Helpers--Carpenters in Indiana
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$35,445
after federal, FICA and Indiana tax
Tax takes
$7,495
17.5% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$38,450
Indiana costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Indiana — 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
$42,940
Kept after tax
$35,445
Worth in national money
$38,450
State rank
21
of 47 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Neither high nor low. Indiana is 21 of 47 states for helpers--carpenters, with a middle wage of $42,940. What that is worth is the question the rest of this page answers.
- Within Indiana this is lower-paid work. Of 493 occupations the state publishes figures for, helpers--carpenters ranks 390. That is the bottom quarter locally, whatever the national comparison says.
- Indiana is cheaper than average, and that shows up here. From $42,940 the take-home is $35,445; adjusted for what things actually cost, it goes as far as $38,450 would nationally. The average lands at $42,720, below the middle of the range.
- Indiana ranks 21 of 47 for helpers--carpenters at $42,940. The nominal figure is unremarkable; the adjusted figures are where the state's actual position for this occupation is determined.
- Against every occupation Indiana reports, helpers--carpenters ranks 390 of 493, 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.
- Post-tax income for helpers--carpenters in Indiana, on $42,940, is $35,445 — equivalent to $38,450 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 $42,720 the mean undershoots the median, an inversion of the usual skew.
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Pay band: Helpers--Carpenters
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $32,900 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $42,940 |
| Top tenth earn over | $53,460 |
| This salary | $42,940 |
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 Indiana | $35,445 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $36,682 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$702 |
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 | $41,400 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$849 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 92 |
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 helpers--carpenters in Indiana earn under $42,940 and half over. The published range runs $32,900 at the tenth percentile to $53,460 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- One filer, no dependants, no pension contributions — that is the household behind Indiana's $35,445, worked from $42,940. 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 390 of 493.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $38,450 uses one figure for the whole of Indiana. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 493 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 390.
- Figures are distribution medians for helpers--carpenters in Indiana, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $32,900 to $53,460; 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.
- The Indiana take-home of $35,445, on $42,940 for work ranking 390 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 390 of 493 in the state.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $38,450, worked from $42,940, 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 Indiana address, on work sitting at 390 of 493 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $32,900 and the top tenth $53,460, so most people doing this work in Indiana sit within a fairly tight band.
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 $38,450.
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 Indiana adds its own income tax on top — which is why $35,445 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 47 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 ($32,900 to $53,460) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Indiana rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Indiana'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 $38,450 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 $35,445 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Indiana 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.