housing parities vary far more widely than the headline figure.
Why is the take-home ratio comparatively high in this state?
Washington levies no personal income tax on wages, so take-home of $65,694 reflects the federal layer and FICA alone. Federal income tax and FICA are unchanged; states without a wage income tax generally recover revenue through consumption and property bases instead.
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 50 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.