Library Assistants, Clerical in Arkansas
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$26,477
after federal, FICA and Arkansas tax
Tax takes
$4,623
14.9% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$30,606
Arkansas costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Arkansas — 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
$31,100
Kept after tax
$26,477
Worth in national money
$30,606
State rank
41
of 50 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Arkansas is among the lower-paying states for library assistants, clerical. The middle earner takes $31,100, ranking 41 of 50 states — about 15.74% below the national middle. Costs here are often lower too, which the figures further down account for.
- Measured against other jobs in Arkansas, this one sits low: 447 of 489 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- Cheaper living works in this state's favor. From $31,100 you keep $26,477 after tax, and local prices stretch that to the equivalent of $30,606 at national prices. Here the average runs under the middle, at $30,830.
- Arkansas ranks 41 of 50 for library assistants, clerical, with a median of $31,100 — about 15.74% below the national figure. A nominal shortfall is not by itself a real one: lower-paying states frequently carry lower tax and lower price levels, and the adjusted figures below are where that is settled rather than assumed.
- Library assistants, clerical occupies position 447 of 489 in Arkansas'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.
- Retained pay in Arkansas is $26,477 after the full tax stack, from $31,100. Because the state's price level runs below the national average, the price-adjusted equivalent is $30,606 — a real-terms figure describing purchasing power rather than compensation, and not a number that appears on any pay stub. Mean pay of $30,830 sits under the median, so the lower tail is the longer one.
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Pay band: Library Assistants, Clerical
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $24,120 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $31,100 |
| Top tenth earn over | $34,930 |
| This salary | $31,100 |
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 Arkansas | $26,477 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $27,169 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$2,647 |
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 | $30,239 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$3,202 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 87 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Arkansas earn less than $31,100. The published range is $24,120 up to $34,930, 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 Arkansas's $26,477, worked from $31,100. 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 447 of 489.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $30,606 uses one figure for the whole of Arkansas. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 489 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 447.
- Reported values are medians; for library assistants, clerical in Arkansas the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $24,120 to $34,930. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- The Arkansas take-home of $26,477, on $31,100 for work ranking 447 of 489 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 447 of 489 in the state.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $30,606, worked from $31,100, 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 Arkansas address, on work sitting at 447 of 489 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $24,120 and the top tenth $34,930, so most people doing this work in Arkansas sit within a fairly tight band.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
Further than the number implies. Arkansas is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $30,606 in national terms.
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 Arkansas's own levy, $26,477 remains.
Why is this job missing from some states?
The survey withholds small samples rather than publish an unreliable number. Pay appears for 50 states here, and a missing state means too few reports, not no jobs.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($24,120 to $34,930) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Arkansas rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Arkansas'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 $30,606 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 $26,477 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Arkansas 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 50 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.