Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, & Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, & Tenders, Metal & Plastic in Delaware
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$35,951
after federal, FICA and Delaware tax
Tax takes
$8,439
19.0% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$36,221
Delaware costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Delaware — 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
$44,390
Kept after tax
$35,951
Worth in national money
$36,221
State rank
33
of 48 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Delaware is among the lower-paying states for this job. The middle earner takes $44,390, ranking 33 of 48 states — about 4.64% below the national middle. Costs here are often lower too, which the figures further down account for.
- Measured against other jobs in Delaware, this one sits low: 341 of 445 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- Cost of living is unremarkable here. From $44,390, tax leaves $35,951, and adjusting for local prices barely moves it — about $36,221 in comparable terms. Here the average runs under the middle, at $43,760.
- Delaware ranks 33 of 48 for grinding, lapping, polishing, & buffing machine tool setters, operators, & tenders, metal & plastic, with a median of $44,390 — about 4.64% 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.
- Grinding, lapping, polishing, & buffing machine tool setters, operators, & tenders, metal & plastic occupies position 341 of 445 in Delaware's occupational wage distribution, in the bottom quartile. National ranking and local ranking answer different questions and frequently disagree; this is the one a resident experiences.
- Because Delaware sits close to the national price level, the real-terms figure for grinding, lapping, polishing, & buffing machine tool setters, operators, & tenders, metal & plastic — median $44,390 — tracks the post-tax figure closely: $35,951 retained, $36,221 adjusted. ⚠️ Neither is a wage; the second describes what the first buys. Mean pay of $43,760 sits under the median, so the lower tail is the longer one.
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Pay band: Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, & Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, & Tenders, Metal & Plastic
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $35,700 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $44,390 |
| Top tenth earn over | $54,200 |
| This salary | $44,390 |
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 Delaware | $35,951 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $37,847 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$2,726 |
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 | $42,029 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$3,297 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 99 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Delaware earn less than $44,390. The published range is $35,700 up to $54,200, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- In Delaware the take-home figure of $35,951, from $44,390, 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 341 of 445 occupations here.
- One number stands for prices across all of Delaware, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $36,221, the adjusted value of that $44,390 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 341 of 445 in the state.
- Reported values are medians; for grinding, lapping, polishing, & buffing machine tool setters, operators, & tenders, metal & plastic in Delaware the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $35,700 to $54,200. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Take-home for Delaware is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $35,951 from $44,390. 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 341 of 445 locally.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Delaware, so $36,221 — the adjusted value of that $44,390 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 341 of 445 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $35,700 and the top tenth $54,200, so most people doing this work in Delaware sit within a fairly tight band.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
Further than the number implies. Delaware is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $36,221 in national terms.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Into four separate taxes, not one. Federal income tax, Social Security and Medicare apply everywhere, and Delaware adds its own income tax on top — which is why $35,951 of this wage survives to your account.
Why is this job missing from some states?
The survey withholds small samples rather than publish an unreliable number. Pay appears for 48 states here, and a missing state means too few reports, not no jobs.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($35,700 to $54,200) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Delaware rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Delaware'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 $36,221 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 $35,951 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Delaware 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 48 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.