Entertainment and Recreation Managers, Except Gambling in Iowa
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$54,909
after federal, FICA and Iowa tax
Tax takes
$13,411
19.6% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$61,857
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
$68,320
Kept after tax
$54,909
Worth in national money
$61,857
State rank
38
of 47 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Iowa is among the lower-paying states for this job. The middle earner takes $68,320, ranking 38 of 47 states — about 14.08% below the national middle. Costs here are often lower too, which the figures further down account for.
- Middle of the local pack. Of 493 occupations Iowa reports figures for, this is number 156.
- Here is where Iowa does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $68,320 you keep $54,909, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $61,857 would elsewhere. The average is higher, $75,270, because the best-paid pull it up.
- Iowa ranks 38 of 47 for entertainment and recreation managers, except gambling, with a median of $68,320 — about 14.08% below the national figure. A nominal shortfall is not by itself a real one: lower-paying states frequently carry lower tax and lower price levels, and the adjusted figures below are where that is settled rather than assumed.
- In Iowa's occupational distribution, entertainment and recreation managers, except gambling sits at 156 of 493 — 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 Iowa income tax, retained pay for entertainment and recreation managers, except gambling on $68,320 is $54,909. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $61,857 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 $75,270 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
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Pay band: Entertainment and Recreation Managers, Except Gambling
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $41,690 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $68,320 |
| Top tenth earn over | $110,010 |
| This salary | $68,320 |
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 | $54,909 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $56,893 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$3,310 |
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 | $65,624 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$4,572 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 89 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Iowa earn less than $68,320. The published range is $41,690 up to $110,010, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- That $54,909 take-home in Iowa comes from $68,320. 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 156 of 493.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $61,857 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 156.
- Reported values are medians; for entertainment and recreation managers, except gambling in Iowa the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $41,690 to $110,010. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Retained pay of $54,909, from $68,320, assumes a single Iowa 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 156 of 493 locally, and the state ranks 38 of 47 for it.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $61,857, worked from $68,320, 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 156 of 493 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
It is the midpoint, not the average. The average here is $75,270, dragged up by high earners; the middle figure describes a typical worker better.
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
The label is broader than the work. From $41,690 at the bottom tenth to $110,010 at the top, the same title covers roles that share little beyond a name.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
Further than the number implies. Iowa is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $61,857 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 Iowa's own levy, $54,909 remains.
Why is this job missing from some states?
The survey withholds small samples rather than publish an unreliable number. Pay appears for 47 states here, and a missing state means too few reports, not no jobs.
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 Iowa is $75,270. 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 drives the percentile dispersion in this occupation?
Dispersion between the tenth percentile ($41,690) and the ninetieth ($110,010) 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?
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 $61,857 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 $54,909 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 47 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.