Conservation Scientists in Louisiana
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$63,224
after federal, FICA and Louisiana tax
Tax takes
$16,966
21.2% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$71,565
Louisiana costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Louisiana — 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
$80,190
Kept after tax
$63,224
Worth in national money
$71,565
State rank
7
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Pay for conservation scientists is strong here. Louisiana's middle earner gets $80,190, putting the state 7 of 51 — about 9.83% ahead of the national figure.
- Locally, this pays well. Among 484 occupations Louisiana reports, conservation scientists comes in at 88 — comfortably in the upper quarter.
- Here is where Louisiana does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $80,190 you keep $63,224, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $71,565 would elsewhere. The average is higher, $81,950, because the best-paid pull it up.
- For conservation scientists, Louisiana sits in the upper band nationally: a median of $80,190, ranking 7 of 51 and running about 9.83% above the national midpoint. Nominal advantage of this size is usually, though not always, large enough to survive the state's own tax and price levels.
- Conservation scientists ranks 88 of 484 occupations by median in Louisiana, 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.
- After federal, FICA and Louisiana income tax, retained pay for conservation scientists on $80,190 is $63,224. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $71,565 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 $81,950 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Conservation Scientists
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $29,520 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $80,190 |
| Top tenth earn over | $136,990 |
| This salary | $80,190 |
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 Louisiana | $63,224 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $65,244 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$4,425 |
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 | $77,319 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$6,112 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 88 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Louisiana earn less than $80,190. The published range is $29,520 up to $136,990, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- That $63,224 take-home in Louisiana comes from $80,190. It is the no-frills case: single filer, standard deduction, nothing set aside before tax. Real circumstances almost always reduce the tax. City and school-district taxes are not counted at all. Locally the work ranks 88 of 484.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $71,565 uses one figure for the whole of Louisiana. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 484 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 88.
- Reported values are medians; for conservation scientists in Louisiana the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $29,520 to $136,990. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Retained pay of $63,224, from $80,190, assumes a single Louisiana filer with the standard deduction and no elective deferrals. Pre-tax retirement or HSA contributions, dependants and itemized deductions all reduce it further; local income taxes, excluded here, would increase it in the states that levy them. This occupation ranks 88 of 484 locally, and the state ranks 7 of 51 for it.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $71,565, worked from $80,190, 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 Louisiana address, on work sitting at 88 of 484 locally.
Questions people ask
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
The label is broader than the work. From $29,520 at the bottom tenth to $136,990 at the top, the same title covers roles that share little beyond a name.
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 $71,565.
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 Louisiana adds its own income tax on top — which is why $63,224 of this wage survives to your account.
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 ($29,520) and the ninetieth ($136,990) 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?
Louisiana'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 $71,565 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 $63,224 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Louisiana 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.