Locksmiths and Safe Repairers in Montana
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$45,452
after federal, FICA and Montana tax
Tax takes
$10,748
19.1% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$50,366
Montana costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Montana — 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
$56,200
Kept after tax
$45,452
Worth in national money
$50,366
State rank
17
of 48 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Montana sits in the middle of the pack for locksmiths and safe repairers. The median is $56,200, ranking 17 of 48 states with figures. Close enough to the national middle that where you live matters more than the headline suggests.
- Middle of the local pack. Of 475 occupations Montana reports figures for, this is number 254.
- Here is where Montana does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $56,200 you keep $45,452, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $50,366 would elsewhere. The average is lower, $55,920, so pay clusters nearer the top than usual.
- Montana occupies the middle band for locksmiths and safe repairers: a median of $56,200, ranking 17 of 48. Where nominal pay is close to the national figure, the tax and price adjustments below carry proportionally more weight in determining the real outcome.
- In Montana's occupational distribution, locksmiths and safe repairers sits at 254 of 475 — neither quartile. This local position is what a resident compares against, and it is determined by the state's own labor market rather than by national patterns for this occupation.
- After federal, FICA and Montana income tax, retained pay for locksmiths and safe repairers on $56,200 is $45,452. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $50,366 in national-average terms. ⚠️ That figure is purchasing power, not a wage, and nobody is paid it; it is what the take-home buys. The mean of $55,920 falls below the median, a left skew that is uncommon in wage data.
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Pay band: Locksmiths and Safe Repairers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $39,730 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $56,200 |
| Top tenth earn over | $74,990 |
| This salary | $56,200 |
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 Montana | $45,452 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $47,337 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$1,653 |
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 | $53,854 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$1,999 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 90 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $56,200 as a midpoint for Montana, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $39,730 and the ninetieth is $74,990 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- One filer, no dependants, no pension contributions — that is the household behind Montana's $45,452, worked from $56,200. 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 254 of 475.
- One number stands for prices across all of Montana, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $50,366, the adjusted value of that $56,200 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 254 of 475 in the state.
- The Montana median of $56,200 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $39,730 to $74,990. Because that spread is typically larger than the interstate spread, a state median is a weak predictor for any individual worker in this occupation.
- The Montana take-home of $45,452, on $56,200 for work ranking 254 of 475 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 254 of 475 in the state.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Montana, so $50,366 — the adjusted value of that $56,200 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 254 of 475 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Most of these jobs pay within a close range — $39,730 at the tenth percentile, $74,990 at the ninetieth.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
Further than the number implies. Montana is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $50,366 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 Montana's own levy, $45,452 remains.
Why is this job missing from some states?
The survey withholds small samples rather than publish an unreliable number. Pay appears for 48 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 ($39,730 to $74,990) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Montana rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Montana'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 $50,366 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 $45,452 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Montana 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 48 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.