Engineers, All Other in West Virginia
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$87,854
after federal, FICA and West Virginia tax
Tax takes
$30,946
26.0% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$97,863
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
$118,800
Kept after tax
$87,854
Worth in national money
$97,863
State rank
23
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- West Virginia sits in the middle of the pack for engineers, all other. The median is $118,800, ranking 23 of 51 states with figures. Close enough to the national middle that where you live matters more than the headline suggests.
- Within West Virginia this is well-paid work. Of 473 occupations with published figures in the state, engineers, all other ranks 19 — in the top quarter of everything people do there.
- Cheaper living works in this state's favor. From $118,800 you keep $87,854 after tax, and local prices stretch that to the equivalent of $97,863 at national prices. Here the average runs under the middle, at $115,630.
- West Virginia occupies the middle band for engineers, all other: a median of $118,800, ranking 23 of 51. Where nominal pay is close to the national figure, the tax and price adjustments below carry proportionally more weight in determining the real outcome.
- Ranked against every occupation West Virginia publishes a median for, engineers, all other sits 19 of 473 — 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 in West Virginia is $87,854 after the full tax stack, from $118,800. Because the state's price level runs below the national average, the price-adjusted equivalent is $97,863 — a real-terms figure describing purchasing power rather than compensation, and not a number that appears on any pay stub. Mean pay of $115,630 sits under the median, so the lower tail is the longer one.
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: Engineers, All Other
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $65,710 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $118,800 |
| Top tenth earn over | $169,500 |
| This salary | $118,800 |
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 | $87,854 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $92,406 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$2,771 |
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 | $112,330 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$3,852 |
| 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 engineers, all other in West Virginia earn under $118,800 and half over. The published range runs $65,710 at the tenth percentile to $169,500 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- That $87,854 take-home in West Virginia comes from $118,800. 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 19 of 473.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $97,863 uses one figure for the whole of West Virginia. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 473 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 19.
- Figures are distribution medians for engineers, all other in West Virginia, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $65,710 to $169,500; 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.
- Retained pay of $87,854, from $118,800, assumes a single West Virginia 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 19 of 473 locally, and the state ranks 23 of 51 for it.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $97,863, worked from $118,800, 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 West Virginia address, on work sitting at 19 of 473 locally.
Questions people ask
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
Because one job title covers very different work. The bottom tenth here earn $65,710 and the top tenth $169,500 — experience, employer and specialism separate them, and a single figure hides all three.
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 $97,863 in national terms.
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 West Virginia's own levy, $87,854 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 drives the percentile dispersion in this occupation?
Dispersion between the tenth percentile ($65,710) and the ninetieth ($169,500) exceeds the family median dispersion. SOC codes aggregate roles differing in seniority, industry and specialisation, and BLS does not disaggregate below the detailed occupation level, so within-title variance is not separable from the published series.
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 $97,863 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 $87,854 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.
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.