Couriers and Messengers in Kentucky
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$29,871
after federal, FICA and Kentucky tax
Tax takes
$6,009
16.7% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$33,019
Kentucky costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Kentucky — 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
$35,880
Kept after tax
$29,871
Worth in national money
$33,019
State rank
44
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Kentucky is among the lower-paying states for couriers and messengers. The middle earner takes $35,880, ranking 44 of 51 states — about 8.47% below the national middle. Costs here are often lower too, which the figures further down account for.
- Measured against other jobs in Kentucky, this one sits low: 431 of 491 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- Here is where Kentucky does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $35,880 you keep $29,871, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $33,019 would elsewhere. The average is lower, $34,560, so pay clusters nearer the top than usual.
- Kentucky ranks 44 of 51 for couriers and messengers, with a median of $35,880 — about 8.47% below the national figure. A nominal shortfall is not by itself a real one: lower-paying states frequently carry lower tax and lower price levels, and the adjusted figures below are where that is settled rather than assumed.
- Couriers and messengers occupies position 431 of 491 in Kentucky'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.
- After federal, FICA and Kentucky income tax, retained pay for couriers and messengers on $35,880 is $29,871. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $33,019 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 $34,560 falls below the median, a left skew that is uncommon in wage data.
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Pay band: Couriers and Messengers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $25,580 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $35,880 |
| Top tenth earn over | $42,390 |
| This salary | $35,880 |
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 Kentucky | $29,871 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $31,010 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$1,108 |
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 | $34,463 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$1,340 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 90 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $35,880 as a midpoint for Kentucky, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $25,580 and the ninetieth is $42,390 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- In Kentucky the take-home figure of $29,871, from $35,880, assumes one filer, no dependants, and nothing paid into a pension before tax. Each of those lowers the bill, so treat it as the plain case. City and school-district income taxes are not included either, and in a few states those are real money. It ranks 431 of 491 occupations here.
- Two cautions on $33,019, the adjusted value of that $35,880 median. It levels out prices with a single number for all of Kentucky. No actual address matches that. The wage figures and price figures are also from different years. Each is published on its own timetable. This work sits at 431 of 491 locally.
- The Kentucky median of $35,880 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $25,580 to $42,390. Because that spread is typically larger than the interstate spread, a state median is a weak predictor for any individual worker in this occupation.
- Take-home for Kentucky is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $29,871 from $35,880. Each omitted item reduces taxable income, so the figure is a lower bound on retained pay for this household shape. Municipal and school-district income taxes are excluded, which understates the burden materially in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Maryland. The occupation ranks 431 of 491 locally.
- This $33,019 adjusted figure, worked from $35,880, rests on a state-level price parity averaging over within-state dispersion larger than much of the between-state dispersion. Wage and price vintages differ by publication schedule. The result is directionally sound and not address-specific, for work at 431 of 491 in the state. The occupation ranks 431 of 491 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
It is the midpoint, not the average. The average here is $34,560, dragged up by high earners; the middle figure describes a typical worker better.
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $25,580 and the top tenth $42,390, so most people doing this work in Kentucky 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 $33,019.
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; Kentucky then takes its own share, leaving $29,871.
Can I compare this job across every state?
All 51 jurisdictions report this work, which makes the ranking a like-for-like one.
How does the published median differ from the mean for this occupation?
The median is the midpoint of the distribution; the mean for this occupation in Kentucky is $34,560. Wage distributions are right-skewed, so the mean exceeds the median wherever a minority earn substantially more. BLS publishes both because substituting one for the other misstates a typical worker's pay.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($25,580 to $42,390) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Kentucky rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Kentucky'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 $33,019 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 $29,871 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Kentucky 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.