Firefighters in Michigan
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$44,012
after federal, FICA and Michigan tax
Tax takes
$10,628
19.5% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$46,730
Michigan costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Michigan — 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
$54,640
Kept after tax
$44,012
Worth in national money
$46,730
State rank
28
of 50 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Middling, nationally. Michigan pays firefighters around $54,640 at the midpoint, 28 of 50 states. The interesting numbers on this page are the two below it.
- Middle of the local pack. Of 493 occupations Michigan reports figures for, this is number 273.
- Michigan is cheaper than average, and that shows up here. From $54,640 the take-home is $44,012; adjusted for what things actually cost, it goes as far as $46,730 would nationally. The average comes to $56,250, above the middle, thanks to the top of the range.
- For firefighters the Michigan median is $54,640, ranking 28 of 50 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.
- In Michigan's occupational distribution, firefighters sits at 273 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.
- Post-tax income for firefighters in Michigan, on $54,640, is $44,012 — equivalent to $46,730 once regional price parity is applied. ⚠️ The adjustment uses a statewide index that describes no particular address; within-state price variation, concentrated in housing, routinely exceeds the difference between two states. At $56,250 the mean overshoots the median — the usual right-skewed shape.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Firefighters
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $37,190 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $54,640 |
| Top tenth earn over | $78,550 |
| This salary | $54,640 |
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 Michigan | $44,012 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $46,083 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$693 |
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 | $52,062 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$839 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 94 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Michigan earn less than $54,640. The published range is $37,190 up to $78,550, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- One filer, no dependants, no pension contributions — that is the household behind Michigan's $44,012, worked from $54,640. That is on purpose. It lets states be compared with each other, not with each other's family circumstances. Local city taxes are left out. Locally this work ranks 273 of 493.
- One number stands for prices across all of Michigan, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $46,730, the adjusted value of that $54,640 median, as a way to compare states fairly, not as a quote for any particular place. The two datasets are also from different years. This job sits at 273 of 493 in the state.
- Reported values are medians; for firefighters in Michigan the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $37,190 to $78,550. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- The Michigan take-home of $44,012, on $54,640 for work ranking 273 of 493 locally, models the simplest household deliberately: holding it constant is what makes the interstate comparison meaningful. It also means the absolute figure overstates liability for most real filers, and municipal income taxes are outside the model entirely. The occupation ranks 273 of 493 in the state.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Michigan, so $46,730 — the adjusted value of that $54,640 median — establishes comparability between states rather than accuracy within one. The wage and parity series are dated independently, each following its own publication cycle, and neither is projected forward. This occupation sits at 273 of 493 locally.
Questions people ask
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
The label is broader than the work. From $37,190 at the bottom tenth to $78,550 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. Michigan is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $46,730 in national terms.
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; Michigan then takes its own share, leaving $44,012.
Why is this job missing from some states?
A blank is a suppression, not a zero. 50 states have a published figure for this work; the others had too few responses to release one.
What drives the percentile dispersion in this occupation?
Dispersion between the tenth percentile ($37,190) and the ninetieth ($78,550) 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?
Michigan'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 $46,730 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 $44,012 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Michigan 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 50 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.