Computer Programmers in Rhode Island
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$73,467
after federal, FICA and Rhode Island tax
Tax takes
$23,003
23.8% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$72,444
Rhode Island costs more than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Rhode Island — 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
$96,470
Kept after tax
$73,467
Worth in national money
$72,444
State rank
21
of 46 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Neither high nor low. Rhode Island is 21 of 46 states for computer programmers, with a middle wage of $96,470. What that is worth is the question the rest of this page answers.
- Within Rhode Island this is well-paid work. Of 452 occupations with published figures in the state, computer programmers ranks 96 — in the top quarter of everything people do there.
- No great distortion either way. Rhode Island costs about what the country costs, so from $96,470, take-home of $73,467 is worth roughly $72,444 in national money. The average comes to $105,300, above the middle, thanks to the top of the range.
- Rhode Island ranks 21 of 46 for computer programmers at $96,470. The nominal figure is unremarkable; the adjusted figures are where the state's actual position for this occupation is determined.
- Ranked against every occupation Rhode Island publishes a median for, computer programmers sits 96 of 452 — 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.
- Price parity in Rhode Island is near the national base, so for computer programmers, whose median is $96,470, the adjusted figure of $72,444 differs little from $73,467 retained after tax. The state's position for this occupation is therefore set by wage and tax rather than by living costs. At $105,300 the mean overshoots the median — the usual right-skewed shape.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Computer Programmers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $69,780 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $96,470 |
| Top tenth earn over | $144,480 |
| This salary | $96,470 |
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 Rhode Island | $73,467 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $76,697 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$6,482 |
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 | $91,879 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$8,954 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 101 |
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 computer programmers in Rhode Island earn under $96,470 and half over. The published range runs $69,780 at the tenth percentile to $144,480 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- One filer, no dependants, no pension contributions — that is the household behind Rhode Island's $73,467, worked from $96,470. 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 96 of 452.
- Two cautions on $72,444, the adjusted value of that $96,470 median. It levels out prices with a single number for all of Rhode Island. No actual address matches that. The wage figures and price figures are also from different years. Each is published on its own timetable. This work sits at 96 of 452 locally.
- Figures are distribution medians for computer programmers in Rhode Island, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $69,780 to $144,480; 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.
- The Rhode Island take-home of $73,467, on $96,470 for work ranking 96 of 452 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 96 of 452 in the state.
- This $72,444 adjusted figure, worked from $96,470, rests on a state-level price parity averaging over within-state dispersion larger than much of the between-state dispersion. Wage and price vintages differ by publication schedule. The result is directionally sound and not address-specific, for work at 96 of 452 in the state. The occupation ranks 96 of 452 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
No — it is the middle. Half of these workers earn more and half earn less. The average is $105,300, pulled upward by the top of the range, which is why the middle is the fairer number to plan against.
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
Because one job title covers very different work. The bottom tenth here earn $69,780 and the top tenth $144,480 — experience, employer and specialism separate them, and a single figure hides all three.
Does a bigger number here mean I am better off?
Not on its own. Prices in Rhode Island run above the national level, so the same dollars buy less here. Adjusted for that, this pay is worth $72,444 — the wage did not change, only what it covers.
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; Rhode Island then takes its own share, leaving $73,467.
Why is this job missing from some states?
The survey withholds small samples rather than publish an unreliable number. Pay appears for 46 states here, and a missing state means too few reports, not no jobs.
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 Rhode Island is $105,300. 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 ($69,780) and the ninetieth ($144,480) 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?
Rhode Island's regional price parity sits above the national average, so nominal wages overstate purchasing power. Deflating take-home by the state price level gives $72,444 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 $73,467 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Rhode Island 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.
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 46 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.