Helpers--Production Workers in Colorado
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$37,484
after federal, FICA and Colorado tax
Tax takes
$8,066
17.7% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$36,973
Colorado costs more than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Colorado — 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
$45,550
Kept after tax
$37,484
Worth in national money
$36,973
State rank
4
of 49 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Colorado is one of the better-paying states for helpers--production workers. The middle earner takes $45,550, which ranks 4 of 49 states with published figures. That is about 16.59% above the national middle.
- Measured against other jobs in Colorado, this one sits low: 419 of 491 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- Cost of living is unremarkable here. From $45,550, tax leaves $37,484, and adjusting for local prices barely moves it — about $36,973 in comparable terms. Here the average runs under the middle, at $45,190.
- Colorado ranks 4 of 49 states publishing a median for helpers--production workers, at $45,550 — about 16.59% above the national median. A state's position on nominal pay is the figure wage tables report and the least informative of the three on this page, because it survives neither the tax adjustment nor the price adjustment intact for most occupations.
- Helpers--production workers occupies position 419 of 491 in Colorado'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 Colorado sits close to the national price level, the real-terms figure for helpers--production workers — median $45,550 — tracks the post-tax figure closely: $37,484 retained, $36,973 adjusted. ⚠️ Neither is a wage; the second describes what the first buys. Mean pay of $45,190 sits under the median, so the lower tail is the longer one.
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Pay band: Helpers--Production Workers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $35,810 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $45,550 |
| Top tenth earn over | $54,910 |
| This salary | $45,550 |
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 Colorado | $37,484 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $38,779 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$2,934 |
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 | $43,937 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$3,549 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 101 |
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--production workers in Colorado earn under $45,550 and half over. The published range runs $35,810 at the tenth percentile to $54,910 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- That $37,484 take-home in Colorado comes from $45,550. 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 419 of 491.
- One number stands for prices across all of Colorado, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $36,973, the adjusted value of that $45,550 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 419 of 491 in the state.
- Figures are distribution medians for helpers--production workers in Colorado, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $35,810 to $54,910; 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.
- Retained pay of $37,484, from $45,550, assumes a single Colorado 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 419 of 491 locally, and the state ranks 4 of 49 for it.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Colorado, so $36,973 — the adjusted value of that $45,550 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 419 of 491 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $35,810 and the top tenth $54,910, so most people doing this work in Colorado sit within a fairly tight band.
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 $36,973 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; Colorado then takes its own share, leaving $37,484.
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 49 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 ($35,810 to $54,910) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Colorado rather than a national figure.
How does the state price level affect real compensation?
Colorado's regional price parity sits above the national average, so nominal wages overstate purchasing power. Deflating take-home by the state price level gives $36,973 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 $37,484 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Colorado 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 49 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.