Couriers and Messengers in Georgia
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$32,471
after federal, FICA and Georgia tax
Tax takes
$6,929
17.6% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$33,579
Georgia costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Georgia — 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
$39,400
Kept after tax
$32,471
Worth in national money
$33,579
State rank
20
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Georgia sits in the middle of the pack for couriers and messengers. The median is $39,400, ranking 20 of 51 states with figures. Close enough to the national middle that where you live matters more than the headline suggests.
- Measured against other jobs in Georgia, this one sits low: 404 of 492 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- Cheaper living works in this state's favor. From $39,400 you keep $32,471 after tax, and local prices stretch that to the equivalent of $33,579 at national prices. Averages run higher here, $39,780, since top earners drag the number up.
- Georgia occupies the middle band for couriers and messengers: a median of $39,400, ranking 20 of 51. Where nominal pay is close to the national figure, the tax and price adjustments below carry proportionally more weight in determining the real outcome.
- Couriers and messengers occupies position 404 of 492 in Georgia'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.
- Retained pay in Georgia is $32,471 after the full tax stack, from $39,400. Because the state's price level runs below the national average, the price-adjusted equivalent is $33,579 — a real-terms figure describing purchasing power rather than compensation, and not a number that appears on any pay stub. Mean pay of $39,780 exceeds the median, so the upper tail is doing the work.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Couriers and Messengers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $29,340 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $39,400 |
| Top tenth earn over | $47,900 |
| This salary | $39,400 |
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 Georgia | $32,471 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $33,838 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$1,243 |
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 | $37,698 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$1,503 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 97 |
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 couriers and messengers in Georgia earn under $39,400 and half over. The published range runs $29,340 at the tenth percentile to $47,900 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 Georgia's $32,471, worked from $39,400. 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 404 of 492.
- One number stands for prices across all of Georgia, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $33,579, the adjusted value of that $39,400 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 404 of 492 in the state.
- Figures are distribution medians for couriers and messengers in Georgia, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $29,340 to $47,900; 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 Georgia take-home of $32,471, on $39,400 for work ranking 404 of 492 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 404 of 492 in the state.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Georgia, so $33,579 — the adjusted value of that $39,400 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 404 of 492 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $29,340 and the top tenth $47,900, so most people doing this work in Georgia 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 $33,579.
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; Georgia then takes its own share, leaving $32,471.
Can I compare this job across every state?
All 51 jurisdictions report this work, which makes the ranking a like-for-like one.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($29,340 to $47,900) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Georgia rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Georgia'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 $33,579 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 $32,471 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Georgia 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.