Entertainment and Recreation Managers, Except Gambling in Utah
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$61,155
after federal, FICA and Utah tax
Tax takes
$18,245
23.0% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$64,372
Utah costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Utah — 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
$79,400
Kept after tax
$61,155
Worth in national money
$64,372
State rank
22
of 47 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Neither high nor low. Utah is 22 of 47 states for this job, with a middle wage of $79,400. What that is worth is the question the rest of this page answers.
- Locally, this pays well. Among 487 occupations Utah reports, this job comes in at 118 — comfortably in the upper quarter.
- Here is where Utah does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $79,400 you keep $61,155, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $64,372 would elsewhere. The average is higher, $83,850, because the best-paid pull it up.
- Utah ranks 22 of 47 for entertainment and recreation managers, except gambling at $79,400. The nominal figure is unremarkable; the adjusted figures are where the state's actual position for this occupation is determined.
- Entertainment and recreation managers, except gambling ranks 118 of 487 occupations by median in Utah, in the top quartile. Within-state position is largely independent of national position, so this holds regardless of how the state compares to others for the same work.
- After federal, FICA and Utah income tax, retained pay for entertainment and recreation managers, except gambling on $79,400 is $61,155. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $64,372 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 $83,850 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 | $44,210 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $79,400 |
| Top tenth earn over | $140,780 |
| This salary | $79,400 |
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 Utah | $61,155 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $64,688 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$2,197 |
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 | $74,378 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$3,034 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 95 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $79,400 as a midpoint for Utah, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $44,210 and the ninetieth is $140,780 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- In Utah the take-home figure of $61,155, from $79,400, 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 118 of 487 occupations here.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $64,372 uses one figure for the whole of Utah. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 487 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 118.
- The Utah median of $79,400 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $44,210 to $140,780. 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 Utah is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $61,155 from $79,400. 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 118 of 487 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $64,372, worked from $79,400, 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 Utah address, on work sitting at 118 of 487 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
No — it is the middle. Half of these workers earn more and half earn less. The average is $83,850, pulled upward by the top of the range, which is why the middle is the fairer number to plan against.
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
The label is broader than the work. From $44,210 at the bottom tenth to $140,780 at the top, the same title covers roles that share little beyond a name.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
A smaller wage in a cheaper place is not automatically less. Adjusted for local prices, this is worth $64,372.
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; Utah then takes its own share, leaving $61,155.
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 47 states — the rest are withheld to protect confidentiality, which is not the same as nobody doing the work there.
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 Utah is $83,850. 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 ($44,210) and the ninetieth ($140,780) 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?
Utah'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 $64,372 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 $61,155 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Utah 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.