Dispatchers, Except Police, Fire, and Ambulance in Virginia
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$40,770
after federal, FICA and Virginia tax
Tax takes
$9,940
19.6% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$40,467
Virginia costs more than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in 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
$50,710
Kept after tax
$40,770
Worth in national money
$40,467
State rank
23
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Middling, nationally. Virginia pays this job around $50,710 at the midpoint, 23 of 51 states. The interesting numbers on this page are the two below it.
- Middle of the local pack. Of 489 occupations Virginia reports figures for, this is number 305.
- No great distortion either way. Virginia costs about what the country costs, so from $50,710, take-home of $40,770 is worth roughly $40,467 in national money. The average comes to $54,230, above the middle, thanks to the top of the range.
- For dispatchers, except police, fire, and ambulance the Virginia median is $50,710, ranking 23 of 51 states reporting. Mid-band nominal positions are the ones most frequently reordered by the adjustments, because no large wage premium exists to absorb a state's tax or price level.
- In Virginia's occupational distribution, dispatchers, except police, fire, and ambulance sits at 305 of 489 — 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.
- Price parity in Virginia is near the national base, so for dispatchers, except police, fire, and ambulance, whose median is $50,710, the adjusted figure of $40,467 differs little from $40,770 retained after tax. The state's position for this occupation is therefore set by wage and tax rather than by living costs. At $54,230 the mean overshoots the median — the usual right-skewed shape.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Dispatchers, Except Police, Fire, and Ambulance
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $38,370 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $50,710 |
| Top tenth earn over | $71,910 |
| This salary | $50,710 |
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 Virginia | $40,770 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $42,925 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$3,706 |
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 | $48,028 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$4,482 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 101 |
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 dispatchers, except police, fire, and ambulance in Virginia earn under $50,710 and half over. The published range runs $38,370 at the tenth percentile to $71,910 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- In Virginia the take-home figure of $40,770, from $50,710, 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 305 of 489 occupations here.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $40,467 uses one figure for the whole of Virginia. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 489 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 305.
- Figures are distribution medians for dispatchers, except police, fire, and ambulance in Virginia, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $38,370 to $71,910; 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 Virginia is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $40,770 from $50,710. 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 305 of 489 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $40,467, worked from $50,710, 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 Virginia address, on work sitting at 305 of 489 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
It is the midpoint, not the average. The average here is $54,230, dragged up by high earners; the middle figure describes a typical worker better.
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Most of these jobs pay within a close range — $38,370 at the tenth percentile, $71,910 at the ninetieth.
Does a bigger number here mean I am better off?
The number and the value are different things. Virginia costs more than the national average, so this take-home stretches like $40,467 rather than its face figure.
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 Virginia adds its own income tax on top — which is why $40,770 of this wage survives to your account.
Can I compare this job across every state?
All 51 jurisdictions report this work, which makes the ranking a like-for-like one.
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 Virginia is $54,230. 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 ($38,370 to $71,910) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Virginia rather than a national figure.
How does the state price level affect real compensation?
Virginia's regional price parity sits above the national average, so nominal wages overstate purchasing power. Deflating take-home by the state price level gives $40,467 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 $40,770 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and 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.
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.