Food Processing Workers, All Other in Arizona
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$37,872
after federal, FICA and Arizona tax
Tax takes
$7,458
16.5% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$37,458
Arizona costs more than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Arizona — 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
$45,330
Kept after tax
$37,872
Worth in national money
$37,458
State rank
6
of 46 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Arizona is one of the better-paying states for food processing workers, all other. The middle earner takes $45,330, which ranks 6 of 46 states with published figures. That is about 14.24% above the national middle.
- Within Arizona this is lower-paid work. Of 491 occupations the state publishes figures for, food processing workers, all other ranks 385. That is the bottom quarter locally, whatever the national comparison says.
- No great distortion either way. Arizona costs about what the country costs, so from $45,330, take-home of $37,872 is worth roughly $37,458 in national money. The average lands at $43,950, below the middle of the range.
- Arizona ranks 6 of 46 states publishing a median for food processing workers, all other, at $45,330 — about 14.24% above the national median. A state's position on nominal pay is the figure wage tables report and the least informative of the three on this page, because it survives neither the tax adjustment nor the price adjustment intact for most occupations.
- Against every occupation Arizona reports, food processing workers, all other ranks 385 of 491, in the lowest quartile of the state's distribution. That position is set by the local labor market and is independent of how the state compares nationally for this work.
- Price parity in Arizona is near the national base, so for food processing workers, all other, whose median is $45,330, the adjusted figure of $37,458 differs little from $37,872 retained after tax. The state's position for this occupation is therefore set by wage and tax rather than by living costs. At $43,950 the mean undershoots the median, an inversion of the usual skew.
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Pay band: Food Processing Workers, All Other
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $36,750 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $45,330 |
| Top tenth earn over | $50,240 |
| This salary | $45,330 |
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 Arizona | $37,872 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $38,603 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$2,267 |
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 | $44,421 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$2,742 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 101 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- A median is the middle, not an offer. Half of food processing workers, all other in Arizona earn under $45,330 and half over. The published range runs $36,750 at the tenth percentile to $50,240 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- In Arizona the take-home figure of $37,872, from $45,330, 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 385 of 491 occupations here.
- Two cautions on $37,458, the adjusted value of that $45,330 median. It levels out prices with a single number for all of Arizona. 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 385 of 491 locally.
- Figures are distribution medians for food processing workers, all other in Arizona, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $36,750 to $50,240; within-state dispersion of that width routinely exceeds the dispersion between states, so tenure, employer and metropolitan area predict an individual's pay better than geography does.
- Take-home for Arizona is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $37,872 from $45,330. 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 385 of 491 locally.
- This $37,458 adjusted figure, worked from $45,330, 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 385 of 491 in the state. The occupation ranks 385 of 491 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
Half earn more than this and half earn less. The average sits at $43,950 because a long tail of high pay lifts it, so the two answer different questions.
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Most of these jobs pay within a close range — $36,750 at the tenth percentile, $50,240 at the ninetieth.
Does a bigger number here mean I am better off?
Not on its own. Prices in Arizona run above the national level, so the same dollars buy less here. Adjusted for that, this pay is worth $37,458 — the wage did not change, only what it covers.
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; Arizona then takes its own share, leaving $37,872.
Why is this job missing from some states?
The survey withholds small samples rather than publish an unreliable number. Pay appears for 46 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 Arizona is $43,950. 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 is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($36,750 to $50,240) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Arizona rather than a national figure.
How does the state price level affect real compensation?
Arizona's regional price parity sits above the national average, so nominal wages overstate purchasing power. Deflating take-home by the state price level gives $37,458 in national-average terms. ⚠️ RPPs are an all-items index; housing parities vary far more widely than the headline figure.
What accounts for the gap between gross wage and take-home here?
Take-home of $37,872 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Arizona 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 46 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.