Computer Network Architects in District of Columbia
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$96,630
after federal, FICA and District of Columbia tax
Tax takes
$41,040
29.8% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$87,208
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
$137,670
Kept after tax
$96,630
Worth in national money
$87,208
State rank
13
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- District of Columbia is one of the better-paying states for computer network architects. The middle earner takes $137,670, which ranks 13 of 51 states with published figures. That is about 2.7% above the national middle.
- Locally, this pays well. Among 390 occupations District of Columbia reports, computer network architects comes in at 32 — comfortably in the upper quarter.
- The wage here flatters the reality. From $137,670 the take-home is $96,630. But District of Columbia costs more than the national average, so that money behaves more like $87,208 would elsewhere. Worth knowing before comparing offers across states. The average is higher, $145,960, because the best-paid pull it up.
- District of Columbia ranks 13 of 51 states publishing a median for computer network architects, at $137,670 — about 2.7% 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.
- Computer network architects ranks 32 of 390 occupations by median in District of Columbia, in the top quartile. Within-state position is largely independent of national position, so this holds regardless of how the state compares to others for the same work.
- Retained pay after federal, FICA and District of Columbia income tax is $96,630 for computer network architects, from $137,670. The state's price level exceeds the national average, so the price-adjusted equivalent is $87,208. ⚠️ 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 $145,960 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Computer Network Architects
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $102,450 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $137,670 |
| Top tenth earn over | $205,420 |
| This salary | $137,670 |
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 | $96,630 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $105,363 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$21,218 |
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 | $124,892 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$29,760 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 111 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $137,670 as a midpoint for District of Columbia, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $102,450 and the ninetieth is $205,420 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- One filer, no dependants, no pension contributions — that is the household behind District of Columbia's $96,630, worked from $137,670. That is on purpose. It lets states be compared with each other, not with each other's family circumstances. Local city taxes are left out. Locally this work ranks 32 of 390.
- One number stands for prices across all of District of Columbia, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $87,208, the adjusted value of that $137,670 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 32 of 390 in the state.
- The District of Columbia median of $137,670 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $102,450 to $205,420. Because that spread is typically larger than the interstate spread, a state median is a weak predictor for any individual worker in this occupation.
- The District of Columbia take-home of $96,630, on $137,670 for work ranking 32 of 390 locally, models the simplest household deliberately: holding it constant is what makes the interstate comparison meaningful. It also means the absolute figure overstates liability for most real filers, and municipal income taxes are outside the model entirely. The occupation ranks 32 of 390 in the state.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for District of Columbia, so $87,208 — the adjusted value of that $137,670 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 32 of 390 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
Half earn more than this and half earn less. The average sits at $145,960 because a long tail of high pay lifts it, so the two answer different questions.
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
The label is broader than the work. From $102,450 at the bottom tenth to $205,420 at the top, the same title covers roles that share little beyond a name.
Does a bigger number here mean I am better off?
A larger wage in a dearer place is not automatically more. Adjusted for local prices, this pay behaves like $87,208 of national purchasing power.
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 $96,630 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.
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 $145,960. 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 drives the percentile dispersion in this occupation?
Dispersion between the tenth percentile ($102,450) and the ninetieth ($205,420) 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?
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 $87,208 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 $96,630 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.