Couriers and Messengers in Missouri
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$34,444
after federal, FICA and Missouri tax
Tax takes
$6,966
16.8% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$37,536
Missouri costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Missouri — 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
$41,410
Kept after tax
$34,444
Worth in national money
$37,536
State rank
13
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- This is a good state for the work. Missouri pays couriers and messengers a middle wage of $41,410, ranking 13 of 51 states and sitting about 5.64% above the national middle.
- Against 488 occupations Missouri publishes, couriers and messengers lands at 388. That is the lower quarter. That is the comparison people actually feel, more than any national table.
- Cheaper living works in this state's favor. From $41,410 you keep $34,444 after tax, and local prices stretch that to the equivalent of $37,536 at national prices. Here the average runs under the middle, at $40,990.
- Missouri's median for couriers and messengers is $41,410, about 5.64% above the national figure and 13 of 51 states reporting. Whether that premium reaches the worker depends on the two adjustments below, which is the part a wage table cannot tell you.
- Within Missouri, this work ranks 388 of 488 occupations by median pay, in the bottom quartile. The within-state position is the more salient one for anyone weighing this job against alternatives available to them locally.
- Retained pay in Missouri is $34,444 after the full tax stack, from $41,410. Because the state's price level runs below the national average, the price-adjusted equivalent is $37,536 — a real-terms figure describing purchasing power rather than compensation, and not a number that appears on any pay stub. Mean pay of $40,990 sits under the median, so the lower tail is the longer one.
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Pay band: Couriers and Messengers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $33,560 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $41,410 |
| Top tenth earn over | $47,950 |
| This salary | $41,410 |
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 Missouri | $34,444 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $35,453 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$1,053 |
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 | $40,154 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$1,273 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 92 |
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 Missouri earn under $41,410 and half over. The published range runs $33,560 at the tenth percentile to $47,950 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- In Missouri the take-home figure of $34,444, from $41,410, 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 388 of 488 occupations here.
- One number stands for prices across all of Missouri, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $37,536, the adjusted value of that $41,410 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 388 of 488 in the state.
- Figures are distribution medians for couriers and messengers in Missouri, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $33,560 to $47,950; 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.
- Take-home for Missouri is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $34,444 from $41,410. 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 388 of 488 locally.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Missouri, so $37,536 — the adjusted value of that $41,410 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 388 of 488 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Most of these jobs pay within a close range — $33,560 at the tenth percentile, $47,950 at the ninetieth.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
Further than the number implies. Missouri is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $37,536 in national terms.
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 Missouri's own levy, $34,444 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 ($33,560 to $47,950) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Missouri rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Missouri'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 $37,536 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 $34,444 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Missouri 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.