Conservation Scientists in Utah
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$60,792
after federal, FICA and Utah tax
Tax takes
$18,058
22.9% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$63,990
Utah costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Utah — 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
$78,850
Kept after tax
$60,792
Worth in national money
$63,990
State rank
11
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Utah is one of the better-paying states for conservation scientists. The middle earner takes $78,850, which ranks 11 of 51 states with published figures. That is about 8% above the national middle.
- Ordinary, locally speaking. Conservation scientists ranks 124 among 487 occupations Utah publishes pay for.
- Here is where Utah does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $78,850 you keep $60,792, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $63,990 would elsewhere. The average is higher, $80,840, because the best-paid pull it up.
- Utah ranks 11 of 51 states publishing a median for conservation scientists, at $78,850 — about 8% 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.
- Position 124 of 487 in Utah places conservation scientists in the middle of the state's wage distribution. Because within-state and cross-state rankings measure different things, this figure and the national one above should be read together rather than as a single verdict.
- After federal, FICA and Utah income tax, retained pay for conservation scientists on $78,850 is $60,792. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $63,990 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 $80,840 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 | $55,090 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $78,850 |
| Top tenth earn over | $104,000 |
| This salary | $78,850 |
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 Utah | $60,792 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $64,301 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$2,180 |
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 | $73,862 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$3,011 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 95 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Utah earn less than $78,850. The published range is $55,090 up to $104,000, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- One filer, no dependants, no pension contributions — that is the household behind Utah's $60,792, worked from $78,850. 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 124 of 487.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $63,990 uses one figure for the whole of Utah. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 487 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 124.
- Reported values are medians; for conservation scientists in Utah the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $55,090 to $104,000. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- The Utah take-home of $60,792, on $78,850 for work ranking 124 of 487 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 124 of 487 in the state.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $63,990, worked from $78,850, 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 Utah address, on work sitting at 124 of 487 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $55,090 and the top tenth $104,000, so most people doing this work in Utah sit within a fairly tight band.
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 $63,990.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Three of them are federal and one is not. After income tax, Social Security, Medicare and Utah's own levy, $60,792 remains.
Can I compare this job across every state?
Yes for this one. Pay is published in all 51 jurisdictions, so a state-to-state comparison here rests on the same survey everywhere rather than on a patchwork.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($55,090 to $104,000) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Utah rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Utah'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 $63,990 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 $60,792 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Utah 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.