Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists in Pennsylvania
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$55,092
after federal, FICA and Pennsylvania tax
Tax takes
$13,668
19.9% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$56,504
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
$68,760
Kept after tax
$55,092
Worth in national money
$56,504
State rank
29
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Neither high nor low. Pennsylvania is 29 of 51 states for this job, with a middle wage of $68,760. What that is worth is the question the rest of this page answers.
- Ordinary, locally speaking. This job ranks 174 among 492 occupations Pennsylvania publishes pay for.
- No great distortion either way. Pennsylvania costs about what the country costs, so from $68,760, take-home of $55,092 is worth roughly $56,504 in national money. The average comes to $77,100, above the middle, thanks to the top of the range.
- Pennsylvania ranks 29 of 51 for market research analysts and marketing specialists at $68,760. The nominal figure is unremarkable; the adjusted figures are where the state's actual position for this occupation is determined.
- Position 174 of 492 in Pennsylvania places market research analysts and marketing specialists in the middle of the state's wage distribution. Because within-state and cross-state rankings measure different things, this figure and the national one above should be read together rather than as a single verdict.
- Price parity in Pennsylvania is near the national base, so for market research analysts and marketing specialists, whose median is $68,760, the adjusted figure of $56,504 differs little from $55,092 retained after tax. The state's position for this occupation is therefore set by wage and tax rather than by living costs. At $77,100 the mean overshoots the median — the usual right-skewed shape.
Compare this career across states
Choose your filing status and local taxes, compare pay, and keep a shortlist.Compare wage and personal-pay outcomes by state, with selected resident local taxes and saved career choices.
Pay band: Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $34,160 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $68,760 |
| Top tenth earn over | $128,810 |
| This salary | $68,760 |
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 | $55,092 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $57,203 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$2,361 |
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 | $65,852 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$3,137 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 98 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $68,760 as a midpoint for Pennsylvania, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $34,160 and the ninetieth is $128,810 — 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 Pennsylvania's $55,092, worked from $68,760. 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 174 of 492.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $56,504 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 174.
- The Pennsylvania median of $68,760 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $34,160 to $128,810. 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 Pennsylvania take-home of $55,092, on $68,760 for work ranking 174 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 174 of 492 in the state.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $56,504, worked from $68,760, 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 174 of 492 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
No — it is the middle. Half of these workers earn more and half earn less. The average is $77,100, pulled upward by the top of the range, which is why the middle is the fairer number to plan against.
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
Because one job title covers very different work. The bottom tenth here earn $34,160 and the top tenth $128,810 — experience, employer and specialism separate them, and a single figure hides all three.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
A smaller wage in a cheaper place is not automatically less. Adjusted for local prices, this is worth $56,504.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Four deductions, stacked. The federal layer and the two payroll taxes apply wherever you work; Pennsylvania then takes its own share, leaving $55,092.
Can I compare this job across every state?
Yes for this one. Pay is published in all 51 jurisdictions, so a state-to-state comparison here rests on the same survey everywhere rather than on a patchwork.
How does the published median differ from the mean for this occupation?
The median is the midpoint of the distribution; the mean for this occupation in Pennsylvania is $77,100. Wage distributions are right-skewed, so the mean exceeds the median wherever a minority earn substantially more. BLS publishes both because substituting one for the other misstates a typical worker's pay.
What drives the percentile dispersion in this occupation?
Dispersion between the tenth percentile ($34,160) and the ninetieth ($128,810) exceeds the family median dispersion. SOC codes aggregate roles differing in seniority, industry and specialisation, and BLS does not disaggregate below the detailed occupation level, so within-title variance is not separable from the published series.
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 $56,504 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 $55,092 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.