Crane and Tower Operators in West Virginia
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$44,588
after federal, FICA and West Virginia tax
Tax takes
$10,242
18.7% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$49,668
West Virginia costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in West Virginia — 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
$54,830
Kept after tax
$44,588
Worth in national money
$49,668
State rank
47
of 50 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- West Virginia is among the lower-paying states for crane and tower operators. The middle earner takes $54,830, ranking 47 of 50 states — about 19.46% below the national middle. Costs here are often lower too, which the figures further down account for.
- Middle of the local pack. Of 473 occupations West Virginia reports figures for, this is number 207.
- West Virginia is cheaper than average, and that shows up here. From $54,830 the take-home is $44,588; adjusted for what things actually cost, it goes as far as $49,668 would nationally. The average lands at $54,450, below the middle of the range.
- West Virginia ranks 47 of 50 for crane and tower operators, with a median of $54,830 — about 19.46% 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.
- In West Virginia's occupational distribution, crane and tower operators sits at 207 of 473 — neither quartile. This local position is what a resident compares against, and it is determined by the state's own labor market rather than by national patterns for this occupation.
- Post-tax income for crane and tower operators in West Virginia, on $54,830, is $44,588 — equivalent to $49,668 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 $54,450 the mean undershoots the median, an inversion of the usual skew.
Compare this career across states
Choose your filing status and local taxes, compare pay, and keep a shortlist.Compare wage and personal-pay outcomes by state, with selected resident local taxes and saved career choices.
Pay band: Crane and Tower Operators
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $36,260 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $54,830 |
| Top tenth earn over | $72,090 |
| This salary | $54,830 |
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 West Virginia | $44,588 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $46,236 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$2,088 |
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 | $52,779 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$2,525 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 90 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in West Virginia earn less than $54,830. The published range is $36,260 up to $72,090, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- One filer, no dependants, no pension contributions — that is the household behind West Virginia's $44,588, worked from $54,830. 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 207 of 473.
- One number stands for prices across all of West Virginia, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $49,668, the adjusted value of that $54,830 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 207 of 473 in the state.
- Reported values are medians; for crane and tower operators in West Virginia the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $36,260 to $72,090. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- The West Virginia take-home of $44,588, on $54,830 for work ranking 207 of 473 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 207 of 473 in the state.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for West Virginia, so $49,668 — the adjusted value of that $54,830 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 207 of 473 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
The range here is narrow. From $36,260 at the bottom tenth to $72,090 at the top, pay for this work clusters rather than spreads.
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 $49,668.
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; West Virginia then takes its own share, leaving $44,588.
Why is this job missing from some states?
A blank is a suppression, not a zero. 50 states have a published figure for this work; the others had too few responses to release one.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($36,260 to $72,090) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to West Virginia rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
West Virginia'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 $49,668 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 $44,588 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and West Virginia 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.
Why does this occupation lack published estimates in every state?
BLS suppresses estimates failing disclosure or reliability criteria. This occupation has published state-level estimates in 50 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.