Couriers and Messengers in Kansas
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$31,158
after federal, FICA and Kansas tax
Tax takes
$7,212
18.8% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$34,633
Kansas costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Kansas — 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
$38,370
Kept after tax
$31,158
Worth in national money
$34,633
State rank
32
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Neither high nor low. Kansas is 32 of 51 states for couriers and messengers, with a middle wage of $38,370. What that is worth is the question the rest of this page answers.
- Within Kansas this is lower-paid work. Of 488 occupations the state publishes figures for, couriers and messengers ranks 407. That is the bottom quarter locally, whatever the national comparison says.
- Here is where Kansas does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $38,370 you keep $31,158, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $34,633 would elsewhere. The average is higher, $38,830, because the best-paid pull it up.
- Kansas ranks 32 of 51 for couriers and messengers at $38,370. The nominal figure is unremarkable; the adjusted figures are where the state's actual position for this occupation is determined.
- Against every occupation Kansas reports, couriers and messengers ranks 407 of 488, in the lowest quartile of the state's distribution. That position is set by the local labor market and is independent of how the state compares nationally for this work.
- After federal, FICA and Kansas income tax, retained pay for couriers and messengers on $38,370 is $31,158. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $34,633 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 $38,830 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Couriers and Messengers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $28,210 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $38,370 |
| Top tenth earn over | $48,000 |
| This salary | $38,370 |
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 Kansas | $31,158 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $33,010 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$663 |
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 | $36,064 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$802 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 90 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $38,370 as a midpoint for Kansas, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $28,210 and the ninetieth is $48,000 — 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 Kansas's $31,158, worked from $38,370. 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 407 of 488.
- One number stands for prices across all of Kansas, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $34,633, the adjusted value of that $38,370 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 407 of 488 in the state.
- The Kansas median of $38,370 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $28,210 to $48,000. 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 Kansas take-home of $31,158, on $38,370 for work ranking 407 of 488 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 407 of 488 in the state.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Kansas, so $34,633 — the adjusted value of that $38,370 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 407 of 488 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Most of these jobs pay within a close range — $28,210 at the tenth percentile, $48,000 at the ninetieth.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
Further than the number implies. Kansas is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $34,633 in national terms.
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; Kansas then takes its own share, leaving $31,158.
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 ($28,210 to $48,000) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Kansas rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Kansas'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 $34,633 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 $31,158 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Kansas 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.