Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers in Indiana
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$24,377
after federal, FICA and Indiana tax
Tax takes
$4,263
14.9% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$26,444
Indiana costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Indiana — 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
$28,640
Kept after tax
$24,377
Worth in national money
$26,444
State rank
35
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Pay for this job is on the low side in Indiana. The middle earner gets $28,640. That is 35 of 51 states, and about 14.71% under the national figure. Whether that matters depends on what things cost here.
- Against 493 occupations Indiana publishes, this job lands at 483. That is the lower quarter. That is the comparison people actually feel, more than any national table.
- Cheaper living works in this state's favor. From $28,640 you keep $24,377 after tax, and local prices stretch that to the equivalent of $26,444 at national prices. Here the average runs under the middle, at $28,590.
- For lifeguards, ski patrol, and other recreational protective service workers, Indiana sits in the lower band at $28,640, ranking 35 of 51 and trailing the national median by about 14.71%. Nominal rankings routinely invert once tax and regional price level are applied, so this position should not be read as the conclusion.
- Within Indiana, this work ranks 483 of 493 occupations by median pay, in the bottom quartile. The within-state position is the more salient one for anyone weighing this job against alternatives available to them locally.
- Retained pay in Indiana is $24,377 after the full tax stack, from $28,640. Because the state's price level runs below the national average, the price-adjusted equivalent is $26,444 — a real-terms figure describing purchasing power rather than compensation, and not a number that appears on any pay stub. Mean pay of $28,590 sits under the median, so the lower tail is the longer one.
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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 | $22,690 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $28,640 |
| Top tenth earn over | $33,280 |
| This salary | $28,640 |
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 Indiana | $24,377 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $25,192 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$519 |
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 | $27,646 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$628 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 92 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Indiana earn less than $28,640. The published range is $22,690 up to $33,280, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- In Indiana the take-home figure of $24,377, from $28,640, 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 483 of 493 occupations here.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $26,444 uses one figure for the whole of Indiana. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 493 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 483.
- Reported values are medians; for lifeguards, ski patrol, and other recreational protective service workers in Indiana the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $22,690 to $33,280. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Take-home for Indiana is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $24,377 from $28,640. 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 483 of 493 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $26,444, worked from $28,640, 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 Indiana address, on work sitting at 483 of 493 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
The range here is narrow. From $22,690 at the bottom tenth to $33,280 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 Indiana sit below the national level, so take-home here stretches like $26,444 would elsewhere. The wage is the same; the ground it covers is larger.
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 Indiana adds its own income tax on top — which is why $24,377 of this wage survives to your account.
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 ($22,690 to $33,280) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Indiana rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Indiana'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 $26,444 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 $24,377 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Indiana 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.