Couriers and Messengers in New York
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$31,813
after federal, FICA and New York tax
Tax takes
$6,927
17.9% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$29,558
New York costs more than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in New York — 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
$38,740
Kept after tax
$31,813
Worth in national money
$29,558
State rank
28
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Neither high nor low. New York is 28 of 51 states for couriers and messengers, with a middle wage of $38,740. What that is worth is the question the rest of this page answers.
- Within New York this is lower-paid work. Of 493 occupations the state publishes figures for, couriers and messengers ranks 460. That is the bottom quarter locally, whatever the national comparison says.
- The wage here flatters the reality. From $38,740 the take-home is $31,813. But New York costs more than the national average, so that money behaves more like $29,558 would elsewhere. Worth knowing before comparing offers across states. The average is higher, $43,750, because the best-paid pull it up.
- New York ranks 28 of 51 for couriers and messengers at $38,740. The nominal figure is unremarkable; the adjusted figures are where the state's actual position for this occupation is determined.
- Against every occupation New York reports, couriers and messengers ranks 460 of 493, 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.
- Retained pay after federal, FICA and New York income tax is $31,813 for couriers and messengers, from $38,740. The state's price level exceeds the national average, so the price-adjusted equivalent is $29,558. ⚠️ This is purchasing power and not a wage; cross-state offer comparisons that stop at the nominal figure systematically overvalue high-cost states. The mean of $43,750 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 | $35,190 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $38,740 |
| Top tenth earn over | $56,840 |
| This salary | $38,740 |
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 New York | $31,813 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $33,308 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$4,717 |
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 | $36,879 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$5,705 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 108 |
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 New York earn under $38,740 and half over. The published range runs $35,190 at the tenth percentile to $56,840 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 New York's $31,813, worked from $38,740. 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 460 of 493.
- Two cautions on $29,558, the adjusted value of that $38,740 median. It levels out prices with a single number for all of New York. 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 460 of 493 locally.
- Figures are distribution medians for couriers and messengers in New York, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $35,190 to $56,840; 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 New York take-home of $31,813, on $38,740 for work ranking 460 of 493 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 460 of 493 in the state.
- This $29,558 adjusted figure, worked from $38,740, 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 460 of 493 in the state. The occupation ranks 460 of 493 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
It is the midpoint, not the average. The average here is $43,750, 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 $35,190 and the top tenth $56,840, so most people doing this work in New York sit within a fairly tight band.
Does a bigger number here mean I am better off?
Not on its own. Prices in New York run above the national level, so the same dollars buy less here. Adjusted for that, this pay is worth $29,558 — the wage did not change, only what it covers.
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 New York's own levy, $31,813 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.
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 New York is $43,750. 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 ($35,190 to $56,840) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to New York rather than a national figure.
How does the state price level affect real compensation?
New York's regional price parity sits above the national average, so nominal wages overstate purchasing power. Deflating take-home by the state price level gives $29,558 in national-average terms. ⚠️ RPPs are an all-items index; housing parities vary far more widely than the headline figure.
What accounts for the gap between gross wage and take-home here?
Take-home of $31,813 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and New York 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.