Earth Drillers, Except Oil and Gas in West Virginia
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$45,129
after federal, FICA and West Virginia tax
Tax takes
$10,412
18.7% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$50,270
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
$55,540
Kept after tax
$45,129
Worth in national money
$50,270
State rank
38
of 48 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Pay for earth drillers, except oil and gas is on the low side in West Virginia. The middle earner gets $55,540. That is 38 of 48 states, and about 7.73% under the national figure. Whether that matters depends on what things cost here.
- Middle of the local pack. Of 473 occupations West Virginia reports figures for, this is number 199.
- Here is where West Virginia does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $55,540 you keep $45,129, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $50,270 would elsewhere. The average is lower, $55,270, so pay clusters nearer the top than usual.
- For earth drillers, except oil and gas, West Virginia sits in the lower band at $55,540, ranking 38 of 48 and trailing the national median by about 7.73%. Nominal rankings routinely invert once tax and regional price level are applied, so this position should not be read as the conclusion.
- In West Virginia's occupational distribution, earth drillers, except oil and gas sits at 199 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.
- After federal, FICA and West Virginia income tax, retained pay for earth drillers, except oil and gas on $55,540 is $45,129. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $50,270 in national-average terms. ⚠️ That figure is purchasing power, not a wage, and nobody is paid it; it is what the take-home buys. The mean of $55,270 falls below the median, a left skew that is uncommon in wage data.
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Pay band: Earth Drillers, Except Oil and Gas
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $43,380 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $55,540 |
| Top tenth earn over | $62,400 |
| This salary | $55,540 |
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 West Virginia | $45,129 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $46,806 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$2,103 |
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 | $53,452 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$2,543 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 90 |
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 earth drillers, except oil and gas in West Virginia earn under $55,540 and half over. The published range runs $43,380 at the tenth percentile to $62,400 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- In West Virginia the take-home figure of $45,129, from $55,540, 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 199 of 473 occupations here.
- Two cautions on $50,270, the adjusted value of that $55,540 median. It levels out prices with a single number for all of West Virginia. 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 199 of 473 locally.
- Figures are distribution medians for earth drillers, except oil and gas in West Virginia, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $43,380 to $62,400; 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 West Virginia is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $45,129 from $55,540. 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 199 of 473 locally.
- This $50,270 adjusted figure, worked from $55,540, 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 199 of 473 in the state. The occupation ranks 199 of 473 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Most of these jobs pay within a close range — $43,380 at the tenth percentile, $62,400 at the ninetieth.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
Further than the number implies. West Virginia is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $50,270 in national terms.
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 West Virginia adds its own income tax on top — which is why $45,129 of this wage survives to your account.
Why is this job missing from some states?
Because the survey suppresses a figure when too few employers report it. This occupation has published pay in 48 states — the rest are withheld to protect confidentiality, which is not the same as nobody doing the work there.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($43,380 to $62,400) 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 $50,270 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 $45,129 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 48 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.