English Language and Literature Teachers, Postsecondary in Iowa
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$62,495
after federal, FICA and Iowa tax
Tax takes
$17,225
21.6% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$70,404
Iowa costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Iowa — 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
$79,720
Kept after tax
$62,495
Worth in national money
$70,404
State rank
19
of 49 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Middling, nationally. Iowa pays this job around $79,720 at the midpoint, 19 of 49 states. The interesting numbers on this page are the two below it.
- Within Iowa this is well-paid work. Of 493 occupations with published figures in the state, this job ranks 106 — in the top quarter of everything people do there.
- Here is where Iowa does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $79,720 you keep $62,495, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $70,404 would elsewhere. The average is lower, $78,230, so pay clusters nearer the top than usual.
- For english language and literature teachers, postsecondary the Iowa median is $79,720, ranking 19 of 49 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.
- Ranked against every occupation Iowa publishes a median for, english language and literature teachers, postsecondary sits 106 of 493 — 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.
- After federal, FICA and Iowa income tax, retained pay for english language and literature teachers, postsecondary on $79,720 is $62,495. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $70,404 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 $78,230 falls below the median, a left skew that is uncommon in wage data.
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Pay band: English Language and Literature Teachers, Postsecondary
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $48,960 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $79,720 |
| Top tenth earn over | $102,530 |
| This salary | $79,720 |
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 Iowa | $62,495 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $64,913 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$3,604 |
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 | $76,284 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$4,978 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 89 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $79,720 as a midpoint for Iowa, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $48,960 and the ninetieth is $102,530 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- In Iowa the take-home figure of $62,495, from $79,720, 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 106 of 493 occupations here.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $70,404 uses one figure for the whole of Iowa. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 493 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 106.
- The Iowa median of $79,720 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $48,960 to $102,530. Because that spread is typically larger than the interstate spread, a state median is a weak predictor for any individual worker in this occupation.
- Take-home for Iowa is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $62,495 from $79,720. 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 106 of 493 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $70,404, worked from $79,720, 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 Iowa address, on work sitting at 106 of 493 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
The range here is narrow. From $48,960 at the bottom tenth to $102,530 at the top, pay for this work clusters rather than spreads.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
More than the figure suggests. Prices in Iowa sit below the national level, so take-home here stretches like $70,404 would elsewhere. The wage is the same; the ground it covers is larger.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Four deductions, stacked. The federal layer and the two payroll taxes apply wherever you work; Iowa then takes its own share, leaving $62,495.
Why is this job missing from some states?
The survey withholds small samples rather than publish an unreliable number. Pay appears for 49 states here, and a missing state means too few reports, not no jobs.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($48,960 to $102,530) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Iowa rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Iowa'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 $70,404 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 $62,495 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Iowa 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 49 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.