Helpers--Pipelayers, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters in Wisconsin
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$34,461
after federal, FICA and Wisconsin tax
Tax takes
$7,209
17.3% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$37,016
Wisconsin costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Wisconsin — 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
$41,670
Kept after tax
$34,461
Worth in national money
$37,016
State rank
26
of 48 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Wisconsin sits in the middle of the pack for this job. The median is $41,670, ranking 26 of 48 states with figures. Close enough to the national middle that where you live matters more than the headline suggests.
- Measured against other jobs in Wisconsin, this one sits low: 409 of 491 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- Here is where Wisconsin does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $41,670 you keep $34,461, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $37,016 would elsewhere. The average is higher, $42,200, because the best-paid pull it up.
- Wisconsin occupies the middle band for helpers--pipelayers, plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters: a median of $41,670, ranking 26 of 48. Where nominal pay is close to the national figure, the tax and price adjustments below carry proportionally more weight in determining the real outcome.
- Helpers--pipelayers, plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters occupies position 409 of 491 in Wisconsin'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.
- After federal, FICA and Wisconsin income tax, retained pay for helpers--pipelayers, plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters on $41,670 is $34,461. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $37,016 in national-average terms. ⚠️ That figure is purchasing power, not a wage, and nobody is paid it; it is what the take-home buys. The mean of $42,200 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
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Pay band: Helpers--Pipelayers, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $23,470 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $41,670 |
| Top tenth earn over | $57,390 |
| This salary | $41,670 |
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 Wisconsin | $34,461 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $35,662 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$318 |
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 | $40,175 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$384 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 93 |
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--pipelayers, plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters in Wisconsin earn under $41,670 and half over. The published range runs $23,470 at the tenth percentile to $57,390 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- In Wisconsin the take-home figure of $34,461, from $41,670, 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 409 of 491 occupations here.
- One number stands for prices across all of Wisconsin, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $37,016, the adjusted value of that $41,670 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 409 of 491 in the state.
- Figures are distribution medians for helpers--pipelayers, plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters in Wisconsin, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $23,470 to $57,390; 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 Wisconsin is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $34,461 from $41,670. 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 409 of 491 locally.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Wisconsin, so $37,016 — the adjusted value of that $41,670 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 409 of 491 locally.
Questions people ask
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
Because one job title covers very different work. The bottom tenth here earn $23,470 and the top tenth $57,390 — experience, employer and specialism separate them, and a single figure hides all three.
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 $37,016.
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 Wisconsin adds its own income tax on top — which is why $34,461 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 drives the percentile dispersion in this occupation?
Dispersion between the tenth percentile ($23,470) and the ninetieth ($57,390) exceeds the family median dispersion. SOC codes aggregate roles differing in seniority, industry and specialisation, and BLS does not disaggregate below the detailed occupation level, so within-title variance is not separable from the published series.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Wisconsin'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 $37,016 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 $34,461 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Wisconsin 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.