Database Administrators in District of Columbia
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$85,115
after federal, FICA and District of Columbia tax
Tax takes
$33,425
28.2% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$76,816
District of Columbia costs more than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in District of Columbia — 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
$118,540
Kept after tax
$85,115
Worth in national money
$76,816
State rank
5
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- District of Columbia is one of the better-paying states for database administrators. The middle earner takes $118,540, which ranks 5 of 51 states with published figures. That is about 13.31% above the national middle.
- Within District of Columbia this is well-paid work. Of 390 occupations with published figures in the state, database administrators ranks 60 — in the top quarter of everything people do there.
- The wage here flatters the reality. From $118,540 the take-home is $85,115. But District of Columbia costs more than the national average, so that money behaves more like $76,816 would elsewhere. Worth knowing before comparing offers across states. The average is lower, $115,790, so pay clusters nearer the top than usual.
- District of Columbia ranks 5 of 51 states publishing a median for database administrators, at $118,540 — about 13.31% above the national median. A state's position on nominal pay is the figure wage tables report and the least informative of the three on this page, because it survives neither the tax adjustment nor the price adjustment intact for most occupations.
- Ranked against every occupation District of Columbia publishes a median for, database administrators sits 60 of 390 — the upper quartile of the state's wage distribution. National standing and within-state standing are separate questions, and a job can occupy very different positions on each.
- Retained pay after federal, FICA and District of Columbia income tax is $85,115 for database administrators, from $118,540. The state's price level exceeds the national average, so the price-adjusted equivalent is $76,816. ⚠️ 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 $115,790 falls below the median, a left skew that is uncommon in wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Database Administrators
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $74,360 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $118,540 |
| Top tenth earn over | $154,750 |
| This salary | $118,540 |
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 District of Columbia | $85,115 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $92,223 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$18,088 |
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 | $108,437 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$24,985 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 111 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $118,540 as a midpoint for District of Columbia, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $74,360 and the ninetieth is $154,750 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- That $85,115 take-home in District of Columbia comes from $118,540. 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 60 of 390.
- Two cautions on $76,816, the adjusted value of that $118,540 median. It levels out prices with a single number for all of District of Columbia. 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 60 of 390 locally.
- The District of Columbia median of $118,540 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $74,360 to $154,750. 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 $85,115, from $118,540, assumes a single District of Columbia 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 60 of 390 locally, and the state ranks 5 of 51 for it.
- This $76,816 adjusted figure, worked from $118,540, 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 60 of 390 in the state. The occupation ranks 60 of 390 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $74,360 and the top tenth $154,750, so most people doing this work in District of Columbia sit within a fairly tight band.
Does a bigger number here mean I am better off?
The number and the value are different things. District of Columbia costs more than the national average, so this take-home stretches like $76,816 rather than its face figure.
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 District of Columbia's own levy, $85,115 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 ($74,360 to $154,750) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to District of Columbia rather than a national figure.
How does the state price level affect real compensation?
District of Columbia's regional price parity sits above the national average, so nominal wages overstate purchasing power. Deflating take-home by the state price level gives $76,816 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 $85,115 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and District of Columbia 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.