Exercise Trainers and Group Fitness Instructors in Kentucky
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$37,095
after federal, FICA and Kentucky tax
Tax takes
$8,185
18.1% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$41,004
Kentucky costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Kentucky — 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
$45,280
Kept after tax
$37,095
Worth in national money
$41,004
State rank
25
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Neither high nor low. Kentucky is 25 of 51 states for this job, with a middle wage of $45,280. What that is worth is the question the rest of this page answers.
- Middle of the local pack. Of 491 occupations Kentucky reports figures for, this is number 348.
- Cheaper living works in this state's favor. From $45,280 you keep $37,095 after tax, and local prices stretch that to the equivalent of $41,004 at national prices. Averages run higher here, $46,580, since top earners drag the number up.
- Kentucky ranks 25 of 51 for exercise trainers and group fitness instructors at $45,280. The nominal figure is unremarkable; the adjusted figures are where the state's actual position for this occupation is determined.
- In Kentucky's occupational distribution, exercise trainers and group fitness instructors sits at 348 of 491 — 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.
- Retained pay in Kentucky is $37,095 after the full tax stack, from $45,280. Because the state's price level runs below the national average, the price-adjusted equivalent is $41,004 — a real-terms figure describing purchasing power rather than compensation, and not a number that appears on any pay stub. Mean pay of $46,580 exceeds the median, so the upper tail is doing the work.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Exercise Trainers and Group Fitness Instructors
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $23,720 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $45,280 |
| Top tenth earn over | $70,790 |
| This salary | $45,280 |
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 Kentucky | $37,095 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $38,562 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$1,320 |
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 | $43,454 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$1,597 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 90 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $45,280 as a midpoint for Kentucky, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $23,720 and the ninetieth is $70,790 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- In Kentucky the take-home figure of $37,095, from $45,280, 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 348 of 491 occupations here.
- Two cautions on $41,004, the adjusted value of that $45,280 median. It levels out prices with a single number for all of Kentucky. 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 348 of 491 locally.
- The Kentucky median of $45,280 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $23,720 to $70,790. 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 Kentucky is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $37,095 from $45,280. 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 348 of 491 locally.
- This $41,004 adjusted figure, worked from $45,280, 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 348 of 491 in the state. The occupation ranks 348 of 491 locally.
Questions people ask
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
The label is broader than the work. From $23,720 at the bottom tenth to $70,790 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. Kentucky is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $41,004 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 Kentucky's own levy, $37,095 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 ($23,720) and the ninetieth ($70,790) 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?
Kentucky'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 $41,004 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 $37,095 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Kentucky 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.