Construction Laborers in Alabama
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$30,262
after federal, FICA and Alabama tax
Tax takes
$6,638
18.0% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$33,635
Alabama costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Alabama — 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
$36,900
Kept after tax
$30,262
Worth in national money
$33,635
State rank
51
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Pay for construction laborers is on the low side in Alabama. The middle earner gets $36,900. That is 51 of 51 states, and about 21.69% under the national figure. Whether that matters depends on what things cost here.
- Measured against other jobs in Alabama, this one sits low: 388 of 482 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- Alabama is cheaper than average, and that shows up here. From $36,900 the take-home is $30,262; adjusted for what things actually cost, it goes as far as $33,635 would nationally. The average comes to $37,910, above the middle, thanks to the top of the range.
- For construction laborers, Alabama sits in the lower band at $36,900, ranking 51 of 51 and trailing the national median by about 21.69%. Nominal rankings routinely invert once tax and regional price level are applied, so this position should not be read as the conclusion.
- Construction laborers occupies position 388 of 482 in Alabama's occupational wage distribution, in the bottom quartile. National ranking and local ranking answer different questions and frequently disagree; this is the one a resident experiences.
- Post-tax income for construction laborers in Alabama, on $36,900, is $30,262 — equivalent to $33,635 once regional price parity is applied. ⚠️ The adjustment uses a statewide index that describes no particular address; within-state price variation, concentrated in housing, routinely exceeds the difference between two states. At $37,910 the mean overshoots the median — the usual right-skewed shape.
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Pay band: Construction Laborers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $23,980 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $36,900 |
| Top tenth earn over | $49,740 |
| This salary | $36,900 |
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 Alabama | $30,262 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $31,829 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$881 |
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 | $34,949 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$1,065 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 90 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $36,900 as a midpoint for Alabama, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $23,980 and the ninetieth is $49,740 — 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 Alabama's $30,262, worked from $36,900. 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 388 of 482.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $33,635 uses one figure for the whole of Alabama. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 482 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 388.
- The Alabama median of $36,900 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $23,980 to $49,740. 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 Alabama take-home of $30,262, on $36,900 for work ranking 388 of 482 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 388 of 482 in the state.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $33,635, worked from $36,900, 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 Alabama address, on work sitting at 388 of 482 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
The range here is narrow. From $23,980 at the bottom tenth to $49,740 at the top, pay for this work clusters rather than spreads.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
More than the figure suggests. Prices in Alabama sit below the national level, so take-home here stretches like $33,635 would elsewhere. The wage is the same; the ground it covers is larger.
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 Alabama's own levy, $30,262 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 ($23,980 to $49,740) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Alabama rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Alabama'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 $33,635 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 $30,262 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Alabama 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.