Helpers--Carpenters in Massachusetts
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$38,766
after federal, FICA and Massachusetts tax
Tax takes
$9,364
19.5% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$35,815
Massachusetts costs more than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Massachusetts — 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
$48,130
Kept after tax
$38,766
Worth in national money
$35,815
State rank
7
of 47 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Pay for helpers--carpenters is strong here. Massachusetts's middle earner gets $48,130, putting the state 7 of 47 — about 9.94% ahead of the national figure.
- Measured against other jobs in Massachusetts, this one sits low: 380 of 485 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- Massachusetts is an expensive state, and the adjusted figure shows it. From $48,130 the take-home is $38,766; in national-average money that behaves like $35,815. The average lands at $46,910, below the middle of the range.
- For helpers--carpenters, Massachusetts sits in the upper band nationally: a median of $48,130, ranking 7 of 47 and running about 9.94% above the national midpoint. Nominal advantage of this size is usually, though not always, large enough to survive the state's own tax and price levels.
- Helpers--carpenters occupies position 380 of 485 in Massachusetts'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.
- Take-home for helpers--carpenters in Massachusetts, on $48,130, is $38,766; deflated by the state's price level, $35,815. ⚠️ The deflator is statewide, so it understates the erosion in the state's metropolitan areas and overstates it outside them. At $46,910 the mean undershoots the median, an inversion of the usual skew.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Helpers--Carpenters
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $35,190 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $48,130 |
| Top tenth earn over | $56,160 |
| This salary | $48,130 |
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 Massachusetts | $38,766 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $40,852 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$6,225 |
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 | $45,533 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$7,528 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 108 |
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 Massachusetts earn under $48,130 and half over. The published range runs $35,190 at the tenth percentile to $56,160 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 Massachusetts's $38,766, worked from $48,130. 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 380 of 485.
- Two cautions on $35,815, the adjusted value of that $48,130 median. It levels out prices with a single number for all of Massachusetts. 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 380 of 485 locally.
- Figures are distribution medians for helpers--carpenters in Massachusetts, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $35,190 to $56,160; 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 Massachusetts take-home of $38,766, on $48,130 for work ranking 380 of 485 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 380 of 485 in the state.
- This $35,815 adjusted figure, worked from $48,130, 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 380 of 485 in the state. The occupation ranks 380 of 485 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Most of these jobs pay within a close range — $35,190 at the tenth percentile, $56,160 at the ninetieth.
Does a bigger number here mean I am better off?
A larger wage in a dearer place is not automatically more. Adjusted for local prices, this pay behaves like $35,815 of national purchasing power.
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; Massachusetts then takes its own share, leaving $38,766.
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 ($35,190 to $56,160) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Massachusetts rather than a national figure.
How does the state price level affect real compensation?
Massachusetts's regional price parity sits above the national average, so nominal wages overstate purchasing power. Deflating take-home by the state price level gives $35,815 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 $38,766 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Massachusetts 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.