Earth Drillers, Except Oil and Gas in Oregon
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$49,213
after federal, FICA and Oregon tax
Tax takes
$15,707
24.2% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$46,994
Oregon costs more than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Oregon — 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
$64,920
Kept after tax
$49,213
Worth in national money
$46,994
State rank
11
of 48 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- This is a good state for the work. Oregon pays earth drillers, except oil and gas a middle wage of $64,920, ranking 11 of 48 states and sitting about 7.86% above the national middle.
- Middle of the local pack. Of 489 occupations Oregon reports figures for, this is number 238.
- The wage here flatters the reality. From $64,920 the take-home is $49,213. But Oregon costs more than the national average, so that money behaves more like $46,994 would elsewhere. Worth knowing before comparing offers across states. The average is higher, $67,020, because the best-paid pull it up.
- Oregon's median for earth drillers, except oil and gas is $64,920, about 7.86% above the national figure and 11 of 48 states reporting. Whether that premium reaches the worker depends on the two adjustments below, which is the part a wage table cannot tell you.
- In Oregon's occupational distribution, earth drillers, except oil and gas sits at 238 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.
- Retained pay after federal, FICA and Oregon income tax is $49,213 for earth drillers, except oil and gas, from $64,920. The state's price level exceeds the national average, so the price-adjusted equivalent is $46,994. ⚠️ 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 $67,020 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Earth Drillers, Except Oil and Gas
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $45,970 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $64,920 |
| Top tenth earn over | $81,710 |
| This salary | $64,920 |
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 Oregon | $49,213 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $54,343 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$8,929 |
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 | $58,535 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$10,798 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 105 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Oregon earn less than $64,920. The published range is $45,970 up to $81,710, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- In Oregon the take-home figure of $49,213, from $64,920, 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 238 of 489 occupations here.
- One number stands for prices across all of Oregon, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $46,994, the adjusted value of that $64,920 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 238 of 489 in the state.
- Reported values are medians; for earth drillers, except oil and gas in Oregon the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $45,970 to $81,710. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Take-home for Oregon is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $49,213 from $64,920. 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 238 of 489 locally.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Oregon, so $46,994 — the adjusted value of that $64,920 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 238 of 489 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
Half earn more than this and half earn less. The average sits at $67,020 because a long tail of high pay lifts it, so the two answer different questions.
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $45,970 and the top tenth $81,710, so most people doing this work in Oregon sit within a fairly tight band.
Does a bigger number here mean I am better off?
Not on its own. Prices in Oregon run above the national level, so the same dollars buy less here. Adjusted for that, this pay is worth $46,994 — the wage did not change, only what it covers.
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 Oregon adds its own income tax on top — which is why $49,213 of this wage survives to your account.
Why is this job missing from some states?
A blank is a suppression, not a zero. 48 states have a published figure for this work; the others had too few responses to release 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 Oregon is $67,020. 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 ($45,970 to $81,710) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Oregon rather than a national figure.
How does the state price level affect real compensation?
Oregon's regional price parity sits above the national average, so nominal wages overstate purchasing power. Deflating take-home by the state price level gives $46,994 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 $49,213 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Oregon 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 48 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.