Couriers and Messengers in Oklahoma
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$32,194
after federal, FICA and Oklahoma tax
Tax takes
$6,716
17.3% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$36,465
Oklahoma costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Oklahoma — 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
$38,910
Kept after tax
$32,194
Worth in national money
$36,465
State rank
26
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Oklahoma sits in the middle of the pack for couriers and messengers. The median is $38,910, ranking 26 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 Oklahoma, this one sits low: 380 of 492 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- Oklahoma is cheaper than average, and that shows up here. From $38,910 the take-home is $32,194; adjusted for what things actually cost, it goes as far as $36,465 would nationally. The average lands at $38,720, below the middle of the range.
- Oklahoma occupies the middle band for couriers and messengers: a median of $38,910, ranking 26 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 380 of 492 in Oklahoma'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.
- Post-tax income for couriers and messengers in Oklahoma, on $38,910, is $32,194 — equivalent to $36,465 once regional price parity is applied. ⚠️ The adjustment uses a statewide index that describes no particular address; within-state price variation, concentrated in housing, routinely exceeds the difference between two states. At $38,720 the mean undershoots the median, an inversion of the usual skew.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Couriers and Messengers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $29,470 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $38,910 |
| Top tenth earn over | $44,170 |
| This salary | $38,910 |
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 Oklahoma | $32,194 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $33,444 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$2,049 |
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 | $37,354 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$2,478 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 88 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $38,910 as a midpoint for Oklahoma, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $29,470 and the ninetieth is $44,170 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- That $32,194 take-home in Oklahoma comes from $38,910. It is the no-frills case: single filer, standard deduction, nothing set aside before tax. Real circumstances almost always reduce the tax. City and school-district taxes are not counted at all. Locally the work ranks 380 of 492.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $36,465 uses one figure for the whole of Oklahoma. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 492 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 380.
- The Oklahoma median of $38,910 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $29,470 to $44,170. Because that spread is typically larger than the interstate spread, a state median is a weak predictor for any individual worker in this occupation.
- Retained pay of $32,194, from $38,910, assumes a single Oklahoma filer with the standard deduction and no elective deferrals. Pre-tax retirement or HSA contributions, dependants and itemized deductions all reduce it further; local income taxes, excluded here, would increase it in the states that levy them. This occupation ranks 380 of 492 locally, and the state ranks 26 of 51 for it.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $36,465, worked from $38,910, deflates by a statewide parity that conceals substantial intra-state variation, concentrated in housing — so it supports comparison between states rather than the pricing of a move to a particular Oklahoma address, on work sitting at 380 of 492 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Most of these jobs pay within a close range — $29,470 at the tenth percentile, $44,170 at the ninetieth.
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 $36,465.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Into four separate taxes, not one. Federal income tax, Social Security and Medicare apply everywhere, and Oklahoma adds its own income tax on top — which is why $32,194 of this wage survives to your account.
Can I compare this job across every state?
This occupation is published everywhere — all 51 of them — so comparing states measures real differences rather than gaps in the data.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($29,470 to $44,170) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Oklahoma rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Oklahoma'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 $36,465 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 $32,194 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Oklahoma 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.