Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand in Pennsylvania
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$35,009
after federal, FICA and Pennsylvania tax
Tax takes
$7,471
17.6% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$35,906
Pennsylvania costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Pennsylvania — 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
$42,480
Kept after tax
$35,009
Worth in national money
$35,906
State rank
20
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Pennsylvania sits in the middle of the pack for this job. The median is $42,480, ranking 20 of 51 states with figures. Close enough to the national middle that where you live matters more than the headline suggests.
- Measured against other jobs in Pennsylvania, this one sits low: 402 of 492 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- Prices here sit close to the national average, so the adjustment changes little. From $42,480 the take-home is $35,009, which is worth about $35,906 in comparable money. Tax does most of the work here, not cost of living. The average is higher, $43,130, because the best-paid pull it up.
- Pennsylvania occupies the middle band for laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand: a median of $42,480, ranking 20 of 51. Where nominal pay is close to the national figure, the tax and price adjustments below carry proportionally more weight in determining the real outcome.
- Laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand occupies position 402 of 492 in Pennsylvania'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.
- Pennsylvania's price level is near the national average, so price deflation is close to neutral for laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand on its $42,480 median: $35,009 retained after tax becomes $35,906 in national-average terms. Where the price adjustment is small, the tax stack is the dominant determinant of the real outcome. The mean of $43,130 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $32,240 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $42,480 |
| Top tenth earn over | $56,280 |
| This salary | $42,480 |
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 Pennsylvania | $35,009 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $36,313 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$1,462 |
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 | $40,857 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$1,768 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 98 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Pennsylvania earn less than $42,480. The published range is $32,240 up to $56,280, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- One filer, no dependants, no pension contributions — that is the household behind Pennsylvania's $35,009, worked from $42,480. 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 402 of 492.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $35,906 uses one figure for the whole of Pennsylvania. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 492 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 402.
- Reported values are medians; for laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand in Pennsylvania the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $32,240 to $56,280. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- The Pennsylvania take-home of $35,009, on $42,480 for work ranking 402 of 492 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 402 of 492 in the state.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $35,906, worked from $42,480, 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 Pennsylvania address, on work sitting at 402 of 492 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
The range here is narrow. From $32,240 at the bottom tenth to $56,280 at the top, pay for this work clusters rather than spreads.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
More than the figure suggests. Prices in Pennsylvania sit below the national level, so take-home here stretches like $35,906 would elsewhere. The wage is the same; the ground it covers is larger.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Three of them are federal and one is not. After income tax, Social Security, Medicare and Pennsylvania's own levy, $35,009 remains.
Can I compare this job across every state?
This occupation is published everywhere — all 51 of them — so comparing states measures real differences rather than gaps in the data.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($32,240 to $56,280) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Pennsylvania rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Pennsylvania'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 $35,906 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 $35,009 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Pennsylvania 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.
Is this occupation's state coverage complete?
State-level estimates are published for all 51 jurisdictions for this occupation, so cross-state comparison is not confounded by suppression. ⚠️ Estimates remain survey-based and carry sampling error; small differences between adjacent states should not be over-read.