Helpers--Carpenters in Louisiana
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$34,202
after federal, FICA and Louisiana tax
Tax takes
$6,698
16.4% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$38,715
Louisiana costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Louisiana — 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
$40,900
Kept after tax
$34,202
Worth in national money
$38,715
State rank
25
of 47 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Middling, nationally. Louisiana pays helpers--carpenters around $40,900 at the midpoint, 25 of 47 states. The interesting numbers on this page are the two below it.
- Middle of the local pack. Of 484 occupations Louisiana reports figures for, this is number 344.
- Louisiana is cheaper than average, and that shows up here. From $40,900 the take-home is $34,202; adjusted for what things actually cost, it goes as far as $38,715 would nationally. The average lands at $39,860, below the middle of the range.
- For helpers--carpenters the Louisiana median is $40,900, ranking 25 of 47 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 Louisiana's occupational distribution, helpers--carpenters sits at 344 of 484 — 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 helpers--carpenters in Louisiana, on $40,900, is $34,202 — equivalent to $38,715 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 $39,860 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 | $22,660 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $40,900 |
| Top tenth earn over | $52,100 |
| This salary | $40,900 |
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 Louisiana | $34,202 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $35,043 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$2,653 |
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 | $39,854 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$3,208 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 88 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $40,900 as a midpoint for Louisiana, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $22,660 and the ninetieth is $52,100 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- That $34,202 take-home in Louisiana comes from $40,900. It is the no-frills case: single filer, standard deduction, nothing set aside before tax. Real circumstances almost always reduce the tax. City and school-district taxes are not counted at all. Locally the work ranks 344 of 484.
- One number stands for prices across all of Louisiana, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $38,715, the adjusted value of that $40,900 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 344 of 484 in the state.
- The Louisiana median of $40,900 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $22,660 to $52,100. Because that spread is typically larger than the interstate spread, a state median is a weak predictor for any individual worker in this occupation.
- Retained pay of $34,202, from $40,900, assumes a single Louisiana filer with the standard deduction and no elective deferrals. Pre-tax retirement or HSA contributions, dependants and itemized deductions all reduce it further; local income taxes, excluded here, would increase it in the states that levy them. This occupation ranks 344 of 484 locally, and the state ranks 25 of 47 for it.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Louisiana, so $38,715 — the adjusted value of that $40,900 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 344 of 484 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
The range here is narrow. From $22,660 at the bottom tenth to $52,100 at the top, pay for this work clusters rather than spreads.
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 $38,715.
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; Louisiana then takes its own share, leaving $34,202.
Why is this job missing from some states?
Because the survey suppresses a figure when too few employers report it. This occupation has published pay in 47 states — the rest are withheld to protect confidentiality, which is not the same as nobody doing the work there.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($22,660 to $52,100) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Louisiana rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Louisiana'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 $38,715 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 $34,202 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Louisiana 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.