Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers in Florida
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$30,335
after federal, FICA and Florida tax
Tax takes
$4,705
13.4% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$29,322
Florida costs more than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Florida — 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
$35,040
Kept after tax
$30,335
Worth in national money
$29,322
State rank
13
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Pay for this job is strong here. Florida's middle earner gets $35,040, putting the state 13 of 51 — about 4.35% ahead of the national figure.
- Measured against other jobs in Florida, this one sits low: 458 of 493 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- The wage here flatters the reality. From $35,040 the take-home is $30,335. But Florida costs more than the national average, so that money behaves more like $29,322 would elsewhere. Worth knowing before comparing offers across states. The average is higher, $35,510, because the best-paid pull it up.
- For lifeguards, ski patrol, and other recreational protective service workers, Florida sits in the upper band nationally: a median of $35,040, ranking 13 of 51 and running about 4.35% 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.
- Lifeguards, ski patrol, and other recreational protective service workers occupies position 458 of 493 in Florida'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 after federal, FICA and Florida income tax is $30,335 for lifeguards, ski patrol, and other recreational protective service workers, from $35,040. The state's price level exceeds the national average, so the price-adjusted equivalent is $29,322. ⚠️ This is purchasing power and not a wage; cross-state offer comparisons that stop at the nominal figure systematically overvalue high-cost states. The mean of $35,510 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $28,510 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $35,040 |
| Top tenth earn over | $45,000 |
| This salary | $35,040 |
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 Florida | $30,335 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $30,335 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$1,894 |
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 | $35,040 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$2,291 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 103 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Florida earn less than $35,040. The published range is $28,510 up to $45,000, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- In Florida the take-home figure of $30,335, from $35,040, 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 458 of 493 occupations here.
- One number stands for prices across all of Florida, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $29,322, the adjusted value of that $35,040 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 458 of 493 in the state.
- Reported values are medians; for lifeguards, ski patrol, and other recreational protective service workers in Florida the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $28,510 to $45,000. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Take-home for Florida is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $30,335 from $35,040. 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 458 of 493 locally.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Florida, so $29,322 — the adjusted value of that $35,040 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 458 of 493 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $28,510 and the top tenth $45,000, so most people doing this work in Florida sit within a fairly tight band.
Does a bigger number here mean I am better off?
Not on its own. Prices in Florida run above the national level, so the same dollars buy less here. Adjusted for that, this pay is worth $29,322 — the wage did not change, only what it covers.
Is most of this wage taxed away?
No. $30,335 survives, because Florida levies no wage income tax. The federal share does not change with the state you work in.
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 ($28,510 to $45,000) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Florida rather than a national figure.
How does the state price level affect real compensation?
Florida's regional price parity sits above the national average, so nominal wages overstate purchasing power. Deflating take-home by the state price level gives $29,322 in national-average terms. ⚠️ RPPs are an all-items index; housing parities vary far more widely than the headline figure.
Why is the take-home ratio comparatively high in this state?
Florida levies no personal income tax on wages, so take-home of $30,335 reflects the federal layer and FICA alone. Federal income tax and FICA are unchanged; states without a wage income tax generally recover revenue through consumption and property bases instead.
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.